this post was submitted on 29 Aug 2023
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The end of the Googleverse (www.theverge.com)
submitted 1 year ago by thehatfox to c/technology
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[–] o0joshua0o 75 points 1 year ago (4 children)

I avoid Google products as much as possible these days, especially anything launched within the last 2-3 years, because it will soon be abandoned and unsupported. Their search results are worse than they have ever been. The only Google app I actually like is Google Maps.

[–] [email protected] 18 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Yeah the search has gone to shit. I've been using Duck Duck Go but I guess that is Bing based?

Also been trying out Kagi. The format is unsettling at first but it is nice to see the results I am looking for at the top instead of a bunch of bullshit ads / sponsored results and whatever along with crappy results below the fold.

[–] [email protected] 4 points 1 year ago (2 children)

I've been using Kagi for two months now and I can't recommend it enough. Whatever I search is always on the first results, no need to filter SEO crap.

Also it's incredibly fast.

I'm not a heavy search user so their lowest tier (5$, 300 searches) is more than enough for me. I can see how the costs can add up for someone that is a heavier user tho

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I'm still figuring out what tier I should go for before I decide what to do.

But yeah it is quite zippy fast!

[–] [email protected] 2 points 1 year ago

Try the low one for a month and set a soft and hard limit, then evaluate. That's what I did, but I didn't go beyond 260 searches hahaha

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Any idea if its good for non US users?

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

I'm in Europe but I don't see why wouldn't it be good

[–] [email protected] 17 points 1 year ago (1 children)

Try magic earth instead of gmaps

[–] [email protected] 21 points 1 year ago (4 children)

All the alternatives work great for cycling, driving etc... but collapse instantly when you try and use them for public transport

[–] [email protected] 13 points 1 year ago

Yeah, I find Maps the best for getting around regardless of the mode of transportation.

Only thing I really dislike about Maps is that it doesn't make it very easy to explore businesses. Like, try to look at a random strip mall and it won't show you what all the store fronts are. Some things only seem to show up if you search for them (not if you look at exactly where they are).

[–] sheogorath 8 points 1 year ago

Google Maps saved me when I had to work in Japan for several months without knowing not a lick of Japanese. I just bought a Suica card and just stood on which color Google Maps told me.

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

I've always wondered, does Google Maps link into each city's public transport API manually after contacting the city, or do they have some sort of AI scraper?

[–] barfplanet 2 points 1 year ago (1 children)

There's a somewhat universal standard for publishing transit information. Not all agencies are fully compliant, but most are on some level.

[–] [email protected] 1 points 1 year ago

Oh I didn't know about that. Where can I find more information?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 1 year ago (1 children)

In Poland we have OSM based jakdojade.pl

[–] mesamunefire 2 points 1 year ago

OSM is awesome. It keeps getting better and better.

[–] [email protected] 16 points 1 year ago

Maps is also seriously going down the gutter.

  1. There are ads in maps now.
  2. It works OK if you know a name, but not the location, but not the other way around. If there's any concentration of businesses, you can zoom in all you want but it will only show 1 in 2 places.
  3. Many search terms now result in residential places near the top results. I suppose these are mostly small webshops run out of homes for the same terms, but that isn't usually what one is looking for when using maps.