A lesser known feature of browsers, such as Firefox 2 or Internet Explorer 7, is that users can add search functionality to the browser’s search bar directly from within a page. The data structure containing the search information has (so far) been agreed upon as OpenSearch. Since the format is open, any browser software can implement this functionality.

The Firefox search bar with a linked OpenSearch example on the bottom.

The Internet Explorer search bar listing an OpenSearch example.

When to use OpenSearch

OpenSearch makes sense on any site that provides search functionality. When active, Firefox and Internet Explorer include an option to add the site’s search in the search bar.

In my opinion, adding a notice or a link on the page to enable the search functionality is overkill for most sites. I personally wouldn’t use it for my own weblog. On the other hand, an online store with thousands of products could greatly benefit from this feature as a brand touchpoint; And informing the user about this functionality would be worthwhile. Once a user adds a site to their browsers search bar, it is a constant reminder of the site’s existence. Every time a user activates the search bar drop-down menu, that site will be there.

Implementation

Versions of Firefox before 2.0 had a different way for adding search to the search bar. It was similar, but included a different XML structure. The data was saved in files ending with “.src”. I decided not to add this method anymore, since it is specific to a small user base (who still uses FF 1.0?).

Only two things need to be done to add OpenSearch:

1. Create an XML-File containing data about the search engine;
2. Link to the XML-File in the head of the site’s HTML.

The XML, for example, would be structured as follows; Simply adapt the URLs for your site. To get the correct search URL, perform a search on your site, copy the URL and replace your search term with “{searchTerms}”.

<?xml version="1.0" encoding="UTF-8" ?>
<OpenSearchDescription xmlns="http://a9.com/-/spec/opensearch/1.1/">
	<ShortName>OpenSearch Example Name</ShortName>
	<Description>OpenSearch Example Description</Description>
	<InputEncoding>UTF-8</InputEncoding>
	<Image height="16" width="16" type="image/x-icon">http://yoursite/favicon.ico</Image>
	<Url type="text/html" template="http://yoursite/?s={searchTerms}" />
</OpenSearchDescription>

This file could then be saved as “search.xml” to the root folder of the site and linked to by placing the following code in the HTML header:

<link rel="search" type="application/opensearchdescription+xml" title="OpenSearch Example Title" href="/search.xml">

Including an OpenSearch Link to the Page

window.external.AddSearchProvider("search.xml");

An unobtrusive way to add the link, is to first check if the browser supports the AddSearchProvider function before adding it. Further details can be found on Mozilla’s developer site.

<p id="add-opensearch">OpenSearch not supported</p>
<script type="text/javascript">
	if (window.external && ("AddSearchProvider" in window.external)) {
		document.getElementById("add-opensearch").innerHTML = '<a href="#" onclick="window.external.AddSearchProvider(\'/search.xml\')">Add this site’s search to your browsers search bar.</a>';
	}
</script>

Possible Future Browser Features

I have a hunch that the usability of web-browsing in general, would be enhanced if the browser could detect OpenSearch and enable it temporarily in its search bar. The use case could be:

A user visits a site and the browser toggles the search bar to the site’s search. Instead of looking for a search form in the page, the user enters the query via the browser. Upon leaving the site the search bar switches to the new site’s search functionality, or defaults to the preferred search engine.

The search bar could be highlighted with another color to indicate that it’s linked to the current site.

For this feature to be useful, OpenSearch would have to become more commonly adopted. But I think sites would follow quickly once a browser vendor starts pushing the feature.

Conclusion

In my opinion, the creators of OpenSearch got it right. The specification is clear and it blends in perfectly with the existing technologies, HTML and Javascript. Plus, it is quick and easy to implement. I could recommend any web content management system with search functionality to enable this feature as standard.

I would also recommend adding a favicon to the OpenSearch XML, so the site stands out more in the browser’s search bar.

Download the Code

The project leaves the printing up to each individual. Sadly the quality of each sticker will probably end up subpar when printed at home. I would recommend having the stickers printed professionally, there are many sites out there that offer custom stickers at a low price.

I think the sticker book is a great idea for promoting FOSS projects. It provides a low cost means for getting all the digital brands out into the real world. And what better place to promote your software brand than on the front of a notebook?

Open Source is a popular term to describe a development and production method based on the free sharing of information. The computer software industry has embraced Open Source practices increasingly since the nineties. Participation in Free and Open Source Software projects is commonly voluntary and there is a need for specialized knowledge surrounding the production of software. This report focuses on the topic area of designing brand identity.

Objective

To create a conceptual model for designing brand identity in Free and Open Source Software projects based on Wheeler’s Brand Identity Process of 2006.

Design

Participatory action research with three cycles and five interviews conducted online.

Participants

Three Free and Open Source Software projects named Sociopath, OpenEats, and Jajuk. Five industry professionals with expertise in branding and Open Source development.

Results

Wheeler’s brand identity process is modified towards the Open Source method and incorporates community votes and commons-based peer-review. Outcomes specific to Free and Open Source Software projects are included as exemplary brand identity assets. Furthermore, a preparation phase is added showing the entry into the project?s community.

Conclusions

The created model is a practical tool for designing brand identity in Free and Open Source Software projects. Further applications of the model are needed for its evaluation.

The paper can be downloaded from this site or over at the Free / Opensource Research Community page.

Coke.com.au

In the first few seconds I am confronted with bandwidth choking beauty. The only information displayed is what is being loaded onto the page. I find this rather unusual, I presume the average Coke drinker does not care what elements are being loaded on the site other than its developers (as if they forgot to turn off the debugging messages). After the weary process of page bootstrapping, my eyes finally receive some candy. The 3D view of an open air music festival is truly appealing. Red is the dominating color and creates a clear association with the Coke brand. I like that the page is not animated to heavily. Also the splashes of coke on the top right corner are a nice design idea. Relating the navigation to different areas of a music festival is a well done and fits nicely with the concept of the brand. Coke is investing heavily into the relation of the brand with music. They are not the only brand in the drink market to do so. Heineken beer, with its “sounds good” campaign, also went down this road. I find, relating flavoured liquid to music a bit of a stretch. Coke has made a large effort however to make that happen. Not only with the site, but also with their add campaign in print and television. Concerts and music are shown consistently in the Coca Cola commercials of 2005 and 2006. The site provides useful information on the topic of music and promotes the brand alongside it. The coke zero sub site is fantastic. I like the marketing strategy of coke zero. Coke “promises” the drink to maintain a great taste without sugar. This thinking is applied to the relationship between man and woman, protesting men should not have to suffer the consequences for their doings. The marketing concept of coke zero (consequences) is more logical to me than the actual coke (music) concept, because, for me, there is more logical relation between the brand promise and the product itself. All in all, the coke web site is an interesting visit and delivers both good content and neat design.

Pepsi.com.au

The Pepsi page loads quicker than expected for a page containing many graphics. The living room setting is nothing original, but it allows the navigational elements to be related better with the content. For instance the cellphone links to the games section and the DVD player shows short movie clips. The visuals are nothing special. The cyan and blue colors on a black background relate to the Pepsi brand. I miss a clear navigation structure. It is fun for a moment to interact with the elements of the room, but after a while becomes hindering. Most web users visit a site seeking specific information and do not want to waste time toying around with elements to see where they lead to. The navigation on the bottom is not the same as the navigation in the picture. The copyright and disclaimer on the top left and right is sheer stupidity. The texts are inside an image and the fonts are so small and compressed they are unreadable. Why did they put the bar-code of the product on the web site? Either the designer used it as a visual element (dumb idea at that size) or the team of lawyers had to deliver some work to excuse their wages. While I am ranting, I think the “check this out” link a usability nightmare. Jakob Nielsen would not be happy, since it gives no clue on what the link leads to. The drag and drop soccer ball is cute, but does not fit with the depth of the room. It would have been much cooler to throw it at the back wall. I am proud of the fact that I found out one could grab the ball and throw it in the hoop on the left wall to make points on the score board. I was awaiting some sort of reward after 10 points but nothing happened. The image of the woman should be animated to give her some life. This way she does not fit in correctly. I ask myself, what does Pepsi want to show me with this site? Up front there is hardly no brand proposition being made. The user has to go and search for it first. There are better ways to do this, the absolute vodka web site for instance starts playing advertising movies automatically when the site is accessed. Pepsi starts a promo animation on the television but stops after a few seconds. The sub sites of pepsi.com.au are equally lame in my opinion. The music site lacks content and the pepsi max sub site is equally useless. There, the brand proposition does not come across on the page itself, I had to watch the TV add for that. The navigation is neither useful nor fancy. I think Pepsi should rethink their web site, in my mind it does more harm to the brand than good.

Comparison

The products are similar and so are the brands. Both Coke and Pepsi position themselves with music to reach a young target audience. Both sites run in flash, the premier tool in 2006 for brand promoting web sites. The overall quality of the coke site is far better than what Pepsi has to offer. Other than the bouncing ball doodad, I could not find anything truly fun or interesting on the Pepsi site, and I am in their target group (I am generation Y, like music and sweet beverages). As a consumer, I would not revisit either site since there is no information or activity that is worth my time (other than checking out their marketing strategies and branding efforts of course).

Conclusions

Both sites are completely geared towards brand building. The Coke site accomplishes the goals of the marketing department very well. Cheers, to the advertising agencies on a job well done. Pepsi should ditch their web design agency on the other hand. The brand is not promoted well enough in my opinion and therefore the goals of the site are not accomplished. Pepsi should check out absolut.com to see how a brand can be promoted online.
As for the marketing, I do not agree with their strategies for both brands. I find they are taking the branding of their products too far. How could marketing have come to this? I miss the direct link between soft drinks and music. Don’t get me wrong, I think branding and marketing is a crucial part of business and of modern society since we are offered variety and choice. However, creating something out of a product of which it is clearly not, through constant bombardment of the senses, is taking it too far. I prefer Coke over Pepsi because I prefer its flavour and not because I like to listen to a certain music band. What happened to the good old brand proposition of reducing fatigue? For me, it is enough to know that the stuff behind the logos is the stuff I like.

There are other open source browsers out there, like Konqueror, that should be mentioned as well. Check out the full list to find out which browsers are open source.