With the advent of Internet Explorer 8 Beta 2 at the end of August 2008, Microsoft delivered a consistent evolution as far as end user-centric features are concerned. One of the aspects of the browser which was kicked up a notch is the search box in the right hand side corner. Microsoft expanded the feature with search suggestions, offering both text and visual items. Taking advantage of IE8 Visual Search for any given website is a matter of following the guidelines delivered by the Redmond giant, courtesy of Sébastien Zimmermann, IE software design engineer.

"Making your website available for search from within the browser enables your customers/users to access your website whenever they need a service from it, without having them type your full web address. Additionally, you (and your brand) are always there with them, right in their browser. The more useful the service, the more likely users are to install it to have an ongoing connection with your website," Zimmermann stated.

Website developers will have to first of all define a service and then ensure that the service is discoverable. The final step is to actually implement the Visual Search suggestions tailored for Internet Explorer 8. When users enter a query in the browser's search box, using a Visual Search-enabled website as a search provider, IE8 will be able to return Visual Suggestions. Zimmermann offered a detailed guide of how Visual Search can be implemented on websites.

"It is up to you to develop amazing services using this feature. Inspire yourself from the services already available on the IE8 Gallery, and explore the possibilities. The QuickPick menu makes "vertical" searches - such as Wikipedia, Amazon, and most likely your website - more visible and accessible, and enables users to quickly target their search on your service. So whether your website is about stock quotes and financial news, or sells music, auto parts, or cake… you can provide a way for your customers to have a deep, useful, ongoing relationship with your website," Zimmermann added.

All 25 language versions of Internet Explorer 8 (IE8) Beta 2 are available for download via this link.