Google helps you crack its new API

After hearing from colleagues that Google is discontinuing its SOAP API in favour of an AJAX version, I decided to find out more; I ended up at the Google AJAX Search API page.

The move away from the SOAP API to a browser-dependent one is presumably intended to increase Google’s control over its search and to curtail the activities of SEOs and others trying to game their search ranking, so it’s amusing to see that the sample search widget in Google’s page gives as its third result an article entitled Cracking Google AJAX Search API:

I’ve taken a screen capture of the entire page.

Unfortunately, the article in question doesn’t really give any details. Still, it won’t be long before the AJAX API is cracked wide open. I guarantee it. And when it is, I bet we’ll be able to find the details via Google!

Update: I cracked it.