Google promises 'fresher' search

Google has made improvements to its search algorithm to provide "more up-to-date" results.

The changes will touch around 35 per cent of searches and will ensure searches for certain topics receive more timely web pages.

Google has sought to differentiate between certain searches' time sensitivity. There are those that relate to hot topics where users typically want the most current information, and there are those for regularly occurring events like an FA Cup Final or Christmas.

Different searches have different freshness needs.

There are also searches which relate to topics for which information changes regularly, but the issue isn't a major one, according to Google.

"There are plenty of cases where results that are a few years old might still be useful for you," added Amit Singhal, Google Fellow, in a blog post.

"Different searches have different freshness needs. This algorithmic improvement is designed to better understand how to differentiate between these kinds of searches and the level of freshness you need, and make sure you get the most up to the minute answers."

Google is still far ahead of its closest rival Bing in the search wars.

Yet the search giant hasn't always made the right moves. Earlier this week, the company announced a new Gmail iPad app, which went up on the App Store before being removed on the same day.

A bug in the software broke notifications and caused users to see an error message when first opening the app. It has not yet reappeared on the App Store.