Gune mobile search

There is nothing wrong with just using Google to search for anything on the BlackBerry. The BlackBerry browser is a major disappointment, but it’s still usable. It gets the job done. But searching on the BlackBerry can be improved.

Handcase, a Brazilian company with lots of experience with the Palm platform, has just introduced its Gune meta search engine. It is not a standalone search engine, it searches Google and Bing and gives you the results. The difference is that Gune is designed for mobile devices. While Google looks pretty good on the tiny screen, Bing doesn’t. Gune fixes that for you.

Well, okay, Bing looks good if I change my BlackBerry browser to BlackBerry mode, i.e. let the browser identify itself as a BlackBerry device. But then I may miss content on other sites that insist on making incomplete mobile versions of their site. That’s why I always navigate in Firefox mode: so I always get the full site, even if it looks hideous. If you don’t like to switch into BlackBerry mode and want to use Bing, there you go, Gune is for you.

But wait, there is more. Gune also offers a catalog of mobile websites and lets everyone suggest the inclusion of other mobile websites. Ricardo Garay, the CEO of Handcase, says:

“Gune is designed so that everyone can contribute to the directory, so if you have or know of a good mobile design website, just visit the Gune for the PC and give your tip. Once checked and approved it goes to the directory.”

Hmmm… Did I get that right? We can only suggest sites if we visit Gune on the PC? We are not allowed to do that on mobile? Geez, they always have to ruin it, don’t they?

Most people seem to hate mobile sites, and it’s exactly because so many sites still insist on making mobile sites incomplete. They just do. It’s really difficult to get past their skulls the notion that mobile sites should be just lighter, not incomplete. Remember when Google first came up? Remember how we all loved it because it was so clean, light and fast, with no ads and Javascript all over the page? Yes, good times. We wouldn’t need “mobile” sites if Web designers ever learned that lesson.

I still love “mobile” sites nevertheless. I like them so much that I use them on my desktop. Why not? They are very light and clean. It’s the way of the future in my view. One day, all that Flash and Javascript and crammed three-column design will be a distant memory, remembered about as fondly (not!) as bell bottom pants are remembered today. Just you wait.

You will find Gune at the following link:

http://www.handycase.com/gune/

Note that the company is called Handcase, but the site’s domain is handycase.com. If you like launcher icons, they have one for the BlackBerry here. It’s not an app, it’s just a launcher. Many other phones and devices are supported.