If you're trying to find the Exalead search engine - which I thoroughly recommend, you might be finding it a touch difficult. A search for www.exalead.com will redirect you to www.exalead.com/search which is all about the company, without a search box in sight. (The link to the search engine is bottom left). The same thing happens if you try the UK site. In order to get to the search engine you need to go to http://www.exalead.co.uk/search which really isn't helpful.
I really don't understand the reasoning behind this - while I accept that Exalead wants to emphasis the work they're doing with Enterprise search, to make it so difficult to find the search engine isn't going to be getting more people to use it! Please reconsider your home page approach - or at least, reposition the link to the search page towards the top of the page so that people can find it. Exalead has, in my view, a great chance to take over from Ask if they play their cards right, but this isn't helping.
I really don't understand the reasoning behind this - while I accept that Exalead wants to emphasis the work they're doing with Enterprise search, to make it so difficult to find the search engine isn't going to be getting more people to use it! Please reconsider your home page approach - or at least, reposition the link to the search page towards the top of the page so that people can find it. Exalead has, in my view, a great chance to take over from Ask if they play their cards right, but this isn't helping.
exalead.com/search also works, but you're right, they seem to be hiding their search light under a bushel. Does this mean they're abandoning web search in favour of enterprise only?
Posted by: Marydee | January 29, 2009 at 02:12 AM
I work with them, and seriously doubt they'll be abandoning it any time soon. I think that the whole 'real free' cross subsidy thing might help convince them about quite what an asset they've got in consumer search in the new year - but we shall see.
Posted by: James Stockbridge | February 02, 2009 at 03:19 PM
Hi Phil,
Actually our homepage differs from country to country. For example, www.exalead.fr will give you the searchbox. I agree that this is somewhat confusing.
The idea is that for countries where Exalead is popular as a websearch engine, we will show the searchbox. For other countries, we emphasize the enterprise search.
Anyway, http://www.exalead.com/search will always give you what you're looking for.
Posted by: Jochem Prins | February 03, 2009 at 04:45 PM
I totally agree with you on this. I use Exalead for info skills teaching as the thumbnails of sites work well with students, but I've embarassed myself failing to find the search engine on more than one occasion.
Posted by: Lindsay Wallace | February 04, 2009 at 10:04 PM