When I was browsing the Wikipedia today I came across two sites: WikiWax and Wikipedia Search with LuMriX.
Both of these sites are AJAX-powered Wikipedia search engines; but which one’s better? Well, I’m going to review both on various subjects below.
Design
WikiWax’s design is very simplistic. It is a simple 1-column layout, which probably at the most uses 3 colours! Though the site uses obvious tables, which is very anti-Web 2.0 considering it uses AJAX!
Wikipedia Search with LuMriX’s design is much more complex than WikiWax’s. This site employs a 3-column layout, which uses numerous colours, nothing too bright though. Overall, though the layout is not as simple as WikiWax’s it’s much more desirable. One complaint though, is the popular queries box in the top right, the colours do not look like the rest of the page. This makes it look cheap.
Effectiveness
Sadly, none of these sites use a Google Suggest style search which displays popular results first. All these sites display results in alphabetical order. This, at times, makes the point lost.
None of these sites search the inside of articles, just article names. On Wikipedia Search with LuMriX if you type in Web 2.0 you get 3 results compared to the one you get with WikiWax. My bet is that WikiWax uses an out of date database dump, while Wikipedia Search with LuMriX uses a more recent one (or a live feed).
Multi-Lingual Features
Wikipedia Search with LuMriX supports 17 different languages Wikipedias. WikiWax only supports the English Wikipedia.
One thing of note is that Wikipedia Search with LuMriX a Swiss company. The site’s integration page, for example, is written in German.
Engines
Both sites use engines which are available commercially. LuMriX seems complex, on their homepage it mentions a lot about XML – while LookAhead, the engine which powers WikiWax, seems a lot more simple.
Scores
| WikiWax | Wikipedia Search with LuMriX | |
| Design | 3/5 | 3/5 |
| Effectiveness | 1/5 | 3/5 |
| Multi-Lingual Features | 0/5 | 4/5 |
| Engines | 3/5 | 4/5 |
WikiWax only scored 35%, compared to the 70% with Wikipedia Search with LuMriX. Though I credit WikiWax on their easy to remember URL (www.wikiwax.com – a lot easier than wiki.lumrix.net/en/!).
Tags: wikipedia, wiki, wikiwax, lumrix, web 2.0, web2, web2.0, AJAX, wikipedia search with lumrix
I come everytime there is a post but do not feel the need to comment much.All your posts are interesting don’t worry,it’s just that tech news is mean’t ot be read here not really discussed.
nice review … never occured to me to use anything other than the built-in search on wikipedia … i have yet to not be able to find something by using their search, so that begs the question: why use an outside search at all?
i am now going to have to look up lifehack and see if it’s what i think it is.
and, i love reading your blog … i’m such a geek
Just saying hi!!!
XXOO,
JTL