WebProNews

Google has launched several new features for Google Blog Search today. These are: RSS AND Atom feeds, an iGoogle gadget, a "hot queries" features, and a "latest posts" feature.

RSS and Atom Feeds

Google says the addition of the feeds has been its most requested feature for Blog Search. Users can subscribe to specific topics or stories. There is a "subscribe" heading in the left-hand column on the site, and underneath that are links for Atom and RSS.

iGoogle Gadget

The gadget lets users embed the Google Blog Search front page on their iGoogle homepage (or other pages that are compatible with iGoogle gadgets). Within the gadget, users can customize the topics they want to follow and "drill into" stories as they wish.

Hot Queries

Hot queries is a feature that has actually been added to the Google Blog Search front page. It's pretty much what it sounds like. It listsl searches that are currently popular in Blog Search. Google says it's "an easy way to quickly dive into the trending points of conversation on the web." If you're not a Twitter user, it's probably a good alternative to Twitter's trending topics.

Latest Posts

Latest posts is also an addition to the Google Blog Search homepage. It shows new posts from popular blogs. "While Hot Queries highlights what people are looking for, Latest Posts lets you find out about stories even before people start searching for them," says Google on the company blog.

I'd say the new features are an upgrade for Google Blog Search. Would you agree?