Screenshots: Microsoft Bing would be awesome if I could use it

May 28, 2009 | Paul Boutin | Comments | |

Updated Did you hit bing.com today? If you got a blank page from Microsoft’s new search tool, it’s not because Bill Gates is blocking your non-Internet-Explorer browser. Microsoft has confirmed to VentureBeat that it’s working on fixing technical glitches that sometimes deliver a blank page. Sometimes you get a Coming Soon page.

While we wait for Bing’s servers to stabilize, the best read on what Bing is and does is Microsoft’s reviewer’s guide, a downloadable Word document that includes screenshots. We’ll post a roundup of reviews and comments from people who’ve tried it, later today.

Below are real-life screenshots taken this morning by one of Microsoft’s PR people who was able to get to the site.

Next Story: PC game software grew 18 percent in 2008, with China taking the lead
Previous Story: Liveblogging the launch of Google Wave

Bookmark and Share

Tags:

Photo of Paul Boutin

About the Author, Paul Boutin

Paul (paul@venturebeat.com) covers Apple & the iPhone, social networks & social media, digital music & video, and any crazy Internet story. Paul wrote and edited for Valleywag from 2006-2008, after several years with Wired magazine and Slate. He writes regularly for The New York Times' technology section and sometimes for Wired and The Wall Street Journal. He studied computer science at MIT in the early 1980s, and worked as a software developer and network administrator for 15 years before becoming a professional writer. Follow him on Twitter at @paulboutin, and follow VentureBeat on Twitter at @venturebeat.

  • It is interesting to see so many bloggers and so called "experts" perpetuate the negative tone towards Microsoft and its products. Regarding the Headline to this post . . . you can't use it because it hasn't launched yet. Paul your bias is even more evident with such posts and sure suggests you are all too eager to find something wrong with Bing that you can post about. If you do, don't forget to mention what you like about it also (come on, you can do it). Thanks.
  • KingPin
    Chris that is because most of these people are not professionals. You said it best bloggers and so called self-proclaimed "experts".

    They are no different than those so called wine connoisseurs that stand in front of liquor stores with a cup offering their advice and asking for donations.

    Long gone are the days of real journalist and pundits.
  • Del
    IMHO, if a company announces a service and there is a blank page, it does not look good... Even startups publish "something" before even telling what their service will be about to the world.

    I came to this post to know more, and this post has got the information I was looking for, thanks Paul.
  • CW
    And don't you think just about every person that has heard is trying to access the page? Microsoft had server capacity issues when they announced Windows 7 download availability, does that make it a crap product? NO!

    Unfortunately in this day and age the less tech savvy expect the entire 6 billion+ population to be able to access a server farm at one point in time when in reality it doesn't work like that!
  • Anonymous
    A search engine is supposed to be accessed by millions. If it is not able to cope with the load while all it's doing is showing the front page, how do you expect it to cope with the load when search is enabled?

    And you think MS don't know people will try to access it if they hear about it? And what do you want people to do, not use Bing because it may overload their system?

    The problem with your logic is that people may actually do just that and continue using Google.
  • Totally agree with the above comments by Chris and King. Microsoft themselves said that the service will roll out gradually and launch on June 3. How HARD is that to understand?
    Just wanted to post a link bait like TechCrunch eh?
  • so many stupid blog authors and "experts" running around on the internet these days. This article is a perfect example of not doing the proper research before posting an article. Instead it is ripe with personal bias.

    Good luck with Bing Micrisoft. I will give it a proper evaluation when you say it s ready and has launched properly.
  • Another new release from Microsoft, I hope this time they will manage to keep the hype they are creating
  • Wow
  • ouch