How does one compete with Google’s home page?  It has a definite design center – absolutely minimal, fast loading, with ample white space.  Microsoft had quite a challenge, and I find the new live.com intriguing.  Keep the minimal aspects, but instead of white space integrate the search box into a gorgeous daily-changing image, from somewhere in the world.  Add a few hidden roll-over nuggets explaining the image and suggesting related searches to find out more.  Simple idea, executed smoothly in all the details (e.g. page is completely useful while the image downloads).

What do I find so great about this?  The daily images are really intriguing, reminding me daily that there’s a wider world out there. It marries the richness of art with the utility of the interface.  It competes with the increasingly-monopolistic Google, but not on Google’s terms. And the implication of exploration of the world reinforces the theme of exploration of the internet in a way that I find, dare I say, kind of uplifting.

I set this as my home page several weeks ago, breaking my longstanding preference for about:blank, and sometimes I even launch up the browser just to see what the image of the day is.  Refreshing job, Microsoft!