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Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

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Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#51

Post by DetectDefect »

Imustaskforhelp wrote: post #46

Please look into duckduckgo or other search providers if possible / if you can and your workflow allows it Other people might have given more credible information about how to fix it but I am on duckduckgo for 2 years now and I seriously love it and It doesn't have any of these issues. If your workflow allows so, definitely give duckduckgo (Or other private search engines like brave,startpage,ecosia etc.) a try as we…

Duckduckgo is hosted on Microsoft-owned servers, how could that possibly be considered "private" by any stretch of imagination?

Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#52

Post by Imustaskforhelp »

guntis_dev wrote: post #45

Google search quality has declined significantly over the years. For many of my searches now, I can ask an LLM and get better results faster - especially for technical questions where I just need a direct answer. Though I suspect this won't last once LLMs start inserting ads and promoted content into responses.

I imagined truman show / scenes from truman show where they show ads from your last line.

Spoiler alert if you haven't watched truman

But That is incredibly uncanny and I think this is the reason why, I think truman must have caught what's happening and also I saw this youtube video trying to explain that truman knew about the show the whole time and the scene and the time he was digging dirt in the first scenes of the movie, he was actually digging his escape route.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6mCXYfv-URg

Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#53

Post by Imustaskforhelp »

antiloper wrote: post #29

If you don't want to pay for Kagi: https://duckduckgo.com/

Let me add a few more search providers

brave search ecosia (environment focused) qwant mojeek (a little bit obscure) swisscows (once again obscure)

There is also searx and searxng and their public instances which actually are a mix of many of the search providers I listed about.

Giving references to anyone whose interested perhaps but duckduckgo is a good option to start out and its something that I myself use.

Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#54

Post by Imustaskforhelp »

theodric wrote: post #49
xeeeeeeeeeeenu wrote: post #39

>Reddit results are often force-translated instead of linking to the original English content. It's very annoying. Put this in a search query to filter them out: -inurl:?tl=

I built a Firefox extension to inject this sort of thing automatically, but I'm not sure if I'm allowed to shill it here. It's not like I'm getting paid for it...

hey! Quick suggestion but if you create an firefox extension, please open source it. It immensely boosts my trust in an extension and I doubt that it would be considered a shill (atleast in my book) if you open source it and I don't think that you earn from the extension but if its open source and people like it, it opens up a pathway where people can donate if this extension helps their problems!

Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#55

Post by jeanlucas »

shadowgovt wrote: post #31

Google has a lot of data to see how the average user uses computers. The problem is, that data tells them that the number of people who misconfigure their localization settings (or can't configure them; shared computer) is way larger than the people using those settings on purpose to try and request non-local results. So they err far, far on the side of using your location as a signal of intent over your machine and…

Your comment makes sense to me and it feels like a Windows trade-off: optimizing for the average user while eroding power-user controls; Mark Russinovich has talked about the need for explicit, advanced modes instead of burying power-user behavior behind heuristics in one of his videos about what he would change in Windows.

Google could benefit from the same idea: an expert mode where explicit signals override inference with genuinely usable advanced search features (language, filters, etc) as first-class tools.

Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#56

Post by pachouli-please »

drnick1 wrote: post #16
toomuchtodo wrote: post #13

Try https://kagi.com/

I would never pay for search. The obvious solution here to browse behind Tor or a VPN, or to physically move to an English speaking country if you want to live in a 100% English environment.

If you like it and want it to be maintained in a way that at least somewhat aligns with you (or at least your dollar), you need to pay for it

Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#57

Post by jeanlucas »

coffeefirst wrote: post #43

I have the opposite problem with YouTube, where they insist on dubbing everything when in just want subtitles. The result is an Italian cooking demo where the chef exclaims “MULTA BENE!” and the AI voice deadpans “it is very good.” I’m sure it’s even more annoying when you’re bilingual and can’t turn it off.

>I’m sure it’s even more annoying when you’re bilingual and can’t turn it off.

At least on this point now it is possible to turn it off.

Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#58

Post by sawmurai »

I had to set the language of my google account to English to make it finally stop auto translating YouTube. Setting the language in YouTube had worked for a few weeks, then it would be reset again. Setting the language of the google account itself appears to have fixed it for good.

Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#59

Post by drnick1 »

Diti wrote: post #42
drnick1 wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would never pay for search. The obvious solution here to browse behind Tor or a VPN, or to physically move to an English speaking country if you want to live in a 100% English environment.

> I would never pay for search. I’m curious, why not? The amount of time and frustration saved seems insane, which seems to be a net positive, unless you can’t afford it of course (which is a good argument, but I’m not seeing any in your comment).

Because there are free and privacy respecting alternatives. I use DuckDuckGo, but you can also use meta-engines that anonymize traffic like SearXNG. None of these require accounts or payment methods that effectively de-anonymize you. Finally, if you really like Google for some reason but don't want the side effects, use an adblocker and a VPN.

Re: Tell HN: Google ignores English searches and forces localized results

#60

Post by drnick1 »

pixl97 wrote: post #25
drnick1 wrote: post #16

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I would never pay for search. The obvious solution here to browse behind Tor or a VPN, or to physically move to an English speaking country if you want to live in a 100% English environment.

We pay the most for things that are free.

Software can absolutely be free as in freedom and as in beer. Once code exists, it costs basically nothing to duplicate, so generally speaking it does not make sense to pay for it. When you pay for games for example these days, you are essentially paying for online play (servers) and to fund future development, in addition to "pure profits."
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