We have weird ads on the DC Metro subway system. They advertise things like fighter jets, the Coast Guard Integrated Deepwater System, or some sort of "government solution." These are not goods the typical consumer can buy. Often I can’t tell what it is they are selling, I only know the target customer is someone who influences federal agency procurement, not me.

Convera has been advertising its new government search engine on the subway since sometime in July. That is how I heard about it. For once, something I could relate to! The search engine, called GovMine, was launched on August 14. Convera is looking to sell its solution to federal agencies, but we the people get some immediate benefit with another free .gov/.mil search engine. GovMine follows quickly on the heels of Google U.S. Government Search, which followed (kind of) on the heels of the new FirstGov search engine, which used solutions from Microsoft and Vivisimo.

I have not had time to take GovMine through its paces, but I can tell you that it seems to bring to the surface some relevant pages that Google and FirstGov do not. That’s the beauty of this competition for federal eyeballs. Another site to try, another possible route to the answer. Take a look at GovMine. Try a simple search and explore the options that pop up with the results screen.

I have written in the past about Google’s product and FirstGov Search for LLRX.com. A new player entered the arena after Google and before Convera: search guru Tara Calishain at ResearchBuzz is offering a tool built on Google Government Search that narrows results by state.