Surely "the Google" should be cleverer than this:
<< Put a Google search box in your browser. >>
http://ruscoe.net/blog/uploads/google-toolbar-ad-20061218.png
Erm, Google, what's that you're pointing at there? ;-) |
They don't detect the toolbar. I wonder if that would be possible (modified user-agent?). |
So it would seem. It would certainly be possible with a modified user-agent – and many toolbars already modify the user-agent when they get installed.
But is there not already a way for them to detect the toolbar? For example, when you click a link to a custom toolbar button, it will prompt you to download the toolbar if you don't already have it installed. (And if you do have it installed, it will just try to install the custom button.)
If you don't have the toolbar installed, you get a 302 header which redirects to a page like this:
http://toolbar.google.com/T4/cbadd_no_win2k.html
Is it the Google Toolbar that's working its magic there or does that get handled server-side? |
This is kind of old, I have experienced one that is much worse.
Check my blog. |
Elias, agreed – the popup in my screenshot above is quite old but I've never seen it in IE6 that's *already* running Google Toolbar which makes it completely redundant.
You're right – what you're reporting on your blog [*] is even more ridiculous. Why prompt a user to create a custom search button for Google when that's exactly what Google Toolbar does!?!
[*] http://www.google-kai.com/admin/google-add-search-button.htm
[Edit – clarified first sentence.] |
Tony, Goog Toolbar for Firefox shows that pop-ups for each and every search box on Google.com (Picasa Web, Groups etc.) It's rather annoying, but you can disable it. Maybe they noticed people don't know too much about custom buttons and don't use it. |
Ionut, that's weird because I've never seen that popup. AFAIK, I've never disabled that option either – and nor can I find the option anyway. Where is it? |
