Google Goes Instant

Google has updated its main search engine so that it starts searching as soon as you type.

Google Instant allows the user to simply start typing a query, and the results will appear immediately underneath. Add another word, or even another character, and the results update automatically.

The new tool was unveiled in San Francisco, and appeared on the Google.com and Google.co.uk websites immediately for users signed in with a Google account. It works with the Firefox, Chrome and Internet Explorer 8 browsers.

"Feelings of euphoria and weightlessness are normal", says a notice on the page. "Do not be alarmed".

"We know that it takes the user, on average, about nine seconds to enter their search into Google", said the company's Marissa Mayer.

"We think it's possible to have a system that provides the user with an easier way to enter a query ... and make search very very efficient. And we call that product Google Instant".

The system predicts what word the user is likely to be typing based on the first few letters, then starts the search process in the background to speed up the results if that prediction is correct.

The Instant search can be disabled if not required. More information is available on the About Google Instant page.