The auto-complete feature, similar to ones available from Yahoo! and other search engines, allows users to see the most commonly-searched phrases and number of search results for each phrase as it's typed into the search box. Once the service is fully rolled out, it will be enabled for all users by default, but until then it is available at the Google Suggest preview page.
Google Suggest, according to its creators, has three major advantages for users. First, it helps formulate queries: when typing "hotels in London" into the search engine, Google Suggest will show a number of related search terms, including "hotels in London UK" and "hotels in London Ontario", instantly refining the search terms to help users achieve the most relevant results.
It will also reduce spelling errors, since suggestions are spell-checked utilising the same technology employed by the "Did you mean?" feature, which offers alternative spellings for unusual or misspelt search queries. Google Suggest corrects these misspellings and typos live, meaning users won't have to go back to make amendments to searches.
The service also aims to reduce keystrokes. Instead of having to type "bigmouthmedia" as a search term, by the time "bigmo" has been entered, the complete term will be given as a suggestion.
When asked why it took four years for the feature to make it to its homepage, a Google spokesperson was quoted as saying: "Quality is very important to us, and since so many people visit the Google.com homepage, we wanted to make sure to evaluate and refine our algorithms to provide a good experience using Google Suggest."
While detractors will point out that some competitors' existing features - such as Yahoo!'s Search Assist - are more sophisticated and that Google Suggest could interfere with some users' existing auto-complete browser features, it will no doubt be a welcome addition to millions of Google users as the service is rolled out over the next week.
