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Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

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Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#401
post #7

I’ve been using Brave search for several months now. I switched the day that it was announced. The quality is fairly good, but I’m having troubling telling whether it’s just my own halo effect or if the initial quality that experienced has started to slip a little as it indexes more widely or something. At first I was impressed with how little spam ended up in top results, but lately exact queries for Python function…

(tangent) It's hard to think of a website that wouldn't benefit from ban lists of some kind. Twitter's muted words feature is the predominant feature keeping me on the site.

I wish something similar existed for this site, Reddit [1], even news sites like NYT (at some point I've listened to the POV of certain contrarian columnists and don't need to see their byline anymore).

[1] I know you can do this via Reddit Enhancement Suite but it would be much better as a native feature that worked across clients

Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#402
post #49

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I have personally found that when searching for developer documentation, as you mentioned, unfortunately nothing beats Google. I can always find what I’m looking for very quickly. But when I try DuckDuckGo, it’s a mess of irrelevant or weak pages.

I noticed the exact same thing there. Usually, when I don't get results I just append !g after the search terms, and google yields much better results. But what I'm most bothered by DDG nowadays is that on my phone the first 2-3 results (which on a phone basically means the whole visible area) are quite frequently ads.

It’s actually possible to switch off ads in the DuckDuckGo search settings: https://duckduckgo.com/settings

Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#403

I'm actually tempted to start using Brave. I'm still holding out with Firefox despite Mozilla trying very hard to get rid of us (to the point where the thought has struck me more than once if the current CEO of Mozilla is in the pocket of Google). If at some point the last competing mainstream browser engine is gone I'll probably go for Brave and I might start testing it this week.

Brave is just Chromium with a cryptocurrency scam bolted on to it. I'm unhappy with Firefox's ad-related changes recently, but Brave is definitely not an option. If it came to it, I'd use a WebKit browser — objectively worse, but not clearly compromised.

Brave is Chromium with more web features and more privacy and crypto stuff that is turned off by default.

It has Web Torrents, IPFS, Tor, built-in ad blocking, etc.

I just don't understand how someone can be "mad" at a feature that is turned off by default, especially when most browsers ship with literal spyware turned on.

Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#404

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Interesting, let me share two screenshots of what I see: 1. http://karolis.koncevicius.lt/data/google_example1.png 2. http://karolis.koncevicius.lt/data/google_example2.png

Do you get a Josh Mitteldorf scienceblog result for the search (no quotes): weight and aging a paradox part 1 It’s the first result for me with or without quotes. I’m curious if the site is somehow blocked.

weight and aging a paradox part 1 (without the quotes) is first place on Google for me.

Seems like google only fails on politically sensitive topics like unpopular opinions about COVID. I suspect they might be using a filter, or even a different ranking system for certain keywords.

Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#405
post #7

I’ve been using Brave search for several months now. I switched the day that it was announced. The quality is fairly good, but I’m having troubling telling whether it’s just my own halo effect or if the initial quality that experienced has started to slip a little as it indexes more widely or something. At first I was impressed with how little spam ended up in top results, but lately exact queries for Python function…

(tangent) It's hard to think of a website that wouldn't benefit from ban lists of some kind. Twitter's muted words feature is the predominant feature keeping me on the site. I wish something similar existed for this site, Reddit [1], even news sites like NYT (at some point I've listened to the POV of certain contrarian columnists and don't need to see their byline anymore). [1] I know you can do this via Reddit Enhan…

Reddit is effectively used as a covert propaganda and advertising machine so its absolutely not in their interests to provide that functionality sadly.

Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#406
post #319

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Joe Rogan also commented on this cover-up a few days ago: > "Look, if I wanted to find specific cases about people who died from vaccine-related injuries, I had to go to Duck Duck Go. I wasn’t finding them on Google,” Rogan urged. [1] https://summit.news/2021/10/19/video-joe-rogan-accuses-googl...

I can find info about vaccine-related injuries fine on Google. It's actually easier than on DDG: https://duckduckgo.com/?q=covid+vaccine-related+injuries https://www.google.com/search?q=covid+vaccine-related+injuri... I'm assuming he's just upset that blogspam that inanely conflates VAERS with evidence of injuries actually related to COVID vaccines shows up higher on DDG because that reinforces his false presuppositi…

You do know that Google does search bubbling, so your results aren't the same as anyone else's, right?

"I could find it on Google" is exactly as (in)valid as "It works on my machine"

Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#407

How decent is Brave as a browser? I've been very hesitant on it as a primary browser due to them starting up their own cryptocurrency (BAT), adding automatic affiliate cryptocurrency links in pages, and a history of serving their own ads on top of others.

Just use Ungoogled Chromium. I'm also the kind of person who's made uneasy by crypto involvement, and Brave's developers have lambasted me in the past for asking why such a ridiculous feature needs to exist in the first place.

Oh, and 30% of your Basic Attention Tokens go straight to lining Brendan Eich's wallet. I'll just browse on my own, thank you...

Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#408
post #386

Joe Rogan mentioned on his show past week that he stopped using google search as well. Joe is convinced google is censoring results on covid, because he kept getting back official sources (benefits of the vaccine), when he was searching the opposite. Keyword searches for specific articles failed to return results. He now questions what else google is censoring.

Agree with Joe, I believe in Bigfoot, and each time I search for live Bigfoot vids I only get unconvincing crappy stuff... They hide something...

Agree with Joe too. It's like when you order a steak, and ask for a knife, and the waiter brings you back a spoon for you own safety. I would get pretty annoyed.

Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#409

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There is no "Chromium without the Google". Chromium/Blink is made by Google. By using a browser built on Chromium/Blink, you are actively supporting Google's browser engine hegemony.

On a technical level there is a Chromium without Google https://chromium.woolyss.com/ I don't care for your political argument.

If you don't care for political arguments, you probably shouldn't defend a browser made by Brendan Eich.

Re: Brave Search replaces Google as default search engine in the Brave browser

#410

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I can’t remember if it was a former feature of Google search or a Chrome extension, but that capability used to be available in Chrome. w3schools was on that list, among other republishers and whatnot. Loved it. Maybe someone else can augment my hazy recollection.

Yes! I swear I remember banning some of those spam domains in 2010 or so. IIRC, I thought it was part of Google search.

It definitely was. Sadly it was short-lived, it lasted maybe a year. I remember banning experts-exchange and being a lot happier.
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