Facebook unveils Graph Search to compete with Google

After spending eight years asking people to share everything they like and everything they did with the social network, Facebook's web search business seems to have enough data to now allow people to find everything on Facebook.

Yesterday, the social network unveiled a new tool to help them mine previously posted user's information and content from within the site.

The tool, which the company calls Graph Search, is Facebook's answer to Google Search and is its most ambitious bid at overturning the web search business ruled by its chief rival. It is also an effort to take on web services designed to look for specific kinds of information, like LinkedIn for jobs, Match for dates and Yelp for restaurants.

Mark Zuckerberg, the company's co-founder and chief executive, said, Facebook had been working for a year honing Graph Search, during a launch event at Facebook's headquarters. He added the tool would allow Facebook users to search their social network for people, places, photos and things that interest them.

He added, this might include Mexican restaurants in Palo Alto that had been "liked" on Facebook or checked into. It could also be used to find a date, a dentist or job, according to other Facebook executives.

Zuckerberg said, Graph Search was a completely new way to get information on Facebook.