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Safari 7.1 for Mavericks is out with encrypted Yahoo searches, DuckGoGo and more

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated November 19, 2018

Apple on Thursday released an update to its desktop Safari browser for Macs running OS X Mavericks which contains improvements to compatibility and security while introducing a pair of new options for strengthening your privacy when searching.

The first such feature turns on SSL encryption for all Yahoo searches conducted from Safari's search field. As a result, no one can eavesdrop on what you're searching for online.

The other adds DuckGoGo, a search engine that does not track you (Google won't like this) as a built-in option in the search field. Note that Safari in iOS 8 and OS X 10.10 Yosemite already includes DuckGoGo as an option.

Safari 7.1 has arrived on the heels of yesterday's OS X Mavericks 10.9.5 update which contains Safari 7.0.6 and improves the stability, compatibility and security of your Mac.

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Facebook testing Graph Search on mobile with ability to resurface old content by keyword

Christian Zibreg ∙ August 29, 2014

The social networking behemoth, Facebook, in a bid to help folks resurface content that may otherwise be buried is reportedly testing a new feature that would let people using its mobile apps search through old posts from friends by keyword, Bloomberg reported Friday.

There's no word on when Facebook's 1+ billion users who predominantly access the service on smartphones and tablets can expect to use Graph Search on mobile, though the report makes it clear the feature's been in closed testing for quite some time now.

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New in iOS 8: App Store trending searches

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 20, 2014

At WWDC back in June, Apple announced several nice-to-haves aimed at improving the oft-criticized app discovery with new App Store features. Among them: trending searches.

It should be noted that first mentions of this feature being active date as far back as a week ago. It's however unclear whether everyone on the latest iOS 8 beta is seeing hot searches or just a subset of Apple's registered iOS developers.

Be that as it may, trending searches are tremendously useful and bound to help developers get their apps found in the App Store. As the name suggests, the feature surfaces hot search queries at any given time...

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Google starts clearly labeling Flash content in search results

Christian Zibreg ∙ July 15, 2014

Users of Apple's iPad, back when the device debuted in 2010, were used to seeing holes on websites in place of Adobe Flash content.

But not for long as those holes were getting plugged real fast - even more so after Steve Jobs penned his famous critique of Adobe's proprietary runtime, titled 'Thoughts on Flash'.

Though most web videos no longer require Flash, some websites and web applications continue to rely on Adobe's technology for interactivity, animations and what not. From now on, it's easier to identify Flash items in search results because Google Search now flags Flash content, saving you clicks...

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Google Search iOS app receives 2014 FIFA World Cup Google Now cards

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2016

With about 24 hours left until the 2014 World Cup Brazil opening game between Brazil and Croatia, developers are feverishly updating their apps with soccer-related content.

The Internet giant Google has just issued a World Cup-themed update to its standalone Search iOS app, adding useful Google Now cards for the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

The cards show up-to-date information like match statistics, group standings and scorers and are available by swiping up to choose your favorite team to follow...

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Apple poaches VP of Amazon A9′s Search Technology group

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated January 27, 2016

Apple has made another high-profile hire, having poached Benoit Dupin, Vice President of Amazon A9′s Search Technology group, according to the executive's professional business profile on LinkedIn.

Benoit, who brings over fifteen years of international technology industry experience within a wide range of disciplines, has left Amazon to help Apple improve search features in its own mapping service, sources speculated on Tuesday.

He isn't the first Amazon executive to have left for 1 Infinite Loop. Back in October 2012, Apple hired away another prominent Amazon search technologist, William Stasior, who is now working with the Siri team...

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Apple caught testing related search suggestions in the App Store

Christian Zibreg ∙ Updated December 2, 2016

With over a million apps now available in the App Store, discovering software related to your needs outside the charts and featured sections increasingly feels like finding a needle in the haystack. Apple two years ago bought a company called Chomp, presumably to make app discovery easier, but thus far the acquisition - apart from a few functional tweaks here and there - hasn't yielded visible improvements to how folks discover iPhone and iPad applications.

Then on Tuesday, one developer noticed a sweet new feature in the App Store storefront on his iPhone which offers a way to filter search results based on Apple-provided suggestions. I was able to test this on my iPhone 5s and though the feature appears a bit rough around the edges, it pretty much works as you'd expect.

Read on for the full reveal...

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Yahoo Search app updated with new iOS 7 design

Cody Lee ∙ March 11, 2014

Yahoo has updated its official Search client for iOS this morning, bringing the app to version 3.1. The update doesn't include much, but is instantly noticeable thanks to the all new design. Yahoo calls it 'minimalist,' but we often refer to this as iOS 7-style.

For those who aren't familiar with it, the app is pretty much your standard web engine with a built-in browser, but of course with Yahoo's services. So for folks invested in the ecosystem with either Mail or Tumblr, it could offer more than Google or Bing...

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Vote for your favorite American Idol contestants right from Google Search

Christian Zibreg ∙ February 27, 2014

Google has struck an interesting partnership with FOX allowing fans of American Idol, the popular reality-singing competition series, to vote for their favorite performers right through the Google.com search engine and inside the official Search app for iOS and Android. On-air voting is as easy as searching for 'american idol' or 'idol' during the voting window and selecting from your fav finalists.

You can cast up to 50 votes for each contestant and vote for as many contestants as you want, Google explained yesterday...

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Weasel: a system-wide search and shortcut utility for iOS

Jeff Benjamin ∙ Updated April 16, 2018

One of my favorite OS X utilities is Alfred. Alfred is a search utility, launcher, and workflow executer rolled into a simple interface that's accessible from anywhere via a keyboard shortcut. It's a tool that has saved me countless hours of time, and it's among the first apps that I install on my Mac whenever I do a system restore.

Weasel is sort of like Alfred for iOS. Obviously, it's doesn't feature as wide of a scope as Alfred, but it does its best to mimic some of the features that makes Alfred, or any launcher utility, so nice to have. Have a look at our walkthrough inside for more details.

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Facebook caught testing Graph Search for mobile

Cody Lee ∙ February 2, 2014

It's been more than a year now since Facebook first launched Graph Search for desktops, and nearly 4 months since we first saw evidence that it was testing an iPhone version of the tool. But it looks like it's finally about ready to go mobile.

Following a hint by Mark Zuckerberg last week that Facebook's Graph Search would be hitting mobile devices soon, the social network has begun testing the new feature. Some users are even beginning to see the search tool on their smartphones...

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