Then Googlematic may be for you.

Googlematic is an instant-messaging-based bot that was created by Matt Webb, a senior systems engineer at UpMyStreet.com, a U.K. based publisher of local information and solutions provider for government and businesses.

Webb developed Googlematic last September as a hobby, he said during an IM-based interview. He took advantage of a Web API service from Google that uses the SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) standard. SOAP provides a way for applications to communicate with each other over the Internet, independent of platform (full story).

Googlematic can be used via either America Online's AIM client or from MSN Messenger. Engaging it in a "conversation" is easy. After adding it to a contact list, all a user has to do is type in a search word or string of words. The bot returns the top result of the search, in detail. If the user wants to see the top 5 results of the search, they only have to type "more." Entering "more" again will bring up the next 5. All Web pages come up as hyperlinks, so a user can click on them to be taken directly to the desired page.

Obviously, Googlematic isn't suited for Google power users. If you want more than 10 results to a search, you should fire up your preferred Web browser and go directly to the Google site.

A problem in using the AIM version of Googlematic comes from the people using it, not with the bot itself -- for some reason, users keep issuing "warnings" against the bot.

Normally, AIM users can "warn" another user if they're sent annoying or offensive messages while using the service. When a warning is used on AIM, the recipient's warning level increases and that user's ability to send and receive messages decreases. With enough warnings, the user can be prevented from exchanging any messages with anyone and may even be signed off. Warnings are not permanent, though, as the warning level decreases over time.

If a user is warned completely off the service, he or she can return after a "cooling off" period. But it appears that Googlematic users are effectively keeping others from utilizing the bot by continually issuing it warnings. We tried using the AIM Googlematic bot all day Thursday (04/18/02), with no success -- the "warning" level for the bot hovered between 95% and 100% all day long. That's strange, because we're guessing that the bot never said anything worth a warning.

Because Webb doesn't have a business relationship with AOL, he can't get the Googlematic's warning feature turned off. Bots developed by companies like ActiveBuddy can't be warned, because they have business connections to AOL.

The MSN Messenger version of Googlematic worked very well, though.

To add Googlematic to an AIM Buddy List, click on the "Add a Buddy" icon accessible from the "List Setup" tab in the AIM client and enter in the name "Googlematic" (without quotes). For MSN Messenger, click on the "Add a Contact" line and enter "googlematic@interconnected.org" (again, without quotes) after you click on "By e-mail address or sign-in name" from the "How do you want to add a contact?" box.

Until the shenanigans on the AOL version of Googlematic stop, AIM users can use BotGoogle, which was created by Marblehead, Mass.-based developer Chris McClelland. Like Googlematic, BotGoogle returns the top five hyperlinks to Google searches, although BotGoogle gives you all five results right away. Unlike Googlematic, though, BotGoogle seems to be available much more often -- BotGoogle doesn't have the "warning" problem that GoogleMatic does.

Adding BotGoogle is as easy as adding Googlematic or any other "buddy" to AOL's Buddy List - just click on the "add" button from the "List Setup" tab in the client. BotGoogle is also available via MSN Messenger -- add "botgoogle@hotmail.com" to your MSN Messenger contact list to gain access to it.

If you want to use IM to search Google, we suggest that you use BotGoogle from AOL's AIM until Googlematic users stop using AIM's "warning" feature to prevent it from being accessed. At that point -- if that point is ever reached -- you'll have a choice of at least two bots to use.

Unless, of course, AIM users ruin BotGoogle by issuing warnings against it, too.

Want to learn how to make a bot? We'll show you how next Friday.

Content from InternetNews.com reporter Ryan Naraine contributed to this story. Bob Woods is the managing editor of InstantMessagingPlanet.