Different browsers return different results

[newbies]

I use two browsers to search the same term and got different results. I have nerve use them to log into my google account or to customize search result. How can this happen?

[g1smd]

That's because there are at least 4 different vesions of their index spread across their many datacentres right now.

If you look at gfe-gv and then at gfe-eh you will see big differences. The data at gfe-eh has had a big change made to supplemental results a few weeks ago. That change is now also on many other datacentres, but is still far from being on all.

See also: [webmasterworld.com...]

[newbies]

But I did the search from the same computer so all browsers should access the same data center. Does google feed result based on browser type?

[tedster]

Yes, sometimes it looks like Google serves different results by user agent detection -- but it can also be small variations in time, because the exact same computer and browser can get different answers within just a few seconds.

Nothing is pinned down any more, at least not the way it used to be.

[g1smd]

>> so all browsers should access the same data center <<

Nope. You can get a different one from two different windows open on the same computer.

[night707]

before that awkward August 17 update I had also noticed much different Google positions for my sites in Mozilla and IE.

[RichTC]

i was also amazed at how different the data sets are.

This is obviously the way forward for Google, your site only ranks well on certain data centres at certain times. If you need 100% coverage over all data centres you need to buy adwords.

One of our authority sites PR7 sits top ten for many keywords in one data centre block yet in another it doesnt rank top 20 for anything!