It may not snow in Delhi, but Google, which has already got into a holiday mood, has ensured that the users get this wintry touch by offering a sprinkling of snow on their computer screens. The searchers can type “let it snow” and a flurry of snowflakes trickle down the screen, followed by frost, which can be wiped away by pressing the “Defrost” button, which appears in place of the blue “Search” button.
Google has made a point of adding special graphics/features/the-me images for special occasions for years, and to mark the transition in seasons is a welcome change for netizens. “I quite liked the whole snow experience and defrosting it. It’s an entertaining way to make events memorable. Also it’s a nice change when companies infuse a little fun into their products,” says Samidha Goel, a marketing executive.
Many also feel it was time Google doodles, which have been around for more than a decade, became interactive. “The first doodle came out in 1998 and since then there have been only static images. It’s good they are now interactive in nature and give the users an opportunity to participate,” says Pankaj Aggarwal, an MBA student at IIM Indore.
While author Halima Sadiya finds it a really cool idea, creative writing scholar Vikas Uniyal feels it is lame and can only excite kids. “Google should have made it a surprise feature. Like anyone typing the word ‘snow’ in any phrase, sentence should encounter the same results. That would have been worth appreciating,” says Vikas.