What advantages does a GB have over search engines?
Presently, the most common approach to tackle information overload uses software filters, such as agents or search engines, that only retrieve documents fulfilling certain criteria. However, these criteria are based on a limited number of rigidly defined components, such as keywords. The value of a document is difficult to determine in terms of such components. For example, a relevant document may use different keywords and will therefore not be found, or a worthless document may contain all the right keywords and therefore be returned as a primary “hit”. This explains why search engines often return loads of pages that are not relevant to your query. Value is ultimately determined by the people using and appreciating a document. The GB get its knowledge from the implicit evaluations made by its users collectively. Therefore, the GB is a much more universal and flexible instrument for selecting relevant items.
