SMS 411

Not one to be left behind by Google, 4INFO, and Yahoo, Microsoft has just launched its own SMS search service. It works a lot like the others do: You create a text message with your query, then send it to a special short code — in this case, 95483 (which corresponds to “WLIVE” — for “Windows Live” — on your cell phone’s keypad).

Here are some of the queries you can use with Windows Live Mobile SMS Search:

• Business searches by location: “florist san mateo ca”
• Reverse phone number lookups: Just enter the phone number
• For stock quotes, use the letter Q plus a ticker symbol: Q AAPL
• For instant answers from Encarta and other reference sources, start your query with a question mark: “? war of 1812″
• For definitions, start with the letter D: “D ennui”

For all the details, check out the Windows Mobile SMS web site.

And here’s a blog entry announcing the service: Windows Live Mobile launches SMS Search Beta