A “last ditch attempt?” At least I get perks…

Microsoft is trying, as the author of this article puts it, a last ditch attempt to help Microsoft’s position in the technology world.  They are trying to promote their Live Search engine by handing out “perks” to users who earn tickets for each search they do on Internet Explorer.  Users can redeem tickets for actually airline miles, music downloads, gadgets, or even donate the tickets to charity.

While “Live” search doesn’t mean it searches the live web, the results are comparable to a basic google or yahoo search, the Live team has attempted to analyze their users preferences and feedback to create a richer and deeper result list from each query.

As Google, the giant of search engines, had become almost the default tool the public uses to find information on the web, other engines like Explorer are scrambling to attract people back to them.  Paying for clicks is what Microsoft has turned to, and I might just have to venture over to the Explorer icon every once in a while to make a query, get some points, and earn some free goodies.  I can guarantee though, after April 15th (not only tax day, but the end of SearchPerks) I will again be an igoogle-er, surfing with Firefox.  Temporary fixes for Microsoft’s impending tank?  Perhaps.  But at least users get free stuff out of it, and what college kid can pass that up?

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