Froogle - Google goes Shopping

December 12, 2002 9:59 AM

Froogle - Google launches a new beta site for Shopping. Apparently their spiders have been storing results they think contain items for sale, and now they're gathered and searchable/browsable via Froogle. No paid placements, but Text Ads still seem to be fair game.
posted by kokogiak (42 comments total)

Go ogle everyone and everything. All at once. For free! (for now, that is) Meanwhile...Google spiders creep into every corner of our lives.

I think the "Office Of Information Awareness" would do much better to just subcontract the job to Google. After all, doesn't "to google" someone amount to compiling a an information dossier on them? (through google)
posted by troutfishing at 10:12 AM on December 12, 2002

That is very cool. Google continues to impress!
posted by Songdog at 10:15 AM on December 12, 2002

I didn't get the name till I said it out loud.
posted by gleuschk at 10:16 AM on December 12, 2002

This is amazing and kind of gives a preview into what a Semantic Web could look like someday. Pages selling things on the web have predictable data, like price (grep for $xx.xx and store in a relational database), description, and photo. Google getting a functional version out with the wide array of sites and pages selling products online is an amazing accomplishment.

I've been looking at buying a hybrid bike for the past few months, and popping in "hybrid bicycle" and a price range of "$400-600" gave me some incredibly targetted results. I can definitely see this service making Google rich(er). They must get a kickback on purchases, no?
posted by mathowie at 10:21 AM on December 12, 2002

Google spiders creep into every corner of our lives.

How very true.
posted by UnReality at 10:24 AM on December 12, 2002

but I wanna sort it by price!
posted by blue_beetle at 10:25 AM on December 12, 2002

Damn! I cost $99.
posted by riffola at 10:28 AM on December 12, 2002

I can't be had at any price.
posted by mr_crash_davis at 10:33 AM on December 12, 2002

UNreality - Thanks! (for my daily belly laugh)

"I took off my clothes and stepped into the shower to find another one sitting near the drain. It was about 2 feet tall and made of metal, with bright camera-lens eyes and a few dozen gripping arms. Worse than the Jehovah's Witnesses.

“Hi! I'm from Google. I'm a Googlebot! I will not kill you.”

“I know what you are.”

“I'm indexing your apartment.”

“I don't want you here. Who let you in?”

“I am Google! I find many good things. I find that pair of underwear with the little dice printed all over them. And I watch the tape of you with the life-sized Stallman puppet. These are good unique things. Many keywords and links! My masters will say 'much good job, little robot!' Many searchers will find happy links of Stallman puppet see you! Ahhhh.”
posted by troutfishing at 10:34 AM on December 12, 2002

They must get a kickback on purchases, no?

It looks like (from what I can gather) Google is passing through a sort of referral tag to a few stores, but not many. I'm guessing they may add more as time goes on. maybe they're testing for traffic throughput?
posted by kokogiak at 10:34 AM on December 12, 2002

$11.99 over here :(
posted by Songdog at 10:47 AM on December 12, 2002

I'm $572.84, and listed with vibrators and dildos. I've finally hit the big-time!
posted by arielmeadow at 10:51 AM on December 12, 2002

$1904.95 cash only please.
posted by mss at 11:04 AM on December 12, 2002

It looks like (from what I can gather) Google is passing through a sort of referral tag to a few stores, but not many. I'm guessing they may add more as time goes on. maybe they're testing for traffic throughput?

Or... the few stores in the referral tag paid a small fee to have their products appear on the search result list.
posted by bmxGirl at 11:10 AM on December 12, 2002

Wait there is a problem here. Now $3193.95 Help me I'm inflating. Still cash only.
posted by mss at 11:12 AM on December 12, 2002

Well, that seems possible (paid placement), except Google explicitly said they weren't doing that according to a brief in the WSJ: "Google said it won't accept payment for inclusion of products in its search results, or offer to place a merchant site higher in the results if they are an advertiser."
posted by kokogiak at 11:14 AM on December 12, 2002

ariel, it looks like the bot found this post you made from back in July.
posted by anathema at 11:15 AM on December 12, 2002

I'm cheap
posted by tj at 11:23 AM on December 12, 2002

Promising, but I need a way to filter stores by country.
posted by Yogurt at 11:27 AM on December 12, 2002

I'm $12.50, unless you the gourmet version, which is $149.95. And I agree with Yogurt, I'll need to be able to filter out US suppliers sometimes.
posted by Salmonberry at 11:30 AM on December 12, 2002

Thank you, anathema, for showing indisputable proof that Froogle is very definitely still in Beta. I guess that, because I listed a monetary amount on my page, linked a site that sells Hitachi Magic Wands, and had a picture of myself on my site, Google made some assumptions.
posted by arielmeadow at 11:30 AM on December 12, 2002

ariel, it's worse for me, I commented in a MeFi thread, where someone mentioned a price.
posted by riffola at 11:37 AM on December 12, 2002

I range from $5.00 to $55.75. Those optional features really add up...
posted by notme at 11:39 AM on December 12, 2002

Google does it again. I had one difficult gift to find and regular Google failed me. In less than one minute I found the exact item in Froogle. I don't care who gets the kickback as long as I find what I am looking for. Long live Google, er Froogle. Thanks to Mefi and Kokogiak for letting me in on Froogle. I always thought that Mefi was fun, I never knew it could be practical.
posted by caddis at 11:39 AM on December 12, 2002

If they ever start awarding Nobel prizes for "cool shiat", the first should go to Google.
posted by chipr at 11:50 AM on December 12, 2002

Why the name Froogle? I don't get it...
posted by Orange Goblin at 12:00 PM on December 12, 2002

OG, say it out loud. You'll get it.
posted by mathowie at 12:02 PM on December 12, 2002

I guess that, because I listed a monetary amount on my page, linked a site that sells Hitachi Magic Wands, and had a picture of myself on my site, Google made some assumptions.

Sugarpie, I made some assumptions too. ;)
posted by RJ Reynolds at 12:06 PM on December 12, 2002

Oh, OK, I'm a cheap bitch
posted by jonah at 12:07 PM on December 12, 2002

So not to derail, but how does a google-spider work anyway?
I am also not available for any price, time for my IPO?
posted by elwoodwiles at 12:13 PM on December 12, 2002

Also It seems I can't find what I wanted to give myself for christmas.
posted by elwoodwiles at 12:26 PM on December 12, 2002

I'll be really impressed when those little dollar signs start to include little pound sterling signs ...
posted by feelinglistless at 12:28 PM on December 12, 2002

OG, say it out loud. You'll get it.

I did. I don't. Is it some kind of American thing?
posted by Orange Goblin at 12:30 PM on December 12, 2002

A spider (any spider, not just google's) works by following links on web pages. A spider will access a web page, record whatever statistics it has to, and then it follows every link to other pages.

Repeat the process, and that's the basic idea behind spiders.
posted by SweetJesus at 12:32 PM on December 12, 2002

Orange Goblin, try here.

Also, it rhymes with Google.
posted by UnReality at 12:36 PM on December 12, 2002

Aha, clever. You learn something new every day :p. And yeah, I kinda guessed it rhymed with Google...
posted by Orange Goblin at 12:38 PM on December 12, 2002

I did a search for skis I'm looking at and wasn't very impressed with the results. Better with a straight search.
posted by HTuttle at 12:42 PM on December 12, 2002

Go ogle ... troutfishing: Good one, I don't think it's been used on MeFi before!

Me, I'm as low as five bucks, and it knows where I am right now, apparently.
posted by dhartung at 12:52 PM on December 12, 2002

How long till someone figures out how to "Froogle Bomb" their products?
posted by Steve_at_Linnwood at 12:59 PM on December 12, 2002

I'm only 99 cents at walgreen. Snap me up while supplies last!
posted by amberglow at 3:22 PM on December 12, 2002

Froogle's great! If it wasn't for Froogle I wouldn't be buying these in bulk.

Instant profit be mine...
posted by Pretty_Generic at 3:30 PM on December 12, 2002

I'm worth $299.99
posted by SpaceCadet at 4:30 PM on December 12, 2002