Yahoo! launches Web answering site

Yahoo! launched a search service Thursday that will allow users to ask questions using full sentences and not just keywords.

The Internet search engine said in a news release that Yahoo! Answers is a free service that "will help Web users find, use, share and expand all human knowledge. Through using Yahoo! Answers, consumers can more easily share their knowledge, personal experiences and opinions with their community to resolve everyday questions not answered by keyword searches. By archiving and categorizing users' questions and answers by topic, and making it searchable, users will be able to quickly tap into the repository of rich knowledge from the community."

Ofer Shaked, director of engineering at Yahoo! Search, stated that "with the largest base of Web users, Yahoo! is in a unique position to tap into the vast knowledge and opinions of individuals to benefit the greater group. Yahoo! Answers lets consumers get their questions answered in a personalized way and share their knowledge with other Web users."

The site is available at answers.yahoo.com.

Copyright 2005 by United Press International