Search gives us access to the world at our fingertips. Yet the algorithms prioritize certain content while limiting users’ awareness. Drifting & Googling introduces randomized, drifting search results and invite more critical, exploratory engagement with search.
role
Creative coding
Visual design
Animation
Advisor
Ben Grosser
timeline
1+ months
Nov 2020 - Dec 2020
tools
Javascript
JQuery
After Effect
How it works
Drifting & Googling transforms Google Search by making results float, creating a more playful and exploratory way to discover information.
Research
Software systems are built for convenience, but they often shape what users see based on platform priorities rather than user intent. Google’s search algorithms quietly control visibility by favoring large businesses and suppressing certain sites through opaque decisions.
My original idea was to design an experience that changes Google's search results without the audience's knowledge. People liked the idea, but they didn't feel any difference if they didn't know the extension was active.
They would like to be notified when their search results are being reorganized. Otherwise, they don't see the need for another algorithm to interfere with their search results.
Inspired by the bouncing DVD logo, I applied unpredictable motion to search results allowed the experience to feel more dynamic and alive.
impact
‘I think this is a really cool extension to get away from taking everything so seriously online. It provides a nice change of pace.’
- My classmate
‘It feels like a form of performance art because using this extension with google images can make the screen look interesting.’
- My art friend
‘What your extension does to the browser isn't just about search but about the form of the web itself. The way it leads to specific kinds of forms. Your work breaks that.’
- My professor
As a designer accustomed to pixel-perfect interfaces, this project intentionally breaks those conventions, and I was glad to see it spark reflection on the interfaces people use every day.
