Google’s Web Tab: Finding the Old Internet Again
Maybe I’m late to the party, or just at that age where we occasionally “forget” things, but I’ve been missing that human touch when searching Google for recipes and other information.
The first thing I usually see is Google’s AI summary of whatever I’m searching for. And sometimes that’s perfectly fine. If I need a quick answer, AI can be very helpful.
But when I’m searching for something like a lemon pie recipe, I don’t necessarily want an AI-generated summary. I want to see a real person’s blog post, Facebook post, or video about their lemon pie. I want to see the pictures, read the comments, and maybe learn that it was their grandmother’s recipe that’s been passed down through the family for generations.
Where Have All the Blog Posts Gone?
This morning, while searching for “lemon pie,” I stumbled across something I had either forgotten about or never paid much attention to. After entering my search term, I clicked over to the Web tab instead of staying on All or reading the AI summary.
And there they were—my old friends.
Blog posts written by real people. Recipe websites. Forum discussions. Videos. People sharing their successes, failures, tips, tricks, and photos. Some recipes looked amazing, some looked a little questionable, and some came with long family stories attached. But that’s exactly what I had been missing.
Instead of reading an AI summary of what everyone else said, I was reading what people actually had to say.
I’m Not Giving Up on AI – There’s Still a Place for Both
Now, I’m not knocking AI. I use it every day while doing Pinterest for Trendy Tree and my blog. I find it incredibly helpful for all kinds of things.
In fact, I recently went through a lengthy process with ChatGPT while trying to find the best digital camera for wildlife photography. The information was incredibly helpful. Instead of spending hours reading review after review, I was able to ask questions, compare different cameras, discuss my budget, and narrow down the options until I found one that seemed perfect for what I wanted.
For that type of research, AI saved me a tremendous amount of time. It even recommended the best place to purchase the camera. As it turned out, I was already familiar with the company, had purchased from them before, and had even been chatting with them about the camera.
So in that case, asking ChatGPT gave me answers much faster and more completely than searching individual websites one by one.
And now, my new Nikon P950 is due to arrive today! I can’t wait to get it charged up and take it out for a spin on the Tanglefoot Trail. Hopefully there will be a few cooperative birds waiting to have their picture taken.
The View From a Blogger’s Side
As a blogger, I understand why some content creators are concerned about AI-generated search results. I’ve seen plenty of discussions in blogging groups about declining website traffic over the past couple of years. Less traffic can mean fewer ad impressions, fewer affiliate sales, and fewer opportunities for readers to discover the people behind the content.
The blogs haven’t disappeared, though. They’re still out there. I just needed a better way to find them.
Now that I’ve rediscovered Google’s Web Tab, I can quickly jump past the AI summaries and browse through blog posts, recipe websites, travel articles, decorating ideas, and all the other content created by real people sharing their experiences.
So, since I learned something new today, I figured I’d share it. Maybe everyone else already knew about Google’s Web Tab and I’m just late to the party. But just in case you didn’t know about it either, now you do!
Update: The Part Where I Eat Crow….🐦⬛🐦⬛🐦⬛
After writing this post, I promptly spent the next morning asking ChatGPT questions about my new Nikon camera. It gave me answers almost as quickly as I could ask the questions. It helped me identify a Red-winged Blackbird, informed me that my “ducks” were actually Canada Geese, gave me tips on improving my flower photos, and showed me how to transfer images to an external drive.
ChatGPT also helped me troubleshoot a card reader that apparently only likes to work when plugged in upside down! So yes, this is the part where I eat crow. 🐦⬛🐦⬛🐦⬛
