Answers.com is a new free encyclopedia/reference site launched this week. Answers is based on the previously fee-based ($29.99 yearly subscription), highly-regarded GuruNet product from Atomica Corporation.
Answers provides a kind of 1-stop-shopping, meta-encyclopedia for information. The product licenses material from the likes of Houghton Mifflin, Columbia University Press, Merriam Webster, Computer Desktop Encyclopedia, Inlumen, Investopedia and Who2. It also uses information from and links to Wikipedia, AccuWeather, Amazon, Google, Technorati etc.
Gadgetmaniac rating of Answers.com: 8/10.
The good: the information provided by Answers.com is fairly complete, thus avoiding multiple search engine queries. Searching for Google, gets you company info, stock quotes and blogs that discuss Google, etc. Searching for Mountain View, CA, returns some information about the city, as well as current weather conditions and the forecast, etc.
The not-so-good: the results from Answers.com are repetitive. Searching for Albert Einstein returns 9 main sections of somewhat overlapping and redundant results. Answers.com would benefit from a unified perspective on a topic.
Gadgetmaniac off-topic diversion:
I’ve always had a very high regard for Wikipedia, which I rate at 9/10; its especially good for technology and the sciences, and perhaps less-so for the arts. Its interesting to come across a dissenting viewpoint; here’s one from a Robert McHenry who disses Wikipedia as a “The Faith-Based Encyclopedia“.
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I agree with Gadgetmaniac about Wikipedia. Although some people look down on this site, I think it’s incredible and highly useful.