Google updated the interface of the Dictionary OneBox and added synonyms. They were already available if you clicked “more info” to see the entire list of definitions, but synonyms are useful enough to be displayed in the OneBox.

Another change is that the OneBox includes more definitions for each part of speech:

To trigger the Dictionary OneBox, search for [define word] or [word definition]. In some cases, Google shows the OneBox even if you don’t include “define” or “definition”. For example, if you search for [obnubilate], Google will show the definitions because it’s likely that they’re useful for many people.

{ Thanks, Bora and Venkat. }

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Google’s OneBox for movie showtimes has a new interface that offers information about more movies. It’s much easier to compare movies and you can click “show more movies” to expand the OneBox. Google links to the Google Movies site, which shows short snippets from reviews, trailers, small photos, but also links to IMDb.

Here’s the old OneBox:



In other related news, François Beaufort spotted that the Google.com sprite, which includes all the images that are used in the search results pages, added 4 icons for flight search, music search and movie search.

{ Thanks, Surat. }

Google Operating System

Google started to test a more advanced OneBox for flight-related searches. Right now, when you search for [flights from London to Barcelona] Google links to services like Expedia, Orbitz or Kayak. The OneBox is useful, but it doesn’t show a list of flights.

After acquiring ITA Software, Google has access to a lot more information about flights and no longer have to send users to services like Expedia. Google can even provide information when you enter a vague query like [flights to Barcelona].

Here’s the experimental flight OneBox, as spotted by Richard from SEO Gadget:

When you click “expand all non-stop routes to Barcelona”, Google shows a very long list of cities. It’s probably the biggest and most overwhelming Google OneBox. Maybe a drop-down would’ve been more useful.

After selecting one of the cities, Google sends you to a new search results page that shows a long list of flights.

It’s nice to have all this information at your fingertips, but it’s too overwhelming and these kinds of details aren’t suited for an OneBox. Richard also noticed that “you get to data, with no call to action. I think this means most folks would be forced to repeat their search again on a flight provider.”

Hopefully, Google will launch a Flight Search service that will also include the brilliant visualizations developed by ITA Software and the OneBox will just be a gateway to the new service.

{ Thanks, Richard. }

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Google’s OneBox displayed when you search for the name of a country, a city or a zip code got smarter. Google added an outline around the location you want to find, so the map is even more useful. For example, try searching for [Bronx], [Detroit 48238], [Baku], [Paraguay map].

Chris, a reader of this blog, says that he used CityData before noticing the new Google feature. While CityData is only useful for the US, the Google Maps OneBox is displayed for almost any city in the world.

{ via Search Engine Land. Thanks, Chris. }

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Google started to show the most relevant web page at the top of the video search results. The strange OneBox result is only displayed for navigational queries, which usually return a single significant result.

To try this feature, go to Google’s homepage, enter a random query, then click “Videos” in the sidebar and enter a navigational query (for example: microsoft).

Sometimes the ads and the top result take so much space that they push video results below the fold.

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Google added a new OneBox result for definitions. The OneBox uses data from Google Dictionary, shows pronunciation information, short definitions and links to other reference sites like Dictionary.com and Answers.com. Google shows the definition of an English word only if it’s likely to be useful, so you’ll usually see the OneBox when you search for obscure words or technical terms.

“We added implicit triggering, which means you can simply search for [flummox] and find the definition, you don’t have to search for [define flummox] or [what is flummox]. We’ve also improved the definition result snippet to show more details such as parts of speech and pronunciation,” explains Google.

Unfortunately, Google’s new OneBox is redundant and inconsistent. If you type [salient] in Google’s search box, Google Suggest already shows a definition of the word from Princeton’s WordNet.

Search for [define salient] and Google shows a definition from WordNet, not from Google Dictionary.

Tip: to trigger the new OneBox when it’s not displayed by default, add en:en to your query. For example, search for [en:en emulsion].

Google Operating System