THERE is a new search engine on the block, and I don't mean the BBC's.

Alexa (www.alexa.com) first raised its head on the Internet in the late 1990's but was overtaken by newer technologies.

However, after a revamp by Google and Amazon it has stormed back on to the scene and is well worth a look.

You can see the Google influence on Alexa's home page design and layout and Amazon's clout on the internal pages.

So when you carry out a search at Alexa.com, you get a list of hits, but so much more.

The top searches might include a screenshot of the web page concerned, so you can see at a glance whether it's the kind of thing you're after.

And, cloning Amazon's Listmania feature, people can now review websites themselves.

The theory is that, over time, large chunks of the web will get reviewed on Alexa and these will help a site get more, or less, traffic.