They can't remove that button now, it's part of their branding, part of their identity. They would be no more likely to stop updating their logo with colorful playful holiday-appropriate images (the shock of all that wasted bandwidth as proxy servers everywhere have to recache it!) than they would to remove that button.

Needless to say, the connection that branding builds between the user and the service/company is important. This button and the feeling of playfulness that it reflects on google even moreso. The few extra bytes of page size and the small extra cognitive load is more than made up for the positive feelings it engenders in users.Max on July 28, 2007 4:37 PM

I use the function (not the button) a lot during the day as my firefox will automatically open the 'feeling luck' page of a google search on any malformed urls or strings. I have never used the button itself, even when I know the page I am after is the first result.Dee on July 28, 2007 4:46 PM

I wish Safari had the Feeling Lucky functionality, but it doesn't. I even considered using opendns to get that result, but gave up with that.

I also agree that they can't remove it now.Conner Downey on July 28, 2007 4:49 PM

I use it. Sort of as a bookmark. I rarely use bookmarks any more. I simply type in coding horror for example and hit I'm feeling lucky.Dev on July 28, 2007 4:55 PM

Google actually brought that up when they were user testing the UI a while back. (I can't remember where I read the story) But the crux of it was, the users actually LIKE having that button there, and rated the search interface lower when it wasn't there.

Similarly, they added the copyright notice at the:

Advertising Programs - Business Solutions - About Google

©2007 Google

To the bottom of the page, because some people would look at the minimalist UI and wait. When asked why they were waiting, they said they were waiting for the rest of the page to load. Putting that "About/Copyright" line was the queue to these users that the page actually WAS all there.Robert "kebernet" Cooper on July 28, 2007 5:14 PM

I remember listening to a google staffer on a podcast a while ago, and the reason the "I feel lucky" button stays is not its click through rates, but the message it sends about google's corporate culture.

Apparently, users felt Google was more human by having something quirky like that on the front page. It doesn't have lots of people click on it, but it encouraged more people to click on the main "Google Search" button.

They discovered this by testing. Make no mistake, Google tests every UI option within an inch of its life. The button stays because the button tests well.Geoff Wilson on July 28, 2007 5:17 PM

Actually, I use "I'm Feeling Lucky" all the time, except I never do it through Google.

For example, I almost always forget Markdown syntax for inline images. But since I know for sure that the first Google result for "markdown syntax" is John Grubber's site, I type that in Firefox's address bar and hit enter. Never fails.

But you're right, "I'm Feeling Lucky" is useless on Google's homepage.Rami Kayyali on July 28, 2007 5:22 PM

Yes, everyone who reads this blog is computer literate and has been using the Internet for years, but many _new_ computer and Internet users are getting online everyday. The branding and "this actually works" message is further pushed on these users the first few times they use Google by the existence of that button. It might be worth revisiting those kinds of superfluous and rarely used user interface features once everyone is online.Andy on July 28, 2007 5:26 PM

"such as SHIFT+ENTER that invoked the Lucky function"

No need for that! In FF entering something in search box == search. Entering something that doesn't look like url into url box == feeling lucky (or something very similar - I'm not sure). When using personalized search (search history) it works better than bookmarks. You search for couple of things at first, but then just use url box when you've already found something before - you will be taken to correct page.
With obvious searches you don't have to go through google results page this way. I'm 100% sure where I will end up after entering "packages ubuntu" in url box (why should I remember correct link?). Same for "opengl reference", "asterisk bugs" (even if it's bugs.digium.com and has 'asterisk' listed there only couple of times), etc.
It's very, very, very useful after you get used to entering phrases into url box. Without search personalisation it may be less useful for developer and not a "normal user", but haven't checked that.Viraptor on July 28, 2007 5:33 PM

I kind of fail to understand how removing the button would be a "giant collective improvement in the default search user interface for users around the world."... I understand that that statement may be just a play of words and therefore slightly exaggerated sounding, but honestly speaking the button is not like something that is actively distracting the user experience.

A different point of view on the button is that it actually is *improving* the usability of the page because Google is so good that the first hit is often the "correct" hit and by pressing the I'm feeling lucky button you're saved waiting for the result page to load and navigating to the first link.Jani on July 28, 2007 5:41 PM

I can't seem to find it at the moment, but supposedly Google did a study that showed users the home page without it, and they didn't like it - because it wasn't familiar anymore. They couldn't even put their finger on it, but it felt "wrong" to them. At this point, I believe it's just psychological back compat.

And while Google admits that fewer than 1 percent of users actually use the button, I use it *all* the time. There are a set of searches where I'm confident the right answer will be the first hit (like a URL I forgot, but I know what it was about), so I type "foo<TAB><TAB><ENTER>" and I'm there. It's actually far more useful to me than even the control+e search box, since the google interface for that still takes me to search results, and I want to get to the page, not search results that include the page.

YMMV - it's clear from some Google searches that others have hopped up on the soapbox as well to rake Google over the coals for a button they themselves happen not to use :)James Manning on July 28, 2007 5:41 PM

I find it useful for when *i know* what the first result will show up but can't remember the URL.(or it's too lenghty to be worth to type it)
One example of this is when i want to look up for XHTML entities, i just put those two words and hit "i'm feeling lucky"gonchuki on July 28, 2007 5:46 PM

I never clicked on the "I'm feeling lucky" button, but I saw my mother looking for things on the web, and the father of my wife (don't know the term in English), and they both used that button.
And 90% of the times they found what they were looking for.
I guess this is a good way to apply the mantra "Less options is better"Simone Chiaretta on July 28, 2007 5:54 PM

I have tried clicking that button a few times, but if I'm not lucky, then I'm backing up and doing the search again.

Just for fun, I did C# as my search string and click it. Took me to Wikipedia, which I like to visit, but not when I'm looking for something related to C#. The MSDN site was second, so while it was fun to see the C# page at wikipedia, I'm wouldn't think to go there for C# info - and I wasn't surprised when I did go there.

It's a novel idea, but I don't see its utility, but I don't care whether they remove it either. Everything isn't always about utility.

Somewhat related to this, I guess, is the idea of having as simple an interface as possible for the user. I've used programs and, alas, written a few that had pretty heinous interfaces. There are TONS of websites with with confusing, ugly interfaces too.

I think Apple got it right with the iPod. It isn't perfect, but it is simple and provides an easy to use navigation mechanism - without sacrificing a bunch of utility. The perfect interface, I guess, is one where I immediately know what to do as a user. I love my iMac, but it bugs me that there are all these somewhat esoteric keyboard-click combinations and key combinations to do things. I can figure them out easily enough, but I suspect I'm not the "average" user. Back to google - I'm not sure my mom and dad would know immediately what "I'm Feeling Lucky" means on the button, and when presented with the one result, well... that might not be what they were looking for.

So it is novel, but not that useful.Matthew Cuba on July 28, 2007 6:09 PM

sorry i do not agree with you.
google have only one home page UI, but they have to deal with all kinds of people -- different type of users, let's say basic or advanced.
I think google have realized it, so iGoogle is there.
I hope iGoogle will provide one more option such as a "I do not need I'm feeling luck' button" check box for you, jeff, though you never feel luck. this time you are little dulljackhatedance on July 28, 2007 6:21 PM

I use Slickrun (Google it ;) ) as an entry point into Wikipedia and MSDN multiple times a day. I've found the most effective way of doing this is to actually fill the keywords into an 'I'm Feeling Lucky' search that includes 'site:en.wikipedia.org' or 'site:msdn2.microsoft.com/library'.

Also as a general go-to search, which also works if you enter most or all of the actual address. I rarely use the address bar in IE - Google really is my entry-point to the internet, even if I never see the Google page at all.Zooba on July 28, 2007 6:28 PM

I agree with what a lot of people are saying. I rarely click on the button, but I have shortcuts that lead to the function. If I need to find out your website, I just press Alt+F2, then type "ggl: codinghorror" and I end up here. I don't even have to open a browser and load google as a homepage.Me on July 28, 2007 6:46 PM

I love having it there, myself. It always seems to give me good results for my programming needs: looking up bits of SQL syntax or XHTML attributes or classes in the Javadocs of various projects. Opening my browser (with Google as the home page), typing "spring api simplejdbctemplate" or "hibernate manual" or whatnot, and hitting tab tab enter is a heck of a lot faster than navigating through bookmarks or search results using the mouse.

Maybe this is a keyboard vs. mouse thing. People who learn to do things using the mouse are used to everything being tortuous anyway, so they don't look to optimize things.

I still find it kind of sad most users can't figure out the Firefox keyword functionality. I know this guy who, every time he needs to lookup a word, navigates to a dictionary site and types it in which requires lots of mouse work and page loads. Meanwhile I just type alt-d "def blah" and get the results right out since I have def as a keyword for a dictionary site search.a on July 28, 2007 6:52 PM

For those of you that haven't seen this, it's sort of unrelated, not really politically correct, a tiny bit out-dated (by about 4 Google homepage re-designs), but at least a little amusing:

Type "French military victories" (no quotes) into the Google search box and hit the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button.

}:)Eric DeLabar on July 28, 2007 6:57 PM

I agree with you in that I never use it, and removing it would certainly create a more efficient UI for me. That said, I don't think it would be wise for Google to remove it. The Google landing page is inextricably part of the Google brand, an image we could probably sketch by heart if asked to do so. It also adds an element of friendliness to the page... one of the last remnants of Google's self-professed friendliness now that it, you know, owns everything.

Essentially, I'd prefer if it wasn't there, but I wouldn't remove it if I were the brians behind Google.Skellie on July 28, 2007 6:59 PM

Of interesting note, the Mozilla-affiliate page* does not appear to have the 'I'm feeling lucky' button.

* http://www.google.com/firefoxRyan Hoerr on July 28, 2007 7:04 PM

The biggest UI mistake is assuming usage behaviors without data to back it up. It's quite possible that "no one" uses the I'm-feeling-lucky button, but really you're not in a position to say that. I bet Google knows something that you're only pretending to know -- which is how it's users use the Google homepage. Hanford on July 28, 2007 7:27 PM

Jeff, I think you're a little off-base with this comment:

"But typical users don't really understand basic keyboard shortcuts. They love their mice, and their big, fat, honking "Search" buttons. That's why the current versions of Firefox and IE both have an integrated "go" button directly next to the address bar-- so users have something obvious to click once they've typed the URL into the address bar. Otherwise, I guess, they'd sit there wondering if their computer had frozen."

Understanding basic keyboard shortcuts and them actually being effective and useful are 2 different things. I develop web applications full-time and I use the "go" button very often because it is "actually faster" than the ENTER key in many circumstances I encounter. Personally, I use both the mouse and the keyboard, and often at the same time... so why not make a UI that works for both mouse-centered users and keyboard-centered users?Derek Parnell on July 28, 2007 7:34 PM

Regarding the Go buttons that go with browser address bars, if you copy and paste a URL using just the mouse, you'd hate to have your hand leave the *mouse* to find the Enter key. So, it works both ways :)Brian Cantoni on July 28, 2007 7:40 PM

Hi Jeff, Love your site, but you haven't done your research. Google has done testing on this, and found that people felt more connection to Google when there was a button with that kind of tone.

Here's one of 100 articles online that discusses it: http://www.iqcontent.com/blog/2006/07/google-user-experience-talk

The fact is, you're advocating changing something that is FAR from a "UI mistake" and you've totally overlooked the #1 reason why they include it -- branding -- which makes me wonder how qualified you are to talk about UI design at all. Adam S on July 28, 2007 7:43 PM

I'm reminded of Jerry Seinfeld's but about the "XX billion served" signs at McDonald's...

"Look, we all get it. You've sold a lot of hamburgers. Why don't you just put up a sign that says, "McDonald's -- we're doing very well." I am tired of hearing about every damn one of them."

--

At this point, nobody is impressed or persuaded by how many billions McDonald's has served, but it's part of their identity.JohnMcG on July 28, 2007 7:47 PM

I use it a lot as a Firefox search keyword when I know, from prior visits, that the first result of the search will be the website I'm looking for.

I define a bookmark that points to http://www.google.com/search?q=%s&btnI=I'm+Feeling+Lucky

I give it the keyword "gl" in the bookmark's properties window.

And then I type "gl coding horror" in the firefox URL text field.

Voilà.Mike on July 28, 2007 7:49 PM

I suggest you take a look at Blackle (http://blackle.com/). It is basically the Google search page, simplified, and with a black background in order to take a small step towards saving energy by saving Watts. Their goal, to save Megawatt-hours each year.

Interested? Check out their about page http://blackle.com/about/Joseph Pecoraro on July 28, 2007 7:50 PM

I sadly use the button all the time.

I think it has to do with the fact that instead of remembering URLs these days, I just remember the google keywords that got me to the page. My google history is horrendous, #1 search is "archlinux"... because typing out "archlinux.org" would be a bitch.codemac on July 28, 2007 8:36 PM

Hmmm... Just greasemonkey it away, non?Goosle on July 28, 2007 8:41 PM

As has been pointed out many times already I skip the step of even going to Google, using the Google search extension in FF when I want to see the full results and when I want the first result, simply typing it into the address bar and hitting the magic ENTER key.

Also, it is true that I personally never click any variant of the "GO" button, but I see my parents doing it constantly. They're much more comfortable with a mouse than a keyboard, whereas I'd much rather do more with the keyboard.Matt on July 28, 2007 8:42 PM

Hi Jeff,

I think that this button is like pub.

I click on ads once a year and I believe that everyone is like me.

If everyone were really like me then no one would pay to put their names and logos on web sites.

Some ads are there only for visibility. There is somebody somewhere who bought a car from Ford, GM, Honda... After clicking on their ads ? I guess that nobody did.

I'm like you, I use this button only once a decade...

The reason why these bytes are there on the main page, it's, maybe because that's not everyone are like us.

Regards.

Luc Martineau on July 28, 2007 8:54 PM

I use it constantly, every day (though indirectly), as a number of Firefox bookmark keywords.Brianary on July 28, 2007 8:55 PM

Quotes an article from WashingtonPost,

> Google executives have long known that almost no one uses [the button].
> "If we took it away, there would be mass protests worldwide," said Marissa Mayer, vice president for search products and user experience. "It's part of our heritage. It's part of what users really like about us."

Read the rest of the article here.
http://washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/10/02/AR2006100201277.htmlHaochi on July 28, 2007 9:22 PM

Geoff is right, Google has tested the crap out of their UI to the point where even the copyright notice was tested in because it gave users a feeling that the page had loaded.

Trust me, you may think it is clutter, but it is there for a utterly dogged and tested reason.hobote on July 28, 2007 10:11 PM

From the Washington Post article Haochi quoted:

> [Marissa] Mayer said the button is used in far fewer than 1 percent of Google searches. When company testers have asked users if they know what it does, many say no, executives recount. When told the button will help them speed past the usual list of search results, they say they're still not interested.

From the same article:

> Google had been adding more text to the page, promoting company jobs, advertising and other services until the number of words had reached the mid-50s. "Users really began squawking at us," she recounted. Now, she said, "we're trying to keep the number of words down." As of yesterday, the home page contained 33.

So we're talking about a company that agonizes over the number of individual words on its home page, yet allows a button with three words that-- according to Google itself-- "far fewer than 1 percent" of users actually *use* to hog what is the Boardwalk and Park Place of internet real estate?

I stand by my original point: the "I'm feeling Lucky" button was arguably fun/whimsical/useful in 2001 when people were still new to Google, but it's completely *irrelevant* in 2007 now that they rule the internet.Jeff Atwood on July 28, 2007 10:24 PM

But why does it bother you so much? It is not a major design flaw now is it???andhapp on July 28, 2007 10:50 PM

The Firefox toolbar actually has an IFL button, which I learned the hard way after I created my own custom search engine extension using this website: http://keijisaito.info/ready2search/e/?sna=I'm+Feeling+Lucky&prf=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.google.com%2Fsearch%3Fhl%3Den%26amp%3Bq%3D&suf=%26amp%3BbtnG%3DGoogle%2BSearch%26amp%3BbtnI&des=Search+using+Google's+I'm+Feeling+Lucky+method&in=utf&ou=ono&mod=pn

I too was discussing the issues very recently with colleagues and I was actually surprised to find the IFL button still there on Google's home page. After all, it's absent from most of their other search/results pages, and it _has_ to cost Google money in terms of Ad revenue.

But then I started using it. It's wonderful! It saves me a click through the 1st search result 90% of the time. I use it mainly from FF's search toolbar and when I suspect my keyword won't generate a 100% 1st hit, I just switch momentarily to the regular search. That, however, hardly happens any more. Even when Google's #1 result isn't _exactly_ the page I was looking for (again, this rarely happens any more), it's usually very relevant and a good substitute.

For long Google users have been using the search engine as a "jump to" box, not really as a "find me everything that matches ___". That explains why so many of the search queries submitted to Google are actually URLs, or fragments thereof (this, according to Google).

I have to ask: did you actually try it? Did you try working with IFL as your default search for a day? You'd be pleasantly surprised.

-- A recent convert
Assaf on July 28, 2007 10:51 PM

I recall reading somewhere, perhaps the google blog itself, that they did tests and found that users preferred that the button be there, even if its never used. They called it a "comfort button."Simon on July 28, 2007 11:01 PM

While I'm not bothered by the button like Jeff, I don't buy the argument that the button should stay because of branding or that it creates an image of the company as "whimsical". At least not now after all these years.

I would think the Google logo does a good enough job of that. There are other ways to be whimsical.Haacked on July 28, 2007 11:18 PM

I use I'm Feeling Lucky too, but not by using the button. More and more I find that I know what I want to see but I don't remember the URL, but I know typing in a couple of specific keywords will take me there automatically. So I'm not even using the Google homepage directly, but I know Firefox's automatic Google search will use the IFL command to take me to the right place.Andrew on July 28, 2007 11:30 PM

The Firefox location bar is not actually "I'm Feeling Lucky".

MCP: "I've gotten 2415 times smarter since then."

Whatever search method it is that's invoked via typing a non-url in the Firefox location bar, it actually behaves like this:

1) If #1 for this term is had and shoulders above the rest, redirect to #1.
2) If there's less difference between #1 and the others, show search results.

Try it with "coding horror" and then "llama", for example.

You don't have to *feel* lucky when they have the stats to *know* just how lucky you're lucky to be. It's shocking how perfect it is.Joshua Paine on July 28, 2007 11:31 PM

Dude, they know more about successful design than you... leave them alone.A. Non. on July 28, 2007 11:39 PM

> Whatever search method it is that's invoked via typing a non-url in the Firefox location bar

This is an interesting point; I never use the address bar this way, but I see what you mean.

It looks to me like firefox is judging whether or not the term you typed in the address bar matches a significant part of the "top three" URLs that come back from the search results. It's certainly a nice feature.Jeff Atwood on July 28, 2007 11:45 PM

I use the 'lucky' button all the time. I've learned keywords that will take me to my favorite web sites from any computer. For example, type 'coding horror' into google and hit the 'I feel lucky' button.

No lists to maintain, no urls to remember. Just a quick and easy way to get to your favorite site.

The 'I Feel Lucky' button is one of the most brilliant UI devices ever to spring from the mind of man.Jim Howard on July 28, 2007 11:54 PM

Based on what you write, deleting the 'lucky' button would piss off one percent of a billion people. Would you choose to do that in a UI you designed?

> But typical users don't really understand basic keyboard shortcuts. They love their mice, and their big, fat, honking "Search" buttons.

I would have made the same assumption. But if it were true, then how could Apple get away with completely omitting a search button in Safari, the default Mac web browser for nearly four years? Michael Z. on July 29, 2007 12:30 AM

Woops, I meant omitting a "go" button, but there is no "search" button next to Safari's Google search field either.Michael Z. on July 29, 2007 12:34 AM

If you are on a mobile/small device without keyboard buttons are very useful...Schlaefer on July 29, 2007 1:18 AM

Speaking of awesome power over the Internet, it's amazing how many times this magic button goes to Wikipedia.Dan on July 29, 2007 1:48 AM

When my parents want to visit a website and they have the address it goes like this:
1) Open up "the internet" (that's IE with Google as homepage);
2) Type in www.example.org in the search box;
3) Click I'm feeling lucky;
4) Pray that this works. If not, bitch at the site.
When I wanted to show them the site of my new startup we were not indexed in Google yet (we were online for less then 24 hours ;)) so this method didn't work. And I've seen it before, sometimes it's the *second* result or something.
My mum just doesn't want to hear anything about this thing called an "address bar".
Anyway, guess we better leave it in there, because something tells me my parents are not the only ones...Martijn Engler on July 29, 2007 2:30 AM

> how could Apple get away with completely omitting a "go" button in Safari .. there is no "search" button next to Safari's Google search field either.

Another interesting point; Safari for Mac/Windows appears to lack either a "Go" button, for the address bar, or a "Search" button, for the search box.

Quite odd for a platform that is so mouse-centric..Jeff Atwood on July 29, 2007 2:43 AM

Do not use the blackie site, a copy of the Google home page but with a black background, it only saves power if you are using a CRT display. It does not save power if you are using a flat screen display, and if you still using a CRT display and want to save power get a flat screen they save huge amounts vs CRTs.

Using that site does help the owner since they get some ad revenue.will dieterich on July 29, 2007 2:48 AM

I"m usually not one to leave comments, but this blog post is an exercise in futility... Google has a very minimalist GUI. One more button isn't what's going to confuse a searcher. Although as people suggested both IE and FF have an auto search when you type a non ip in the address bar, that isn't the point.

My point is - you are quite an interesting blogger...Don't waste your time on being picky, write about something bigger and more interesting than a button on a site...Mikle on July 29, 2007 2:58 AM

Wow, this is taking the internet nazi psychology to new heights. How bored does one have to be to write an entry like this? Red on July 29, 2007 3:05 AM

I would really like a shortcut to access the I'm Feeling Lucky Function; I never press the I'm feeling lucky button, but more than 50% of my queries are queries for which I only click on the first result (like for example "Steve Jobs wikipedia").Andrei on July 29, 2007 3:30 AM

As other already mentioned I do not use the function directly but through my browser konqueror. There ggl is the shortcut for "I'm feeling lucky". For example I use daily "ggl: mensa bonn".Christoph on July 29, 2007 3:38 AM

wow. one line of code will REALLY take a longer time to load. and it's i n the way SO MUCH! I think I'll faint... they have made a TERRIBLE FLAW!
HAHAHAHA!

No, really, I use it, but only when I know what the first result is, like "putty" brings you to the PuTTY (windows telnet client) homepage. however I use it from the google search bar in firefox (the real one, not the one that FF provides automatically).Gabriel J. Smolnycki on July 29, 2007 3:56 AM

I've never used the lucky button, nor do I know anyone who does. Though, I've actually been asked "Which one do I press?" before.Mike Robinson on July 29, 2007 4:17 AM

The "I'm feeling lucky" button exists solely so that Google can sell risqué branded clothing. I'm sure they make billions on this. :)Robert Synnott on July 29, 2007 4:18 AM

Ya, I'm not sure I can follow Jeff's logic completely, but I will throw in my $0.02 and say that I've never used the button and have often scratched my head over it.ScoPi on July 29, 2007 5:28 AM

Hey, I just thought of another feature.
Since many people use IFL to quick-jump to certain web pages based on keywords, there should be a way of finding out the shortest (easiest) keywords that'll take you there. IOW I wish I could ask google: "what's the shortest/easiest thing to type in to get to ___ using IFL".
Assaf on July 29, 2007 5:28 AM

honestly, isn't there a little room for irreverence on the web? Stuff like that says to me that google still has a sense of humor despite it's size.

Little things like that and google's picture tributes to special days/people make me like them just as readily as speedy and accurate results do.nemof on July 29, 2007 5:47 AM

Hi Jeff -

Though it was touched on briefly, entering something that isn't a URL into the Firefox address bar will by default use the Google "lucky" function (though also as mentioned, it's not really needed on the homepage).

It's also worth noting that SHIFT+ENTER probably isn't a good idea, as both SHIFT+ENTER and CTRL+SHIFT+ENTER are used by Firefox (for adding .net and .org, respectively, in the manner of CTRL+ENTER is used to add .com, like in IE).

But to the point, could it be done without? Absolutely. :)Chad Everett on July 29, 2007 5:57 AM

I use it all the time. I want to check news bbc. Jut type it in and tab twice and hit enter. The front page of the BBC news site is there.
Ditto any site that you know is going to be first in their results.
Useful, saves playing around with Favorites and typing in address bars.
James on July 29, 2007 6:01 AM

It also creeps up in other places, like when you're adding new tabs in iGoogle (http://foobr.co.uk/2007/04/google_adds_im_feeling_lucky_to_tabs/) although in that case it is a checkbox rather than a button.

Robert Nyman's blog had a brief discussion about it as well and one of the commentors pointed out that for broader search terms it is next to useless. So to make it more accurate I wrote a small greasemonkey script which changes the button text to "You'll be lucky"

http://foobr.co.uk/lab/greasemonkey/youllbelucky/googlebelucky.user.jsAaron Bassett on July 29, 2007 6:35 AM

It's a part of the Google identity. And besides, it's not useless as many people have pointed out. If I'm certain about the search term, I always go for it. Besides, it gives me a pleasant kick to see the exact page I want pop up immediately.

And as for the keyboard utility statement, tab+tab+enter will do the trick without resorting to the apparently offensive mouse.

Google's always stood behind their youthful "do-no-evil" image as opposed to other heavyweight corportations. So even though they admittedly rule the Web, it doesn't mean they have to give up supposedly frivolous features like decorating logos on holidays or the "Lucky" button (which is featured on the toolbar, by the way).

A little fun isn't that bad you know :)Mithun Jacob on July 29, 2007 6:46 AM

All seriousness aside, The "I'm Feeling Lucky" button has its risks.

The number one cause of death on the Internet is typing "Chuck Norris" in Google search and clicking "I'm Feeling Lucky".

Apologies for providing the lame joke. I agree the IFL button is likely not used much, but certainly part of the Google identity. Just as they edit the Google logo at times with changing seasons etc. I've always expected it to be there without being particularly tempted to use it.Skid on July 29, 2007 6:53 AM

Interestingly, it's perhaps the only way to use Google without coming across any AdWords. It's a great user for power users I think. You could argue only 1% of Office users use VBA, but if that 1% is significant, then it's important not to lose that 1%. For Google that 1% probably represents millions of users.Gaurav Sharma on July 29, 2007 6:55 AM

Once I was looking for an online listing of UNIX man pages. True story. I typed in "man page" into Google, and I pressed "I'm Feeling Lucky".

That was the last time I pressed the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button.Dave Markle on July 29, 2007 7:57 AM

I use the I'm feeling lucky button all the time. I would imagine it would also be useful for people who like to type actual URLs in the search box, and then click the I'm feeling lucky button to get to the page rather than the search results, (saves a click).

Brian.Brian Jones on July 29, 2007 8:08 AM

I use this button for one simple reason : not to have to type in the address bar.

say I want to go on the website of a very famous brand.
I open firefox. Google shows up. focus on the search input.
I know the brand's site is going to be the first result.
Why would I bother take my mouse or shift-tab to the address bar when I can simply type the name straight away, shift, shift, enter and I'm on the site I wanted to go to ?
blazing fast. try it someday ;)
I wouldn't cry if they slashed this button but I'd surely think of it as a feature downgrade.10 on July 29, 2007 9:12 AM

huh. tab tab enter I meant. --;
only when it displays you see the errors.
sorry.10 on July 29, 2007 9:14 AM

I have evloved byound even loading google for my searchs. Opera has the loverly functionality built in that lets you search what you want for the in the broser.

And you customise it to, so for a normal google serch i type "g super coollers" or if i want to get sometying of ebay "e crap that i really dont want" etc. etc.

I find it is so awsome! And your point about use 'logicalists' just hitting enter, I have removed the lame 'go!' bottun, as well as most other things i can do with just the keyboard - browse so much faster then when I started on this wonder.Dan Cosh on July 29, 2007 9:37 AM

> Another interesting point; Safari for Mac/Windows appears to lack either a "Go" button, for the address bar, or a "Search" button, for the search box.

I guess the natural thing to to signal the end of text entry is to hit return, going back to typewriter days. URLs dragged to the address bar load immediately, while other text just springs back. Safari's address bar does the right thing whether one is using the keyboard or mouse: it doesn't encourage or even allow the user to switch from one to the other.

> Quite odd for a platform that is so mouse-centric.

Another common assumption, but is this a fair description?

Mac OS has had its own special command key since 1984 (the clover or apple key, distinct from the control key which is used to send escape-key sequences, e.g. into a terminal application).

It has a large set of global keyboard shortcuts standardized in Apple's Human Interface Guidelines, exposed to users through menu text in every application, and centrally editable and overridable in System Prefs. Late in the twentieth century, OS X added global shortcuts for application and window management, search and spelling, and Emacs key bindings for text entry (coming from NextStep, I think).

Some references (I haven't found a single comprehensive one):

http://docs.info.apple.com/article.html?artnum=75459

http://www.danrodney.com/mac/

http://developer.apple.com/documentation/UserExperience/Conceptual/OSXHIGuidelines/XHIGKeyboardShortcuts/chapter_20_section_1.htmlMichael Z. on July 29, 2007 10:50 AM

Oh, and OS X Tiger has "full keyboard access", which all power users should switch on. It lets one visually tab through pretty much any button, menu, window pane, other control in the UI.Michael Z. on July 29, 2007 11:10 AM

I got tired of using and maintaining a huge list of bookmarks of seldom used sites, so I use google 'I am lucky' as a means of navigating to known sites. Best thing is that I don't need to remember if it was .com .net or .org or contained a hyphen, google always pick the correct one, eg spamcop.com is bad, spamcop.net is good.

Of course I would use Google even if they removed the button.Fredrik Aronsson on July 29, 2007 11:52 AM

Jeff. Once again your POV is from a computer literate person. You must think, what would a old person do when confronted with Google for the first time. Actually not even an old person, my girlfriend doesn't use the address bar at all. She will type the full url in the google search box "www.somebank.com" and then search. Once the results come back she clicks on the link that she feels is the one she wanted. To me this is a complete waste of time, but for her, in the event that she spells is slightly wrong, google usually has the correct URL waiting in the wings.

Just because you use it, doesn't mean that it isn't used.Tim on July 29, 2007 12:04 PM

They can't get rid of it now. It's part of their mojo, baby!Greg Magarshak on July 29, 2007 12:14 PM

* The purpose of the "I'm Feeling lucky" button as I see it, is to entirely skip the search results page, ie shortening the time it takes to navigate to the site you were originally interested in.
Sites that are well established and have reached the top of the google ranking can then be reached by simply typing in specific key-words, instead of having to remember whether the site was a .com .net or .info etc, or if there are many possible permutations to site's address.
* In this way, a user doen't have to think about whether the site is NYTimes.com newyorktimes.com thetimes.net or whatever the case may be... (Even though probably each of these addresses will get them there).
* The button works just like the firefox address bar auto-search in that you just hit enter after entering a search term.
* Perhaps in the future, when the google search evolves enough, it will have no buttons altogether, and will be able to discern whether item being searched for is popular enough to navigate to directly, skipping the search results page.Thomas Borzecki on July 29, 2007 12:48 PM

they had a research that when the feeling lucky button is removed the number of searches (through search button) dropped.dude! on July 29, 2007 1:48 PM

I use searchninja.net for web search for two reasons:
1) Less cluttered UI than google
2) Cooler domain name :)Dave Jones on July 29, 2007 2:18 PM

How can anybody take what you say seriously, anyway? You still use Internet Explorer.Penguin Pete on July 29, 2007 2:26 PM

i use google for, perhaps, 6 years, and i have NEVER used the i feel lucky thing.

i actually didnt even know what was it for until like 6 months ago.diogo on July 29, 2007 2:57 PM

I use it all the time; I have a search shortcut in Opera; when I type "l codinghorror" it searches for "codinghorror" with Google's Feeling Lucky. So it's basically the quickest way for me to go to a page I know the tile of, but not the URL. You won't believe how often I search for "l wikipedia [subject]".

So OK, I don't use the button, but I DO use the function :) Leo on July 29, 2007 3:32 PM

"So it's basically the quickest way for me to go to a page I know the tile of, but not the URL."

I second that.

it's totally usefuljoe beam on July 29, 2007 3:53 PM

"They can't remove that button now, it's part of their branding, part of their identity."

How can it be part of their identity when no one uses it?Lonnie on July 29, 2007 4:04 PM

Jeff, the usability experts at Google have found out that they need it there, even if almost nobody uses it. In fact, if nobody at all used it, the button would *still* be there. It's part of the corporate identity. It was in 2001, it still is now, and it will be for the next young people who use Google for the first time.

You seem to keep repeating how minor its uses are and how it's a waste of space - why don't you trust the people at Google? They know how this stuff works.

As for the person who suggested Blackle - that thing doesn't save power except on old CRT monitors. It won't save power for anybody reading Coding Horror - I hope!Tomer Chachamu on July 29, 2007 4:17 PM

I'm going to admit to being a moron.

I've pressed the Lucky button and was confused by it. I hadn't typed any text into the search box so it did nothing. My mistake was to assume that this button would return a completely random page. I didn't even think that it would require some search text.

Now I'm going to extend the view of how stupid I am.

So here I was with the Lucky button doing nothing. It didn't work the first time, nor did it ever work in the dozen times I then clicked on it. I was retarded enough to keep clicking on something that did nothing - or at least didn't work how I expected.

I've never successfully used the Lucky button because I'm unlucky enough to lack a brain.Andrew on July 29, 2007 5:14 PM

I use it all the time, and if they take it away, I will be pissed. Removing it will mean an extra page load for those of us who use it -- which is not an improvement. Please cease this crusade to degrade my user experience!Mark on July 29, 2007 5:37 PM

Believe it or not, but there are still people out there who do not know what 'Google' is and are just learning the ropes of the online world. So while this feature, to us, may be old and annoying to many other of the hermits out there, it defines Google as Google.Josh on July 29, 2007 6:25 PM

What a worthless argument? I am sure if someone feel the need for the "Search" button, they will click "I'm feeling lucky" button as well. I have been using google for 7-8 years and I don't think I've actually clicked "Search" button. Most of the times the "Enter" key does the work for me.sp4rt4n029 on July 29, 2007 7:48 PM

Jeff, sometimes you get going on the most trivial stuff... come on man, dig deeper!Steve on July 29, 2007 8:14 PM

"Regarding the Go buttons that go with browser address bars, if you copy and paste a URL using just the mouse, you'd hate to have your hand leave the *mouse* to find the Enter key. So, it works both ways :)"

The people at Opera realized this was a problem and added a second paste function to the right-click menu for the address and search bars. It's named Paste and Go, and is also mapped to Ctrl+B on the keyboard for those keyboardists who want to paste and go in one less keystroke.Powerlord on July 29, 2007 8:54 PM

Such a brilliant idea...

But I'm using it, genious. It's gonna stay there.meren on July 29, 2007 9:12 PM

You know what Google should do? On April 1st, change the "I feel lucky" button to be just a JPEG and see how long it takes someone to notice. (Yes, I know that different users see the button rendered in different ways, but it would still be cool.)

BTW, all this talk of using the IFL button made me try it out. It's actually pretty neat when you are not 100% sure whether the site you're looking for is *.com, *.org, or *.net, or you're not 100% sure of the domain name. I think I might actually start using it.David W. on July 29, 2007 10:27 PM

I think it's dangerous whenever somebody decides something is useless based on the fact that neither they nor their immediate circle uses something.

I personally don't use that button, but I do know a lot of people who just want a single result, and feel that clicking the button gives them what they need much faster. In fact, I know people who ONLY use the "I'm feeling lucky" option.

The computer savvy users who need google hundreds of times a day know exactly what they're going for, and I'm sure the majority of us use the firefox quick search term or have an iGoogle page, so we're not even affected by the button.

I'm sure there are massive amounts of people who still think the internet is a cool and amazing world and are happily using the "I'm feeling lucky" feature who would be very upset if it were removed.Nicholas Wright on July 29, 2007 11:14 PM

The search button on FF and IE are good when you don't type but copy-and-paste or drag-and-drop a URL or some text. So many times when my friends told me something I have never heard of, I would just drag-and-drop then search for it!Tom on July 30, 2007 12:07 AM

The search button on FF and IE are good when you don't type but copy-and-paste or drag-and-drop a URL or some text. So many times when my friends told me something I have never heard of, I would just drag-and-drop then search for it!Tom on July 30, 2007 12:07 AM

You are right that the button is pretty useless, users don't really use it. But it makes the search engine feel less cold, more like there are humans behind this. And that's the only reason it is there. martinus on July 30, 2007 12:45 AM

You have one more important thing in your post than the "I'm feeling lucky"-button-rant, and that is the enter thing.

The company I work for (international, 120k employees) has a corporate portal and topbar that is on almost all pages. It includes a search function: A text bar with above it "this site", "peoplefinder", "intranet" and next to it "search".

The behaviour is completely nonstandard.

When entering a text in the text field, then clicking the "search" button, a new window opens with the search results on the text you entered - standard enough. However, when you hit enter instead of clicking on "search" the search window opens - however with no text entered at all. Me being a keyboard guy gets crazy over typing terms in the search box, then having to type it again (it's gone from the original text box once you hit enter).

The other three buttons work perfectly, and even keyboardable (shift-tab - enter) - as you enter a text it searches on it, when you don't, it opens a search form for peoplefinder, this site or all sites in a new window.

Tijmen / IIVQ

P.S. I use the "I'm feeling lucky" occasionally, when I know the page I'm looking for but not the URL, for instance: the home page of gaim (or pidgin, as it's called) or a wikipedia entry (when not on my computer). At home on Konqueror I have these lovely shortcuts: A google lucky search is just the url "ggl:search term" (gg: for google, wp for wikipedia, etcetera, and you can define your own.)Tijmen Stam on July 30, 2007 12:55 AM

This is kind of a funny rant. I think it makes you look a little foolish as even I, a non-techie, knew that google left that button there for a reason. I think a little research would have gone a long way to stop you from making a fool of yourself. I would have corrected you and told you the problem with your reasoning but I see it has already been done in numerous postings.
Regards, Martin.Martin on July 30, 2007 1:11 AM

I actually recommend that button to people sometimes. Often I see people so accustomed to using search engines, that they will type "cnn" or "espn" into google, instead of putting the url in the address bar. I tell them in that case to use the "I feel lucky" button to speed up their annoying habbit. Although it's more for my benefit than theirs.

Actually, in this way, it's faster than typing the full URL into the address bar! I just can't trick my own brain to think of it that way.Adam Drayer on July 30, 2007 3:38 AM

The go-button is actually useful if you have no keyboard. I always thought the same as you of that button. But when i purchased a tablet PC, i saw why it exists. On Windows the OnScreenKeyboard* automatically hides after pasting. That when you tip with your pen on that button.

I was amazed how the use of GUIs change if you use a tablet pc. Ever wondered why the textbox popupmenus include an "delete"-entry?

* The Vista OSK contains three different input modes. Two of them are not keyboards at all, but handwriting recognition. In these two modes it automatically hides.dummy on July 30, 2007 4:15 AM

Strunk and White are full of crap e.g. http://itre.cis.upenn.edu/~myl/languagelog/archives/001905.htmlAsd on July 30, 2007 4:40 AM

Does anyone remember when Alta Vista was the number one search engine out there? It had really powerful search features like the ability to include and exclude and to look for whole phrases when other search engines were just simple word searchers with little to no control over your search terms.

Does anyone know why they lost their place? I can't be certain but I have a theory. They refused to adapt and change.

I have a very selfish reason for believing this. You see at the time their search engine was case sensitive so I very politely informed them that it would be more effective if they changed it so it wasn't case sensitive. I received a terse response informing me that this is how it was done, Unix systems did it that way, and that was the correct way to do it. I haven't used Alta Vista since.

On the other hand Google adapts on a daily basis. But I do agree that, to me, the "I'm Lucky" button is kinda useless but then I use Google for work, not just play. That being said I guess I'm willing to give Google the benefit of the doubt and assume it does get used so they keep it.
Kai Tain on July 30, 2007 4:55 AM

Google.com should be one big input text, with no button, and people would just enter text and press enter :)

Nah, honestly, the "I feel lucky" button is nothing more than Google's own "luck amulet" or "magnet amulet", call it as you wish. I believe that just having the world "luck" on a page can incur something in the head of most people visiting the Google page, specially if they found what they were looking for.

They associate the word "luck" with "search", and google stays in their mind because it's the only logo design viewable on the page. Simple as that. I personnaly really acknowledge Google is a powerful search engine, but there is others which provide similar results, yet they are not as crowded, because Google always knew how to make people come back.KiLVaiDeN on July 30, 2007 5:40 AM

I use the feeling lucky button all the time. And I use it PRECISELY becuause it reduces bullshit and distraction. My all time favorite use for it is to dig into imdb. For example, if I wanted to count my Kevin Bacon number, I'd type:

imdb kevin bacon

and hit Lucky. I'd be immediately taken to his page, where I would find that my Bacon number is 3. Otherwise, I'd have to click Search and then wait for the results, and then click on the first result, and then wait for IMDB to load.

The Lucky button is perfect for when you know that your search will return the result you want.mcgurk on July 30, 2007 6:12 AM

I use the "lucky" button all the time. Like when I want to call up Yahoo, I type "Yahoo" in Google and click "I'm Feeling Lucky".

Just kidding -- but when you know your search is going to result in the site you want as the first hit, it saves a clickChase Saunders on July 30, 2007 6:23 AM

You're right, Jeff, but I don't know if I agree that it's as big a problem as you say. I've never heard a complaint about it before and people get by just fine. I'm all for efficiency but the occasional quirky thing or two doesn't bother me.john on July 30, 2007 6:40 AM

I disagree. That button gets used all the time, and it has become a big part of Google's identity. The button itself certainly does serve a purpose. In fact, I feel it serves far more of a purpose than the default button. But as pointed out, the default button needs to be there for the mice fiends.

I trust Google's ranking, and when I am REALLY searching for something, the vast majority of times I view the first result returned (and I view it first). If you are like me and trust googles rankings, and you are really searching for something, it only makes sense to click this button after typing a search term (I never click - tab tab enter works best for me). Sorry, but this button isn't going anywhere.

You wanna write about a Google mistake, how about pointing out their lack of DOCTYPE usage!Josh Stodola on July 30, 2007 6:46 AM

That button is still there? I forgot.

I'm continually baffled by the tendency of others to type URLs into a Google search rather than just typing it into the address bar. I'm not sure why, I just told them to go to the URL, and it's a good URL, but they type it into Google search and add three clicks into the process anyway. Can anyone explain this behavior to me? Maybe it's because Google has now become the URL spell-checker of the internet. Maybe we should just get rid of the address bar and set everyone's homepage to Google?Mattkins on July 30, 2007 7:11 AM

The comments section is tl;dr so I'm not sure if anyone has added in an unsubstantiated argument supporting your argument from a financial angel along the lines of: perhaps the 1% of users who use the 'I'm feeling lucky' button a lot also make up 90% of users who would click on a sponsored link. (type a major companies name into google and hit 'search' and I’m betting 10 to 1 a user will click the sponsored link, or in my moms case 100% of the time) and think about the naive 1% who would do a search for 'flowers' or even 'sump pump'

It sounds like the research google put into taking away the 'I’m feeling lucky' was just a 'happy feel good' test and not monetarily backed, or perhaps thinking along those lines was why they ran the test in the first place. I seem to remember a major site ?Amazon I think? took months to change their background colour slowly instead of shocking the end user by the change, every day the gray background became a little more white until it was a 'professional' background. I'm sure if google could do that with the IFL button they would, perhaps that’s why the firefox google page doesn’t have the button?

And just to be a troll: everyone who said something along the lines of ‘Google knows better then you’ go back go hugging your iphone ;)
Spoon on July 30, 2007 7:28 AM

What is even more funny, though, is how Jeff got so many replies for such an un-noteworthy topic...

Readers, if our esteemed writer here comes up with another such banal topic in the future, someone do us a favour and hijack the conversation into something a little more interseting!

=0)

HD.Huw on July 30, 2007 8:43 AM

I agree with Tomer Chachamu's perspective. Google is an extremely data driven company (see "Date Drive Decisions" in http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/10296177/site/newsweek/). The data might indicate the button has positive side effects for site usage despite its overall use.

Secondary effects are an aspect of usability that's very hard to judge without data. Matt Hempey on July 30, 2007 10:19 AM

The only reliable way to get lucky on the Internet and you want to do away with it? Philistine.Dylan Brams on July 30, 2007 10:28 AM

What are you saying?!! That button is very useful.
It is used to measure peoples self luck perception. The fact that nobody uses it only proves that people almost never feel lucky which is a emotional problem of the people, not a UI usability design problem of Google.Chepech on July 30, 2007 10:32 AM

I've never felt lucky enough to make a blind jump, even for an innocuous term like "vmware download". It's the same reason I get annoyed when a link's destination doesn't show up on the status bar. I want to know where I'm going.

Now, if the button had a headshot of Ricky Ricardo and the text slightly changed to "I'm Feeling Lucy"... that's another story.

BTW I enjoy articles about UI minutiae; keep 'em coming.Kurumi on July 30, 2007 10:34 AM

If they got rid of that button then all kinds of peopple who were #1 on google for their first name would have to get new business cards.

http://paulstamatiou.com/2007/04/07/im-2-on-google/engtech IDT on July 30, 2007 12:25 PM

"Quite odd for a platform that is so mouse-centric.."

That must be a typo. I think you meant.

"Quite spectacular for a platform that is so keyboard-friendly.."

So I fixed it for you. :)Scott on July 30, 2007 2:10 PM

Probably been said, but some browsers use it so that if I enter "Game Maker" it will automatically take me to the Game Maker homepage, or "Yahoo" will automatically take me to said site. It's not foolproof, but some browsers do it and that's all I use it for.

- Leif
http://www.greenmangames.vze.com/Leif902 on July 30, 2007 7:11 PM

(1) one less click
if you know the first result will be the one you want, you'll have saved a click by "feeling lucky. this works especially well if you've put in a comprehensive search parameter like "kommune one" and "wikipedia" (who are probably the next master of the interverse after google).

one less click very little on a standard desktop today, but on mobile devices or dial-up connections, this also means one less page load! this also may explain why www.google.com is a fairly small page, load-wise, as it is being optimized for devices other than the standard desktop.

(2) where's my keyboard?
along the same logic. with mobile access still being ironed out, there's no telling what the "keyboard" situation will be like in mobile devices (or even desktop devices). on screen keyboards would mean an enter button would be as easy to use as a "go" button (easier, if the on screen keyboard is cramped... or missing an enter key!).

depending on how revolutionary apple's multi-touch system actually is, we might begin to see desktop devices with touch interfaces (Microsoft-HP have got some interesting developments on touch-based computers/furniture too). bottom line is keyboard shortcuts might not be the shortest cut in the near future.

it's good to be safe, and it doesn't cost them anything to keep things the way they are now - which is working.kamerad eks on July 30, 2007 7:17 PM

Seriously, it's useless, but like the other comments, I personally like it. It also adds a bit of "width" to the section, I can't imagine it with just one thin search button. I've noticed my website designs careering towards minimalist too...but argh, can it really be just Google's power?Dion Moult on July 30, 2007 7:41 PM

Actually I find the button very useful. By pressing it google redirects you to the top search result. You can use this in a script or application to get the URL of the top Google result without scraping the HTML of the results page.Julian Kay on July 31, 2007 4:14 AM

How distracting can a button be if you never use it and usually never even directly look at it?
GregoryD on July 31, 2007 7:40 AM

What doesn't seem useful to you may be indispensable to someone else. sh on July 31, 2007 9:00 AM

Jeff,

Fears of a "trademark" are not unfounded.

Have a peek at this...(if you click the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button you can see for yourself.)

http://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&q=&btnI=I%27m+Feeling+Lucky

-cvcv on July 31, 2007 9:38 AM

I think they should add another button:

"I'm Feeling Unlucky"

This would send them to the last search result result or close to it.Jon Raynor on July 31, 2007 9:40 AM

I agree that the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button on the Google homepage is a bit useless and I'd wager that it is clicked only once per 10,000 times "Search" is clicked.

On a slightly similar note, Google's Picasa image/photo editor/slide show/viewer has an "I'm Feeling Lucky" button that automatically applies a variety of picture enhancing filters and modifications. Having to digital photography skills, I use that button on every picture and the resulting effect is better than the original nine times out of ten.Scott Mitchell on July 31, 2007 4:25 PM

It's part of googles tradition or like a religion, you can't just take it away easily. jun on July 31, 2007 6:02 PM

There was an interview with someone from Google and she mentioned the button was there for comfort reason. They considered to remove it, but I think they did some survey and decided not to.

Plus, I guess "I'm feeling lucky" on the homepage gives an uplift feeling to their brand.Fadzlan on July 31, 2007 6:13 PM

try "french military victories" then click i'm feeling luckyMark on August 1, 2007 12:32 AM

Echoing dee's comment (#2)--I'm Feeling Lucky is the power behind the Firefox feature that I use the most.

1. Think of a topic
2. Type topic words into URL bar
3. Arrive at the right page

It's incredibly useful. When I do this in IE, it takes longer and it gives me a search results page--which, when you're used to the right page, is very much a let down.

PhilipPhilip on August 1, 2007 10:08 AM

I have seen this button before (I use several times every day), but have never used it. It doesn't bother me that it is there, I just ignore it like most things in life that don't mean much to me.Generalsql on August 1, 2007 1:29 PM

Fuck you! :) I've been using the internet since -91 (yes), I love good interface design and I think that button is awsome! The only thing wrong about it is that it does not work when you don't fill in the edit box. That would be really cool!

You are taking this stuff way too seriously...MHolmgren on August 2, 2007 2:20 AM

Usually if you get lucky while using the "I'm feeling lucky" function you can get sent to funny sites. Such as, if you used to type in "Failure" and hit "I'm feeling lucky" It would take you to George W Bush's biography site. This has been changed though and no longer works.Mathew Elric on August 4, 2007 1:50 PM

I use "I'm feeling lucky" when I need an alternative search result.Haris on August 5, 2007 9:33 PM

The IFL button is broken in two ways:
1) If you hit the button with a blank search, you're taken to a page which explains its function. That's nice, but that page doe not have the IFL button on it.
2) If I type "google" and hit IFL, nothing happens :)Eugene Katz on August 7, 2007 9:53 AM

"But typical users don't really understand basic keyboard shortcuts."

That's because I don't use a keyboard. I'm handicapped.
And not only that, but usability rules force you to include buttons, for the kind of situations where you don't have a keyboard...Hernando on August 7, 2007 1:25 PM

"...move it all the way over to the mouse, then carefully move the mouse pointer to a button and left-click it..."

This made me laugh so hard! I used to be a big fan of Linux and the command line, even when I moved over to X I installed window managers that allowed me to use the keyboard..*sigh* those were the days.

Unfortunately with Windows and HTML that almost forces people to use the mouse, things wont change and the world will continue in blissful ignorance. In fact, most people I know and worked with would actually prefer the slower way; productivity is NOT on the agenda. EVER. Eugene on August 8, 2007 12:43 AM

if i remember correctly, i think they did remove it for a point in time (or maybe just to a select range of people) and they got negitive feedback from removing the button. The only reason they keep it there is because it would look odd without it.josh hunt on August 13, 2007 5:47 PM

u idiots, havent u ever found the funny error messages that come out of the im feeling lucky button.

try it, and u will be amazed by the humour of the google people, and how much free time they seem to have.

Regards
JorgieJorge on September 3, 2007 2:26 AM

Yeah, must agree. Was wondering why it is there. I use Google ALL the time, but maybe less than 5 times have I ever clicked that "2nd button".

Would be cool to see it removed or something more useful there in its place.ML on September 29, 2007 12:20 PM

The best thing about this button is switching the UI language to "Elmer Fudd" and seeing it change to "I'm feewing wucky!".David M on October 10, 2007 7:41 AM

So true...

Regarding Blackle.com, it is almost a fraud, since it uses MORE energy than a white background (on LCD screens.)

I use Greenle instead.

And Pinkle sometimes !PlanetSaver on October 23, 2007 12:04 PM

Java uses this functionality to link to the most recent Java Docs. It does not use the button but it will do a search for a Java Term that using the "Feeling Lucky" functionality. It does seem like a bit if a risk to me because if some other company can get to be first in the result they could effectively hijack it.
Stephen on November 13, 2007 3:56 PM

I use the I'm feeling lucky search quite often.
More accurately, I have a Firefox keyword for it ('go') so I just type "go whatever" and I know I'm going where I want to straight away.

"and Google's intermediate search page results don't offer it"
- think carefully about what you said.
It wouldn't make a lot of sense having a 'skip results page' button on the results page would it?alex howell on November 20, 2007 5:08 PM

There's no go button on IE7 !?

I've never used the Feeling Lucky button, probably never will. When i'm googling something it's usually because i'm investigating something and want information from several sources. The standard search is more appropriate.Simon on November 23, 2007 7:17 AM

I use I'm Feeling Lucky quite often, actually. For example instead of doing a search for "Megadeth wikipedia" I can use I'm Feeling Lucky as I know that it will be the first result. This is very helpful as I am on dialup. There should be a shortcut key!JJJosh on December 8, 2007 10:00 PM

Really? Did you really write something about this?
The "I'm feeling lucky" button is funny.
And you find some amusing things.
AKA search: french military victories and hit i'm feeling lucky.
OR search: google chuck norris and hit i'm feeling lucky.
Who cares if its not the most used thing ever? Really now.Ashley on January 23, 2008 1:41 PM

You know whats ironic?

I came across this site from using the "Im Feeling Lucky" button.Rebun on January 30, 2008 5:12 PM

does it really matter?

seriously.

if people are so stupid that an extra button on the main search page might confuse them then i'm not sure they should really be using a computer in the first place.

funny how people get so hung up on something so stupid.

on the plus side the i'm feeling lucky button can have funny results.

try find chuck norris and hit i'm feeling lucky.are you that stupid? on February 4, 2008 2:03 PM

Chuck Norris can kill two stones with one bird.

I really don't use the I am feeling lucky -button. Why not use dynamics and get the first link to the search page right after I have typed the query? Or first five links?Don on February 4, 2008 2:18 PM

Why waste time taking it out when it does no harm as is?

Ever heard the term "Don't fix what isn't broken"?Kellogg on February 15, 2008 6:49 PM

The button is tremendously useful you dummy. I bring up firefox w. google as my homepage and the focus by default is on Google's search textfield. So let's say I want to bring up Talking Points Memo (plug for great blog for US-center-left politics & news). All I have to do is type 'tpm' in the search textfield, hit tab twice which positions the focus on the "Im feeling lucky" button and hit enter and--boom--Im at the TPM site. Any time you know a search string will bring up a site you want, you can type that string in the textfield and use the tab-tab-enter key combo and bring up the site directly. It's great. Just try it. I use it dozens of times a day (no not just for visiting TPM!).

Oh, p.s. the tab-tab-enter doesn't work on firefox on my new Mac book pro. Tabbing moves the focus up to the address and toolbar instead. You can't reach Google's "Google Search" or "I'm feeling lucky" buttons with the tab. Anyone know a workaround for me?anamaeka on April 27, 2008 10:16 AM

I just found an answer to my own question in a thread at another site:
If your using Firefox on a mac, you need to set a system wide preference specified in System Preferences --> Keyboard & Mouse --> Keyboard Shortcuts.

If you set "Full keyboard access" to "All controls," then Firefox will let you tab through everything on the page.

(you have to restart for the preference to take effect). Now I have my tab-tab-enter functionality working again on my new mac book pro!anamaeka on April 27, 2008 10:29 AM

Hey, talking about bad ui, i find that scrolling ALL THE WAY to the bottom to comment is kinda bad. (maybe you can put a # link to down here?) anyway, i had to actually comment because, i got here by using the "i'm feeling lucky" button.
actually, i was only using the button because, I DON'T USE IT, in practice that is, i only thought, hey, lemme use it, so i searched for "lucky" and got to "luckymag.com" and then, i searched for this:

'hey google,i only searched for "lucky" because, well, i NEVER use the i'm feeling lucky button. except just now, and well, this last time'

and got here.

go figure.Irwin on June 5, 2008 7:46 AM

It was always very useful for me, when you know some special keywords that always leads to a specified website, then you can simply memorize keywords instead of website's url.
Suppose you want to checkout IMDB.com for a movie named "teeth", all you have to do is write "teeth imdb" and click "lucky button".
these always work:
"teeth wikipedia"
"teach yourself c++ amazon"
etc
John on June 17, 2008 2:33 AM

I only use the I'm Feeling Lucky button when I'm bored (ok, that's quite a lot...) or when I've heard that it's got a funny result (such as typing in "Find Chuck Norris" or "Find Weapons of Mass Destruction" or the French Military Defeats one - I wonder if anyone else knows any funny I'm feeling lucky results).
So I think it's quite useful, personally.Sara on June 19, 2008 3:50 AM

know what? you're right!kg on June 23, 2008 9:08 AM

I hardly ever use the "I'm feeling Lucky" button, I have only ever used it about 2 or 3 times but it is easy if you already know what it is going to go onto and you are visiting the site again so then you don't have to look at the list of websites and click on the one you want, it goes straight to it. I don't think they should get rid of it.
I love looking at the little pictures on the Google bit of public holidays and stuff!Sam on August 8, 2008 9:59 PM

They should *keep* it. It's a simple, effective reminder that Google is human, clever and different.pwb on August 26, 2008 4:02 PM

jfkl;asjfasdfarfDaVinci on August 27, 2008 3:08 AM

jfkl;asjfasdfarfDaVinci on August 27, 2008 3:08 AM

Hi. I like the article, but there are a few oversights. First, I'm a CAD operator who has more keyboard shortcuts than Carter's got liver pills, but I also use my mouse regularly, as my job requires my left hand to type as my right hand 'mouses.' Sometimes, the big honkin search button is easier to get to for a person who must manipulate each device separately and simultaneously...it doesn't make me inept.

Furthermore, there are 'keyboard people,' and there are 'mouse people.' I remember the codes for all the processes I use, but I work with people who have shortcut buttons for things with two-letter command lines. For them it's easier, even though to me it looks more laborious and bordering on absurd. That's why they make chocolate and vanilla.

Besides, google looks naked without this particular feature, in my opinion. I'm pretty sure a company with successes such as Google's would be more in-tune with what its users want than you would be. Jamie on September 18, 2008 5:42 PM

Holy F*** I can't believe somebody wrote an article on this. That guy has no life and too much free time.Chris on November 24, 2008 7:20 PM

P.S. This is why not everyone should be allowed to "blog".Chris on November 24, 2008 7:25 PM

I have rarely used the lucky button historically, but have recently realized that it can be a time saver in some situations. For example, just now I wanted to check the parameters of the LVM_DELETECOLUMN message, and noticed that since the MSDN page is almost guaranteed to be the first result in Google for that search term, I could avoid that extra step by using a keyword to use the lucky function instead.

In fact, during my search for the GET parameters to invoke the lucky function, I found an article that covered something I had not considered: that the lucky button actually LOSES GOOGLE MONEY. Since they don’t show a results page to lucky queries, the show no ads, and thus make no money on those searches.

So if you want to wonder why they have kept it, then you should wonder about it costing them money (~$100M/year).

Here’s the article:
http://valleywag.com/tech/google/im-feeling-lucky-button-costs-google-110-million-per-year-324927.phpAlec Soroudi on December 12, 2008 7:01 PM

Irony. I found your blog by typing "this is the first time I've ever used the I'm feeling lucky google button". As I'm bored.
Having used Google for years I think you may have a point as my "search" statement is true.hjdx on January 9, 2009 2:35 PM

i think that its good for your momma and that i will use that button on my birth day

lets say your mom goes to google and tries to find 'how to eat chicken the fat way' she'll be looking through all the hundreds and thousands of pages when she could have pressed the im feeling lucky button and found out already...

i think this whole thing is about bieng lazy and finding out how to use the least amount of energy possble.

if you press the 'search' button then you would have to go to your mouse and carefully place the cursor on the one you want and left click it!

so you going on and on about not ever using the 'im feeling lucky for some reason ' button im over here getting fat (not really) and enjoying not having to use my mouse! now ha!toogood53 on January 29, 2009 1:40 PM

hehetoogood53 on January 29, 2009 1:45 PM

okay now that is so true toogood53 is awsome!!! im his biggest fan!!!goopey2 on January 29, 2009 1:46 PM

i think toogood53 has a point. that whole passage was a waste of time .... and toogood53 is a very good writer and has awsome utube videos!!!jacob on January 29, 2009 1:49 PM

if that whole google joke thing back then was funny then toogood53 was awsome at jokingedward on January 29, 2009 1:50 PM

i think toogood53 has a point so go hizz that jointfellosipher on January 29, 2009 1:52 PM

did any one ever listen to the peoplestoogood53 on January 30, 2009 2:00 PM

idk if some of these people even read half these messages .... so this is just my hangin out writing place
toogood53 on January 30, 2009 2:04 PM

buttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbuttonbutton on February 2, 2009 2:21 PM

toogood53 is rightchayla on February 3, 2009 12:03 PM

I've never been to your website before. I came to it today because I googled "I'm feeling lucky". Not to say that I will ever come back here again if this is the sort of topic that you find worthy of discussion, but you can at least find satisfaction in the fact that the "I'm feeling lucky" button got you one more hit today! Cheers!Matt on February 10, 2009 9:22 PM

you have way too much time on your hands. Maybe you should search google for friendsQ on March 11, 2009 4:23 AM

firstly:
LOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOLOL to Q,i second the notion .. u really shouldAaaaaa on April 3, 2009 9:57 PM

and secondly, i dont understand .. ur saying that because such a small fraction of people use the button it should not exist ?? so does that mean u want to get rid of all wheelchairs and disabled parking spaces too ?? because very few people use those aswell. though both of these things may seem pointless and annoying to the people who dont use them, they are still very convenient for the people who do, so reaallllyy, i dont think u no wtf ur talking about.
:D
p.s. i really do hope you take Q's advice; find some friends, get a life and get over the button ..Aaaaaa on April 3, 2009 10:15 PM

xddfddjjj on May 4, 2009 12:12 PM

The I'm Feeling Lucky button does have one use - forums. LMGTFY (Let me Google that for you) works pretty well if the result is the first one - in which case you can add extra oomph to your sarcasm.Jonathan Dickinson on July 7, 2009 2:35 PM

Tell me why you live in a world where relatively any and all information you could ask for is at your fingertips and you whine about something that, in your own words, is a "superfluous" way for the company that brings you this wonder to boast (humbly I might add) about their achievement.

Google a dating service. Get a girlfriend. Stop wasting my oxygen.Dan Clark on July 13, 2009 2:33 PM