What If There Were No Google?

There's no question that the Internet would look different sans Google. Perhaps without the mathematical and programming wizardry of co-founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin, no other company would've developed search savvy on par with Google's. And if no one had created such a search engine, it's hard to say how profoundly different your Web experiences might be.

Maybe the Web would have a much more fractured structure and be harder to navigate, with an untold number of hidden nooks and crannies accessible only to geeks with superior research skills -- in other words, the kind of people who understood how to dig past the limitations of older and more basic keyword-based search engines. Less geeky folks might rely on a site such as Yahoo as their Web portal, using its directories and browsing capabilities to guide surfing, shopping and studying.

Absent Google, the Internet might not have wormed its way so quickly into every aspect of our lives. Maybe, just maybe, the constantly-connected landscape of smartphones and digital dependency wouldn't have expanded to the extent that it has.

Think about it. Google's proficiency and expertise has changed the way you interact with the world around you. Without it, you might have to remember more things, instead of pulling out your phone to Google (as a verb) the instant answer. Because if you had to fiddle with your phone for five minutes (instead of five seconds), there's a good chance you'd either give up or look elsewhere for the answer to your question.

Then again, what if Google had turned into just another rank-and-file search engine that joined so many other tools in the Web’s dustbin? Perhaps without a solid marketing and business plan, another Silicon Valley duo would’ve stolen Google’s momentum and created an entirely different phenomenon. And maybe your Internet experiences would be even better than they are now.

But Google is everywhere, and accessing it is easy anywhere you have Web access. On the next page, find out how Google's omnipresence changes our world.

Google has its tentacles in just about everything related to technology. Mobile devices and business are two more examples.

When it comes to smartphones, Google has transformed this market in a major way. Google's Android operating system, which is designed for mobile devices, is found on around 50 percent of recent phones [source: PCWorld]. Without Android's spread, Apple's iPhone might still have a stranglehold on the smartphone sector.

Businesses might also be different, as they wouldn't be able to rely on ubiquitous AdWords campaigns driven by Google to power their advertising efforts. So many companies depend on AdWords for revenue that Google took in around $28 billion from them in 2010 alone [source: Google].

And of course, without the effectiveness of Google, ordinary students could have a lot more digging to do when it comes to research. They might spend days, not hours, researching a finals paper to make sure they found the best and most relevant sources, plundering the depths of multiple search engines (which might return all sorts of varied and inconsistent results) instead of leaning on the reliability of just one Google. They wouldn't be able to search excerpts from nearly every book ever to grace library shelves via Google Books, the most expansive digitization of books ever.

Without all of those accessible-anywhere Google apps, like Calendar, Docs and Gmail, maybe the idea of storing all of your critical documents online (in "the cloud"), would still be in its infancy or reserved only for the most technically advanced users.

But the cloud keeps spreading thanks to Google. That's in large part due to Google's generous online storage (nearly 8 gigabytes for Gmail alone) and commitment to refining and updating its online apps. Both factors sway users into uploading swaths of their personal and professional lives into Google's (once again, free) products, which continue to chip away at Microsoft's Office market share [source: RescueTime].

Google is simply everywhere, and people seem more than willing to embrace just about any product the company offers. On the next page, you'll see that Google's bubbly and witty approach to tech is one reason that its users keep coming back for more.

Google has successfully interwoven itself directly into the fibers of our society. Case in point: You don't "Yahoo" anything, and you likely don't "Bing" stuff, either. But no one even blinks when you tell them to "Google" a topic or question. Google really is as much a verb as it is a search engine. And without Google, we might be using an equally common (and much less interesting) phrase, like "search it up," when goading our friends to find Web-based answers on their own.

Beyond the name, Google has also affected online and business culture, stressing simplicity and fun. For instance, you've likely seen Doodles. Doodles are graphical changes to the iconic Google logo that appear during special occasions and events. During holidays such as Christmas or Halloween, an appropriately Christmas-y or spooky image appears.

While Doodles harmlessly amuse most visitors, they can cause a ruckus. In 2010, to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Pac-Man, Google created a Doodle that let visitors actually play a bit of the game. So many people played so much Pac-Man that day that one source estimated $120 million in lost productivity [source: PCWorld].

It's not all fun and games for Google, though. The company throws its significant financial heft into social and political causes. Google is making its facilities more environmentally conscious by using less energy, as well as sourcing more electricity from renewable sources like wind power. And around some Google buildings, there are no lawn mowers to keep grass trimmed. Instead, they use goats [source: Google]. These efforts, among many others, burnish Google's green image and push other companies to be more respectful of the environment.

Google has undoubtedly transformed the technological world, and, by extension, affected the way we interact with each other as human beings. Now we Google each other before we meet in person and find the best prices on products all over the planet with a couple of clicks.

No matter how much you love or hate Google, there's little doubt that your life is somehow affected every day by this company. And for that reason alone, let's hope that those holed up in the company's headquarters (the Googleplex) stick to their stated motto: "Don't Be Evil."