Live Filter: Re-inventing Search

We propose that for many problem domains, the basic concept of filtering is now much more appropriate than searching. With a search, you start off with nothing and potentially end up with nothing. Counter to this approach is filtering, where we present everything available, and then encourage the user to progressively remove what they do not need. Using Ajax to provide immediate feedback, we can display the number of results a user can expect to see if they were to submit their query at this moment.

More at http://unspace.ca/discover/livefilter/