The Google algorithm is a complex system with a search index, which is used by Google search to retrieve relevant information for a search query. Through this algorithm, as well as a combination of number ranking signals and codes, Google search engine generates the best possible results, and ranks every web page accordingly on its search engine results pages (SERPs). So, these web pages are ranked based on their relevance.
Only a few algorithm updates were publicly announced by Google since they launched it, though thousands of changes are made every year. Some of these changes go unnoticed as they seem insignificant. However, major algorithm updates with significant impact to the search engine results pages (SERPs) were officially rolled out by Google.
Major Algorithm Launches, Updates & Refreshes
Below are some major Google algorithm launches, updates, and refreshes that have been rolled out in the past few years:
- Mobilegeddon
- RankBrain
- Panda
- Penguin
- Hummingbird
- Pigeon
- Payday
- EMD (Exact Match Domain)
- Page Layout Algorithm
Significance Of The Google Algorithm To Every Search Engine User
It Makes Finding Useful Information Relatively Easy and Straightforward
On the World Wide Web, a lot of people take for granted how difficult finding useful information would be without Google or other search engines. People visit the Internet, search for certain information, and get results for it almost instantly, unaware that there are nearly 150,000,000 active websites on the Internet today.
If one is to go through all these sites while finding helpful information, it will definitely take forever to find anything relevant. To make this easy for people to find useful and relevant information, complex algorithms are used by search engines. These algorithms are mathematical instructions that instruct the computers on how an assigned task should be completed.
The Google algorithm system depends mainly on “keywords” to provide this relevant information.Since most web pages have a focus keyword (usually derived from the topic written). So, a simple Google search containing keywords will, therefore, return web pages containing these keywords. These pages will then be ranked based on certain factors, which include how frequent the keywords appear on the page. The web pages with the highest rank appear at the top of Google’s search engine results page (SERP).
The keyword search function Google uses is similar to that of other search engines. On the web, there are automated programs referred to as spiders or crawlers. These spiders or crawlers travel the web, as they build up an index page while moving from one link to another. This built-up index page includes certain keywords. When a user enters a search query containing a specific keyword registers for an index page, Google references this index while providing the result to the query.
The Google Algorithm Helps To Save Time While Finding Relevant Information
The fact that the Google search engine can provide useful information in seconds, out of the nearly 150,000,000 active websites on the Internet is something truly impeccable.
This means a user can get whatever information he or she desires, in record time.
Endnote
The comprehensive and ever-improving nature of the Google algorithm system has played a major role in making Google search engine the indispensable tool it has become today.