Google Search Appliance

Anyone using this? How?

[CaseyRyan]

Anyone using the Google Search Appliance [google.com]? If you do or if you just know something about it, could you share how its being used, what benefits, any pitfalls? Are you using it for anything beyond norm?

I'm trying to understand how I would use it to enhance my site.

For example:
Can I use it to index my sites and will this indexing be picked up in Google faster than usual? (changes reflected faster?)
Can I use it to query for Google results? or is it just content that I control?

-=casey=-

[Macro]

Good topic for discussion.

I'm afraid the products are designed to help large enterprises search within the contents of their internal documents/intranet. They won't give an advantage in the Google SE, in SERPS, or in quicker indexing.

[benihana]

we use one on our site.

It wont help you in the Google serps at all.

It will provide you with an excellent search facility for your site.

The main problem we've had is getting it setup to filter out internal documents from external searches.

Unless your website is huge/ a significant income generator, it is unlikely to be worth the money. (n.b im nopt sure about the pricing for the new 'mini' version, but the big one has a large and recurring licensing cost.)

[CaseyRyan]

Is anyone else doing anything beyond what what the appliance was meant for?

-=casey=-

[balam]

> we use one on our site.

How about a little reverse engineering? ;)

[Macro]

balam, I doubt Google would have made it easy. Or possible.

[balam]

I also suspect that there could be legal implications, too.

Sorry, I was just feeling a little facetious at the time... :)