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Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

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131–140 of 284 posts

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#131
post #75

Use a search engine that doesn't fuck up your results instead of trying to unfuck the results it gives you. Why go through this much effort to still give your money to google?

Fully agree, its an endless cats'n'mice game, as SEO spammers create new pages on new domains with automated wordpress deployments in no-time. Instead of a blacklist, a whitelist like a curated list of links à la Yahoo would be better approach, or something with upvote/reputation/karma as on HN.

I'm interested in that alternative too. Does a whitelist like that exist?

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#132

That's an ambitious goal, I'm not sure to see how that would be maintainable on the long run. On a much smaller scale, if anyone is interested, I maintain a black list focused on those code snippet content farms that gets in the way when you're searching for some error message or particular function here https://github.com/jhchabran/code-search-blacklist .

May I know why my domain (cyberciti.biz) was added to that list? I created my site back in 2000, and there was no StackOverflow or anything. So much for creating original content and then getting labelled as a spammer. In fact, some of the top answers on StackOverflow were copied from my work without giving any credit to me. Some people do give credit tho. But, go ahead block a site that actual humans maintain over 2…

cyberciti.biz is one of the few sites that come up in Google search results for anything code/linux related that has valuable content. I do wonder why someone would block it.

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#133
post #105
post #98

Earlier quoted context omitted.

What reasons?

Describing something negative with the black color is related to racist mindset, in short. Thank you Abimelex for pointing this out

There are no etymological reasons suggesting this.

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#134
post #120
post #109

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I use ecosia.org wich is like ddg, but a part of the proceeds go into charity. Not affiliated with them, just like it a lot. Like ddg it's just Bing with a gimmick, but it's decent.

> ddg it's just Bing with a gimmick Is that true? I've read images are served by Bing, not sure about the web search.

Web search is served by the Bing Web Search API.

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#135
I wonder why Apple is not starting it's own search engine. I mean yes, they get >$1Bn per year making Google the default on iOS+macOS, but they have plenty of cash so they wouldn't need it. They would get immediately ~10% market share when it is launched, just because it would be made the default on their devices. From their they just need to present better search results than Google (which shouldn't be that hard right now) and can only grow further.

As another commenter here said "Google does not make money by helping you find what you are searching, it makes money by keeping you searching". That only works when there is no competition. But once Apple would be in the game, people would use what presents them with the better results. Right now, I don't feel there is real competition.

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#136

I wonder why Apple is not starting it's own search engine. I mean yes, they get >$1Bn per year making Google the default on iOS+macOS, but they have plenty of cash so they wouldn't need it. They would get immediately ~10% market share when it is launched, just because it would be made the default on their devices. From their they just need to present better search results than Google (which shouldn't be that hard rig…

But what would be their incentive to do so? Normally they launch products and make it exclusive to their devices so more people will buy iPhones, but that is difficult to do with a search engine. Otherwise they would have to get into the ad business like Google.

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#137

Im afraid this is potentially dangerously political. Are you only going to filter obvious spam and sites that republish other’s content, or are you going to block sites that are “harmful” or disseminate “disinformation”? Who will get to decide which media bubble I’m in?

> Im afraid this is potentially dangerously political.

It only took 7 days for that other search engine project on HN last week (Mwmbl) to add hard-coded weights for certain news websites, so it does show how careful you have to be with this stuff.

https://github.com/mwmbl/mwmbl/blob/a41088ca9ad7fdcac952a3be...

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#138
post #75

Use a search engine that doesn't fuck up your results instead of trying to unfuck the results it gives you. Why go through this much effort to still give your money to google?

Any recommendation? I use ddg but it's Bing based and the results are no better.

I have been using Brave Search for the last half year, results seem to be better than DDG and you can append g! to your searches like DDG for Google results.

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#139
post #11

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Worst case scenario if Google drops the ball I just go back to the library.

I'm sure they have great books on stackoverflow answers, reddit reviews of products and opening times of local stores.

Hey it might take me 30 years to find the answer but at least my eyes will thank me!

Re: Ask HN: Let's build an HN uBlacklist to improve our Google search results?

#140

That's an ambitious goal, I'm not sure to see how that would be maintainable on the long run. On a much smaller scale, if anyone is interested, I maintain a black list focused on those code snippet content farms that gets in the way when you're searching for some error message or particular function here https://github.com/jhchabran/code-search-blacklist .

May I know why my domain (cyberciti.biz) was added to that list? I created my site back in 2000, and there was no StackOverflow or anything. So much for creating original content and then getting labelled as a spammer. In fact, some of the top answers on StackOverflow were copied from my work without giving any credit to me. Some people do give credit tho. But, go ahead block a site that actual humans maintain over 2…

Not OP but dot biz is associated with spam in my head for what it’s worth
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