paulguy - 3:56 am on May 20, 2011 (gmt 0)

Why do you need Google for that then, isn't Twitter and FB enough?

I imagine this is why search engines are integrating Twitter and FB into search.

Anyway, I don't think anyone is saying that social should be the only basis for search, but a component of it. If real people that you know have actually vetted something and given it their vote of trust, I think that should certainly count for something in search.

When I'm trying to decide on a new book to read (I don't watch TV) I certainly take into consideration what some of my friends have said about their latest reads. In fact, I would guess that most people don't just wander into a bookstore or library, ask where the fiction section is, and then grab the first book. Their starting point is probably where their real-life social network has pointed, them, then they might branch out if something else piques their interest. No search led me to Hemmingway or Márquez or DFW. It was several friends saying "You've got to check this out...'

By the same token, all of my favorite websites, including this one, were referred to me. In the early days it was someone saying "check this out," then an emailed link, and now a share on FB or Twitter.

[edited by: paulguy at 4:37 am (utc) on May 20, 2011]