4 ms·

I'm going to take the contrary. I switched to DDG for a few weeks, but since have switched back to google. DDG is fine with general things ("Java", "Vim tutoria

by johnfn 17y ago

I'm going to take the contrary. I switched to DDG for a few weeks, but since have switched back to google. DDG is fine with general things ("Java", "Vim tutorial", and so forth), but fails with the specific (programming errors, how to set up esoteric programs, etc). So DDG could do the job for about 60-70% of the searches I would make, but it sometimes would just turn up absolutely nothing and just say "why not try google?" It was cool to see DDG admit they aren't perfect, but I started wondering (as it happened more) why I wasn't just using google anyway. So I switched back. Really, using DDG so much has made me appreciate google more for being able to really scry into the crannies of the internet and 5 year old forum posts for the answers that I need.

epi0Bauqu 17y ago
Thanks. This problem should start going away now. I just added Bing as a live backup, so if I find nothing through my various indexes/channels, it should back fill with a modified Bing call.
- altano 17y ago
  Why did you choose Bing?
  - epi0Bauqu 17y ago
    Because I'm already using BOSS for some things and it will probably become Bing at some point. I'm open to others.
  - dotBen 17y ago
    You would be surprised but the choie of SaaS search APIs is really small -- even if you are prepared to pay. Yahoo BOSS (which probably will disappear when Yahoo pulls out of search) and Bing API, basically. I don't believe Ask has an API. This is a current issue for projects I am working on
    - epi0Bauqu 17y ago
      Ask does have an API. It's just not open to the public, but is accessible via private agreement.
- johnfn 17y ago
  I have to say, I'm really impressed by how accessible you are. I mentioned a problem on a Reddit thread a while back and you fixed it immediately as well. Keep doing what you're doing, and don't forget about the little guys when you get big :)
  - epi0Bauqu 17y ago
    Hah, thx! I can't even begin to express how invaluable feedback has been. I of course want to respond quickly, but it also has the benefit of getting a larger conversation started.
    - devin 17y ago
      I was quite surprised the other day when someone committing to one of my projects mentioned that they had contacted you about a !clojure search option that does syntax search "better". As a developer, your accessibility is something I value in a product/project/service. Companies talk about being "agile", but all that means a lot of the time is that they respond with incremental improvement and encourage feedback, only to stonewall most of its momentum throughout the process. Kudos again. Love your work.
wdewind 17y ago
This pretty much sums up my experience. I really really really want to use and love DDG but the results just aren't nearly as good as google, especially for specific phrase searching. I LOVE the not storing searches, simplicity etc. but I can't love the search yet. I know running a mail server is probably a pain in the ass, but if the owner of DDG made it so people could have @duckduckgo.com or @cuiler.com or whatever he's using now I think that would help spread the engine immensely (that and making it better).
- epi0Bauqu 17y ago
  Why do you think adding mail would be such a boon? Just a forwarding address?
  - devin 17y ago
    I think it helps solidify the brand. Makes it seem more like a services company that won't go away over night. Not a bad idea. Hell, just offer an extremely tiny "DuckMail" beta with 8 users and never take it public -- it's the thought that counts IMO.
  - wdewind 17y ago
    as he said, solidifying the brand. specifically: i get the feeling a lot of developers here want to be all knowing of the "cool new thing." many of them think thats DDG, and a DDG email address would be a badge they show off. I know for sure if I switched from my gmail address a TON of people would ask me why and what the hell DDG was.
- sp332 17y ago
  Mail and calendaring and maps and web hosting and machine translation are all cool services, but they don't have a whole lot to do with being a good search engine.
devin 17y ago
I disagree. You can search DDG with !scala {}{}{}{}{syntax-laden thing}{}{}{}{} and get results. Google doesn't really have anything that compares to language-specific search functionality. The 60-70% of things I don't find on DDG immediately, I don't find immediately on Google either. Creative queries win at the same rate on both sides of the equation IMO. I use DDG as my default and won't be going back just out of principal. I think DDG has a fantastic search engine in the works that could rival Google's "relevant" ad-laden results within the next year and a half. My only complaint? Color scheme and logo. It just seems IDK, sort of... McDonalds? Gabriel, can I change your logo, please? :)
- epi0Bauqu 17y ago
  Hah, you can have a go it, sure! I can't promise I'll use it though :). I love the Duck but am less psyched on the lettering. I will add some themes though, so if you have any theme ideas I'm all ears. Actual CSS/color changes/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

by johnfn 17y ago

epi0Bauqu 17y ago

Thanks. This problem should start going away now. I just added Bing as a live backup, so if I find nothing through my various indexes/channels, it should back fill with a modified Bing call.

altano 17y ago
Why did you choose Bing?
- epi0Bauqu 17y ago
  Because I'm already using BOSS for some things and it will probably become Bing at some point. I'm open to others.
- dotBen 17y ago
  You would be surprised but the choie of SaaS search APIs is really small -- even if you are prepared to pay. Yahoo BOSS (which probably will disappear when Yahoo pulls out of search) and Bing API, basically. I don't believe Ask has an API. This is a current issue for projects I am working on
  - epi0Bauqu 17y ago
    Ask does have an API. It's just not open to the public, but is accessible via private agreement.
johnfn 17y ago
I have to say, I'm really impressed by how accessible you are. I mentioned a problem on a Reddit thread a while back and you fixed it immediately as well. Keep doing what you're doing, and don't forget about the little guys when you get big :)
- epi0Bauqu 17y ago
  Hah, thx! I can't even begin to express how invaluable feedback has been. I of course want to respond quickly, but it also has the benefit of getting a larger conversation started.
  - devin 17y ago
    I was quite surprised the other day when someone committing to one of my projects mentioned that they had contacted you about a !clojure search option that does syntax search "better". As a developer, your accessibility is something I value in a product/project/service. Companies talk about being "agile", but all that means a lot of the time is that they respond with incremental improvement and encourage feedback, only to stonewall most of its momentum throughout the process. Kudos again. Love your work.

wdewind 17y ago

This pretty much sums up my experience. I really really really want to use and love DDG but the results just aren't nearly as good as google, especially for specific phrase searching. I LOVE the not storing searches, simplicity etc. but I can't love the search yet. I know running a mail server is probably a pain in the ass, but if the owner of DDG made it so people could have @duckduckgo.com or @cuiler.com or whatever he's using now I think that would help spread the engine immensely (that and making it better).

epi0Bauqu 17y ago
Why do you think adding mail would be such a boon? Just a forwarding address?
- devin 17y ago
  I think it helps solidify the brand. Makes it seem more like a services company that won't go away over night. Not a bad idea. Hell, just offer an extremely tiny "DuckMail" beta with 8 users and never take it public -- it's the thought that counts IMO.
- wdewind 17y ago
  as he said, solidifying the brand. specifically: i get the feeling a lot of developers here want to be all knowing of the "cool new thing." many of them think thats DDG, and a DDG email address would be a badge they show off. I know for sure if I switched from my gmail address a TON of people would ask me why and what the hell DDG was.
sp332 17y ago
Mail and calendaring and maps and web hosting and machine translation are all cool services, but they don't have a whole lot to do with being a good search engine.

devin 17y ago

I disagree. You can search DDG with !scala {}{}{}{}{syntax-laden thing}{}{}{}{} and get results. Google doesn't really have anything that compares to language-specific search functionality. The 60-70% of things I don't find on DDG immediately, I don't find immediately on Google either. Creative queries win at the same rate on both sides of the equation IMO. I use DDG as my default and won't be going back just out of principal. I think DDG has a fantastic search engine in the works that could rival Google's "relevant" ad-laden results within the next year and a half. My only complaint? Color scheme and logo. It just seems IDK, sort of... McDonalds? Gabriel, can I change your logo, please? :)

epi0Bauqu 17y ago
Hah, you can have a go it, sure! I can't promise I'll use it though :). I love the Duck but am less psyched on the lettering. I will add some themes though, so if you have any theme ideas I'm all ears. Actual CSS/color changes/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.