YT search results also show results that have literally nothing to do with the query. Stop showing me videos I watched previously when I'm literally in the midst of trying to find something specific.
YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
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Re: YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
#12So right on par with their Google search results. They no longer care about accuracy and only care about ad revenue.
I'd argue youtube's search is far worse, given it intentionally includes entire sections of results (and toward the very top of results) that are categorically off-topic, presumably with the intention of distracting the user into spending more time on the platform, and they can't be turned off (I tried some uBlock filters but they're hit and miss). I think distracting ads in Google results are a necessary evil (i.e. ads are distracting, but it's hard/impossible to show ads without them being distracting, unlike those undesirable sections in youtube search results).
Re: YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
#13Life hack, maybe it will help someone out: Add a "before:YYYY" to the search to go back to a simpler time. Eg, "before:2012 python talk" As an experiment open two tabs and compare the results of "python talk" and "before:2012 python talk". The difference is staggering.
This is amazing!
I bet there are already tickets in google-JIRA to break this functionality :(
Re: YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
#14Don't forget the obligatory "People also watched" section jammed into the middle of the search results which deliberately shows a screen full of things you didn't search for, that are at best tenuously related. Emphasis on at best because they're often not related at all. Who wants this?
Worse yet: there's also a "previously watched" section, which - as far as I can tell - ignores your search query entirely and just spits out a few videos from your watch history.
Re: YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
#15YT search results also show results that have literally nothing to do with the query. Stop showing me videos I watched previously when I'm literally in the midst of trying to find something specific.
It happens to me frequently that I want to find a video I watched previously but didn't bookmark. If they hid all the videos I've watched before I'd never find them.
Re: YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
#16Also, if you use an Ad blocker, the buttons on the search results page [sort by, etc.] Stop working
Then there's something wrong with your ad blocker. Works fine for me with uBlock Origin's default filters.
Re: YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
#17Life hack, maybe it will help someone out: Add a "before:YYYY" to the search to go back to a simpler time. Eg, "before:2012 python talk" As an experiment open two tabs and compare the results of "python talk" and "before:2012 python talk". The difference is staggering.
We'll probably all need to start adding "before:2023" to all our search queries when the deluge of AI-generated content crowds everything else out.
Re: YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
#18I recently searched for a homey cooking recipe and YouTube pulled up a video titled something like 'Tearful father says goodbye to daughter before gang assassination', with a correspondingly horrifying thumbnail.
I responded by logging out, deleting the cookies for my YouTube container, and adding the YouTube domain to my adblock. My use of YouTube is now restricted to RSS feeds for channels I like, redirected to an Invidious or Piped instance. Highly recommended.
Re: YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
#19Don't forget the obligatory "People also watched" section jammed into the middle of the search results which deliberately shows a screen full of things you didn't search for, that are at best tenuously related. Emphasis on at best because they're often not related at all. Who wants this?
Worse yet: there's also a "previously watched" section, which - as far as I can tell - ignores your search query entirely and just spits out a few videos from your watch history.
I'm at least spared from that because I turned off YouTubes watch history completely. I find it's better behaved that way because the related videos section just shows videos similar to the one I'm watching, rather than trying to "learn" my interests and invariably getting it completely wrong.
Amusingly if you turn off the watch history then the frontpage passive aggressively refuses to show you anything, rather than falling back to showing your subscriptions, which you still have to click through to a separate page to see.
Re: YouTube's search function is atrocious now [video]
#20I was just reading this earlier today!