Frequently Asked Questions
- What does Surf Canyon do?
- How do I install the Surf Canyon browser extension?
- How do I uninstall the browser extension?
- How do I disable the browser extension?
- What is the purpose of the "Reset recommendations" link?
- Why is there sometimes a delay before the bull's eyes appear?
- Why is there sometimes a delay before the recommendations or "More Results" appear?
- What's happening with the bull's eyes flash briefly on the screen and then disappear?
- What do I do if I get a "Invalid file hash (possible download corruption) -261 error" or "Download Error -228"?
- What do I do if I get the message "Module C\:Program Files\surfcanyon\surfcanyon.dll failed to register"?
- Is it Spyware or Adware?
- What is your privacy policy?
- Is it free?
- Is it easy?
- Where do I report a problem or make a suggestion?
Q: What does Surf Canyon do?
A: Surf Canyon is a browser extension that sits atop search engine sites like Google, Yahoo! and MSN. By observing user behavior, its real-time semantic personalization technology enables users to quickly and easily find relevant information that's buried in the search result set. Check out our blog for more technical discussions.
Q: How do I install the Surf Canyon browser extension?
A: Surf Canyon is currently only available for Internet Explorer and Firefox. To download and install the extension, simply go to www.SurfCanyon.com and click "Download".
Q: How do I uninstall the browser extension?
Q: How do I disable the browser extension?
Q: What is the purpose of the "Reset recommendations" link?
Q: Why is there sometimes a delay before the bull's eyes appear?
Q: Why is there sometimes a delay before the recommendations or "More Results" appear?
Q: What's happening with the bull's eyes flash briefly on the screen and then disappear?
Q: What do I do if I get a "Invalid file hash (possible download corruption) -261 error" or "Download Error -228"?
Q: What do I do if I get the message "Module C\:Program Files\surfcanyon\surfcanyon.dll failed to register"?
Q: Is it Spyware or Adware?
Q: What is your privacy policy?
Q: Is it free?
Q: Is it easy?
Q: Where do I report a problem or make a suggestion?
A: If you are using Firefox, select "Tools", "Add-ons" and then click the "uninstall" button next to Surf Canyon. The browser extension will be removed the next time you start Firefox. If you are using Internet Explorer, open "Add or Remove Programs" in the "Control Panel" and then select "Surf Canyon" and click "remove".
A: If you are using Firefox, select "Tools", "Add-ons" and then click the "Disable" button next to Surf Canyon. To re-enable Surf Canyon, simply go back and click "Enable". In Internet Explorer, selects "Tools", "Manage Add-ons" and then "Enable or Disable Add-ons". Select the Surf Canyon Add-on and then click "Disable" under "Settings". To re-enable Surf Canyon, simply go back and click "Enable".
A: Just to the right of the search bar you'll see a "Reset recommendations" link whenever Surf Canyon has calculated recommendations for the search session. Clicking the bull's eyes or [X]'s will "hide" them from view, but clicking the "Reset recommendations" link will clear them all out completely and allow you to start over fresh.
A: The bull's eyes appear only after the extension has connected to Surf Canyon's server.
A: Thousands, perhaps millions, of calculations need to be made "on the fly" in order to bring you recommendations and personalization in real-time. When the servers are particularly loaded there may sometimes be a short but perceptible delay.
A: This means that Surf Canyon is not able to calculate recommendations for the given search. This could be because the extension was not able to connect to the server, or it could be because the search result set was not large enough.
A: Try right-clicking the "Download" link, selecting "Save link as", saving the file to the desktop, and then dragging it in onto a Firefox browser window. http://kb.mozillazine.org/Unable_to_install_themes_or_extensions_-_Firefox gives a good overview about to what to do when having difficultly installing Firefox extensions.
A: You're probably on a corporate network and don't have administrative privileges to your computer. Contact your IT support personnel.
A: Everything that Surf Canyon does to affect the user experience is transparent. There is no malicious software or intent. It is easy to completely remove the software (see above).
A: Our privacy policy can be found at http://www.surfcanyon.com/search/privacy.jsp.
A: Yes.
A: Yes.
A: You may contact us at .