

Powerset Launches Showcase For User Search Experience - kyro
http://www.techcrunch.com/2008/05/11/powerset-launches-showcase-for-user-search-experience/

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nickb
I haven't been on the top of the Powerset developments but from trying it out,
I have to say I'm disappointed. I asked it a few questions and it returned
really poor results. I then asked the same thing on google and used
site:en.wikipedia.org so they're using the same data set and Google found what
I asked (I was asking questions like "who was born on <specific date here>".

Am I doing it wrong?

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KirinDave
Powerset doesn't have AI-complete NLP, it's more like real NLP. So try things
where your w-words (who what when where why how) are somewhat like wildcards.
You can't say, "List all Kosher meats in alphabetic Order" but you could say,
"Which meats are Kosher?" You'll see a link to "Kosher Foods" with acceptable
results. Click on the page and notice your complete list of results are
highlighted on the right. Click one:
[http://img.skitch.com/20080512-piw4tn8pc6gnf4w7h46q6ghekn.jp...](http://img.skitch.com/20080512-piw4tn8pc6gnf4w7h46q6ghekn.jpg)

Powerset isn't just about an open-box search, it's also about integrating
search into the results. It's clearly not perfect, but it's definitely
interesting.

Also, for fun, search for Comic Sans. Good luck regaining your sight.

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reitzensteinm
Is anyone else getting the security sandbox violation on the vimeo player? The
Flash security model is a bit frustrating to be sure, but leaving that in
shipping code?!

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dbreunig
I agree, too much clutter. But the "factz" feature is pretty awesome (even wit
the gratuitous z).

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mikkom
Too much clutter for me.

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hooande
I asked it a question from news.yc, "What is the oldest code written and still
running?"

[http://www.powerset.com/explore/pset?q=what+is+the+oldest+co...](http://www.powerset.com/explore/pset?q=what+is+the+oldest+code+written+still+running&x=0&y=0)

[http://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=...](http://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&q=what+is+the+oldest+code+written+still+running&btnG=Google+Search)

Advantage: Google.

