Local Search on the Web

I believe the advantages gained from the Web is depend on how accurate and fast you get the information you want from the Web. Searches of all sort let you engage with overwhelming information inundated on the net. Among different kind of searches, local search has the potential to replace traditional white pages, which focuses on locating offline service providers near your location.

Both Yahoo and Google have local search down to zip code in Beta. Yahoo's Local Search and Google's Local Search share the same merit of given a search term and zip code, the searchers can see the matches close to the zip code sorted by distance. Both services are integrated with map so you can see the location on screen.

I found it more useful to start with a map lookup on Yahoo. You can get the map of your location, then click on the 'SmartView' option on the Yahoo map, which gives you good overview of where the nearby restaurants, recreation center, shopping places, community services, ATMs, gas stations, etc. are located. Some day, the interactive map will replace your dependency on yellow pages completed. It's just a matter of time.