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How Facebook Will Power Graph Search

Nerval's Lobster writes "Last week, Facebook announced Graph Search, a system for searching the social network's vast collection of users, photos, and 'Liked' interests. But how will Facebook power it? The Disaggregated Rack, which will separate compute, RAM, storage, and caching functions in order to remain flexible in the face of Graph Search's changing needs. By breaking up resources and scaling them independently of each other, Facebook can scale without needing to constantly open up new servers and upgrade new hardware."

14 of 26 comments (clear)

  1. How will they power it? by Lost+Race · · Score: 5, Funny

    Probably with electricity from the grid, generated from coal, gas, hydroelectric, nuclear, wind, solar, geothermal, etc, as usual. TFA didn't actually mention power sources at all.

    1. Re:How will they power it? by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1

      Wasn't it "trapped dark souls of ex-employees, spinning the generator wheels in eternal damnation"?

    2. Re:How will they power it? by William+Miller · · Score: 1

      This is a very smart reply, isn't it?? As for me, any site search engine updates are very interesting from the coding and SEO points of view. It must have taken 2-3 months for their specialists to work hard with it and make lots of test before launching. I'm not a great Facebook user, but as a webmaster I would look for some more information on their searching algorithm.

    3. Re:How will they power it? by HaZardman27 · · Score: 1

      This is a very smart reply, isn't it??

      You must be new here.

      --
      Apparently wizard is not a legitimate career path, so I chose programmer instead.
  2. I don't want graph search. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 4, Insightful

    I don't want "Graph Seach". I just want to search my damn feed. Is that too much to ask?

    1. Re:I don't want graph search. by History's+Coming+To · · Score: 3, Interesting

      That's why the best way to search your own feed is via FQL, just set up an app as if you were a third party marketing company and it's all suddenly much easier to get to your own data.

      --
      Please consider this account deleted, I just can't be bothered with the spam anymore.
    2. Re:I don't want graph search. by DarkOx · · Score: 1

      Don't know what browser you are using but have you tried pressing F3?

      --
      Repeal the 17th Amendment TODAY! Also Please Read http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/right-to-read.html
  3. the marketers vs. users war by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Insightful

    the funny part is that on one hand you have users trying to protect their privacy while marketers are trying to actively exploit it. from what i have read on forbes (links here and here) graph search is more for marketers rather than users. after all, which users care about searching for anything besides people on facebook?

    and all of this is happening on the same website! so essentially facebook is now creating products/features which are basically opposing eachother.

    it must be tough to work in privacy department at facebook. privacy at facebook is being slowly shoved aside in favor of the marketers. and we all know how this story plays out.

    1. Re:the marketers vs. users war by tlhIngan · · Score: 1

      the funny part is that on one hand you have users trying to protect their privacy while marketers are trying to actively exploit it. from what i have read on forbes (links here and here) graph search is more for marketers rather than users. after all, which users care about searching for anything besides people on facebook?

      and all of this is happening on the same website! so essentially facebook is now creating products/features which are basically opposing eachother.

      it must be tough to work in privacy department at facebook. privacy at facebook is being slowly shoved aside in favor of the marketers. and we all know how this story plays out.

      It's actually quite easy, one you realize that online privacy is a myth perpetrated by those who want to sell your information.

      There is no "online privacy", and even the simple act of "friends only" can still mean "everyone" (as Mark Zuckerberg's sister found out - there was nothing wrong with her settings. Just one of her "friends" decided to re-tweet the photo to the world).

      Online "privacy" is an illusion created to get people to share stuff they wouldn't otherwise, thinking they have control over it. Well, think of it this way - everything you put on facebook, google+, twitter, etc? Try doing the same thing - except as an email to your friends. It's the same effect, your email with your information is "friends only", but nothing stops them from forwarding it to the entire world or posting it on their blog or whatever.

      The smart ones online realize this, realize that "don't post online what you don't want the world to know" still applies, and carefully crafts an online persona that reflects their desired image. No drunken photos (or going out with friends with a propensity to do so), photos in neutral settings or "doing community work" or other stuff, etc.

  4. Re:Facebook search already better than Googles. by MurukeshM · · Score: 2

    2 million+ results on Google. What the hell are you smoking?

  5. Re:Facebook search already better than Googles. by dintech · · Score: 1

    Wood chippings left over after making some of these...

    http://www.theramsled.com/

  6. "graph search" by Swampash · · Score: 3, Insightful

    To misquote Steve Jobs: if you see the word "graph" in a customer-facing product, they blew it.

    The only people who use or have even heard the term "social graph" are product managers at Facebook and Google. Searching a "graph" means absofuckinglutely nothing to an end user.

    1. Re:"graph search" by oztiks · · Score: 2

      http://www.forbes.com/sites/anthonykosner/2013/01/21/facebook-graph-search-runs-on-likes-that-advertisers-have-already-paid-for/

      Never thought I'd look to Forbes for insight but the author has somewhat of a point. Graph Search is not a new feature rather it's a "mop and bucket" revision of an old and broken feature, the "like".

  7. Human rights by halfkoreanamerican · · Score: 1

    It is likely going to be powered by the blood of unknowingly consenting minors and 50 somethings.