Wikia: The Future of Search

This week has seen the launch of a new open-source search engine by the founder of Wikipedia.

Wikia Search is the brainchild of Jimmy Wales and represents his attempt to create an open and transparent internet search facility.

This means that the site operates in a similar way to Wikipedia, with registered members helping to filter and rank search results.

The founders reveal their big ambitions in the launch statement, asserting that the facility “represents the first draft of the future of search”.

A recent report also stated that Wales and Co are aiming high with Wikia Search and ultimately aspire to become a major rival to market leaders such as Google and Yahoo!

The search engine’s four principles are: Openness about how its algorithms operate, enabling community participation, providing quality results and protecting privacy.