Sunday's piece in the Times -- "Search Sites Play a Game of Constant Catch-Up" pegged Google as losing focus and Yahoo and Microsoft closing the gap. Google's stunning numbers should quiet their detractors for awhile, but the word is getting out that Yahoo is not to be sneezed at.

Yahoo is making significant gains, particularly in the United States, with new features that it has yet to introduce to international users. And at a time when Google has stalled in getting some new products to the market, Yahoo has been methodically working on a master list of projects: first, core Internet search, then shopping search, local search and next travel search, according to Danny Sullivan, the editor of Search Engine Watch, an Internet news site. He said Google had been more erratic.

"Yahoo says, 'Where is the mountain? Let's climb it,' " Mr. Sullivan said. "Google says, 'Maybe we want to go up the mountain and maybe we want to go surfing.' "

In the United States, Yahoo is gaining on Google. Yahoo's share rose to 35 percent of searches in November from 29 percent a year earlier, according to ComScore. During the same period, Google rose to 38 percent from 37 percent. And Yahoo is receiving acclaim for some of its innovations, like local search that allows users to see a map that pinpoints the location of the area or business they are searching for.

"Each one of our new products can bring in new users who rediscover the core product we offer," said Jeff Weiner, Yahoo's senior vice president for search.

A study of consumer behavior by Keynote Systems showed that while Google remained the top search engine, ranked by the perceived quality of customer experience, both Yahoo and MSN were closing the gap.

Mr. Sullivan said he believed that over the last year Yahoo had focused on improving its core search service, while Google's management was preoccupied with its elaborate stock offering.