Revenge of the Nerds

I have to admit, I was one of the biggest skeptics when Google (NASDAQ:GOOG) came out with its desktop search program. After all, there's really nothing innovative about indexing a hard drive in order to search it quickly by keyword. It's how any large database works. In fact, I'll eat my work computer, mouse first, if some of the slide rule sect at Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT) hadn't hatched a similar scheme at some point in the past only to be overruled by naysayers who would have pointed out that the required CPU overhead and disk space might turn off consumers.

Google's genius was, instead, to realize that most computer users are simply too lazy and too impatient to use the OS-provided search tools that already did mostly the same thing. Given the fact that most of the computers out there are now amped up with ultrafast processors by Intel (NASDAQ:INTC) and AMD (NYSE:AMD) and equipped with hard drives larger than most users will ever need -- they are already lousy with performance-robbing spyware anyway -- there was no reason not to provide such a tool. Even a crusty, DOS-prompt type like me found it mildly useful.

But here's the problem for Google the frothy stock: Anyone can duplicate this functionality. Yesterday, Redmond showed just how easy it is to play catch-up in this, as well as the toolbar, game, releasing a beta version of its MSN toolbar. It's a bit different from Google's in that it doesn't provide results from cached web pages (bad), but, with the quick addition of a free doodad from Adobe Systems (NASDAQ:ADBE), it will search the text of Acrobat files (good).

Yet more proof of Google's moatless technology comes via Ask Jeeves' (NASDAQ:ASKJ) desktop-search tool, which I haven't bothered to try since, frankly, Microsoft's gives me everything I need, including one-click access to its excellent my.msn portal page and its Blogger-busting MSN spaces -- also still in beta.

I still like Google the company. In fact I can't wait to check out what happens when the firm gets its mitts on the millions of books at several major university libraries. But Google's chief asset is its ability to predict consumer tastes. That's a formidable advantage, but there's no way it's worth the gigantic premium still priced into the stock.

Ray Krok didn't invent the burger. He didn't even invent McDonald's (NYSE:MCD). He made millions for himself and investors by playing hardball, and given the money that's ultimately at stake in this all-out eyeball war on the Web, Google's competition will be doing the same.

For related Foolishness:

• You call this innovation? Is Google jumping the shark?
• Yet another search engine emerges.
• Cheering for another anti-Microsoft? Check out Quicken vs. Money.

Seth Jayson is ready for the angry email from the Microsoft hatas, but he's duty-bound to inform them that, at the time of publication, he had no positions in any firm mentioned. View his stock holdings and Fool profile here. Fool rules are here.