A short article and audio file on the American Pubic Media/Marketplace website examines the 'I'm Feeling Lucky' button on Google's Home Page. This search option has been part of the search engine since it launched in the late 1998 and takes searchers directly onto the first website that ranks for the chosen search term.

Google say that less than 1% of searches use this option and there is also a question about the usability of this button, in that many people may not know what it does (or don't want to be limited to the one result). Interestingly, the article also includes a quote from an 'advertising real estate' expert who has calculated that the channeling of this small percentage of users from the standard search results list could be costing Google $110m of lost revenue each year since the paid search adverts are bypassed using this option.

However, it appears that the button will stay for the time being because it's part of Google's original 'quirky' approach to search and continues to establish a human face to the growing corporation.