Me, work for Google?

Have you ever used the Google search engine? Who hasn't? And isn't it absolutely amazing?

Have you ever used the Google Image search engine? Don't be embarrassed. I find that many people who regularly use Google have never used Google Image. Of course if you never need to use a picture or graphic to spice up some report or presentation, you may never need the services of Google Image.

What always amazed me, though, was how Google attached attributes to the pictures they have in their database. Did they pay someone to look at pictures for hours on end trying to think how a picture would be accessed? For example a picture of a bird in flight might be a good match for a search involving "bird", "sky", or "flying".

Well, it turns out that one way Google does it is with a game. You can play this game any time you have 2 minutes or more. Simply go to Google Image Search then look for a link 2 lines under the input box. It will say, "Try Google Image Labeler". Or you can click on the highlighted words in the last sentence. Google Image Labeler is the game. If you agree to play, you will be matched randomly with another player and the two of you will have 2 minutes to identify and type in attributes of several pictures. If any of the attributes you type in match one typed in by your partner, you both score. Sometimes, you are shown pictures which already have attributes so these are "off limits". Google doesn't need the same input again.

At the end of the game, you'll see you score and the following message:

Thanks for your contribution. It will help us improve the relevance of image search results so that you and other Google users can quickly and easily find the results you're looking for. To find out more about the images that you labeled and the sites they came from, click on any of the images below.

Try the game. You have nothing to lose but a couple of minutes. And think of all the Googlers you'll help.