What Is a Portal?
A year ago, they were called search engines. But 1998 saw many search engines morph into "portals" and many other websites heading in that direction. So, what is a portal? Whatis.com describes a portal as "a new term, generally synonymous with gateway, for a World Wide Web site that is or proposes to be a major starting site for users when they get connected to the Web."
And, let's face it, search engines were looking for creative ways to make money. Toward that end, many of the portals not only offer searching capabilities but provide things such as free e-mail, home page building services, stock quotes, and the ability to purchase goods and services via e-commerce.
The familiar "browse tree" look of Yahoo! hasn’t changed much, but the site has become more of a portal. Yahoo! offers, among other things, free e-mail, stock quotes, news headlines, chat, online clubs, television listings, and a marketplace where users can bid on items at the Y! Auction or buy everything from apparel to plane tickets.
Not so long ago, Lycos was a bare-bones but effective search engine. In the past year, the company has purchased several other companies in order to become a full-fledged portal called Lycos Network. Central to the new Lycos are its Web Guides, which provide links to sites and relevant gadgets in categories ranging from autos to women. Home page building services are provided by Tripod and Angelfire. Free e-mail is offered courtesy of MailCity, and directory information services are available from WhoWhere.com. The Lycos Network also offers online shopping. (But, then again, who doesn’t these days?)
Disney and Infoseek teamed up to launch the new portal, Go Network. Go prominently features the Infoseek search functionality, news headlines, stock quotes, sports scores, weather information, chat, free home page building services, and, of course, online shopping.
Another search-engine-cum-portal is Excite, which features the requisite news headlines, stock quotes, sports scores, weather, and horoscope search box. In addition, you can do the daily crossword puzzle, search for jobs, search for a friend’s e-mail address, search for a new apartment, or do some online shopping.
NBC recently provided an influx of cash to Snap! so the site could position itself as a portal. Snap! is a search directory with lists of sites, and it also offers news headlines, chat, a free e-mail service, maps and directions, shareware, and more.
Microsoft’s MSN.com is also trying to become a recognized gateway to the Internet. While the site offers the usual news headlines, stock quotes, tax help, and Web directory features, it’s not very pretty to look at or very easy to navigate.
If you’ve typed in http://www.netscape.com lately, you may have been pleased (or annoyed like I was when I went to the site looking for information about one of Netscape’s products) to be re-routed to the Netcenter home page instead. Netcenter also is trying to distinguish itself as a portal, but there is nothing here that you can’t find on any of the other portals. And I sure wish it was easy to find product information here ...
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