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I tried switching my phone and computer's default search engine to DDG a few weeks ago, and the quality of programming-related searches was just abysmal compare

I tried switching my phone and computer's default search engine to DDG a few weeks ago, and the quality of programming-related searches was just abysmal compared to Google. Straightforward searches were basically the same results, but searching for error messages or library-specific terms would have a great result in the top slot on Google but nowhere on DDG. I found that I needed to use `!g` for every other search, and figured that if it was causing this much additional effort it would make more sense to just default to Google. One idea that I've had is building an extension that monitors Google searches and compares the results you click on to DDG. You could monitor which percentage of your chosen results appear on the first page of DDG. Maybe then I could actually quantify which queries are problematic.

NotSammyHagar 7y ago
That's counter to what i have found. Are you just seeing this on local or location related searches?
- dstaley 7y ago
  No, those are a whole separate thing that I wouldn't expect DDG to match the quality of. It's primarily been software development related queries. For example, a few days ago I searched for "react dnd expected to find a valid target" on Google, and the first result is a GitHub issue describing the issue. All the results on the first page are related to the react-dnd library. The first result for the same query on DDG is an article titled "11 Prison Truths, Revealed By A Female Guard". None of the results on the first page are programming related.
  - NeedMoreTea 7y ago
    Don't use react, and it's not in my search set, but regularly and happily search for programming and tech issues on DDG. I find it's far better than Google these days. So I thought I'd try your search without the quotes, as your first result is so far from my experience. First result: https://github.com/react-dnd/react-dnd/issues/1127 https://github.com/react-dnd/react-dnd/issues/1127 Then a couple more from react-dnd's github, then the other seven on the first page are a mix of relevant SO, and github. Seems quite a few people have opened issues on that topic! Maybe they fixed it. :)
    - dstaley 7y ago
      So this is incredibly bizarre. I went back into my history and clicked on the exact entry corresponding to this search query, and the results are now all programming related. The previous first result ("11 Prison Truths, Revealed By A Female Guard") is now on the second page of results.
      - NeedMoreTea 7y ago
        Or maybe landed on a different shard if they organise that way. All searches vary, but generalising DDG does disappear off into the silly and completely unrelated as you hit lower pages, rather than fading into "looks relevant but isn't" of Google. Pages 1 & 2 I find mostly on the money. What has changed is when I !g out to Google I often don't find the results there either, so it's time to get creative with keywords, or try millionshort for blog hunting. A few years ago a !g felt like a much more reliable escape option. Which feels like a mix of DDG getting better so I'm probably escaping harder queries, and Google simply missing the mark more often.
    - fl0under 7y ago
      I use ddg as default search and find it perfectly capable. I tried that same search query and the first result is https://github.com/react-dnd/react-dnd/issues/236 https://github.com/react-dnd/react-dnd/issues/236 Strange that the first result you got does not appear at all in my first page of results, although I get plenty of other pages related to the same react issue (and neither do I use or search for react issues).
bayofpigs 7y ago
I've also switched all my browsers to DDG and agree google is better for programming related searches. Probably because my search history includes all the languages and technology I use regularly so it's able to weight those results higher.
JohnFen 7y ago
> the quality of programming-related searches was just abysmal compared to Google. My experience is precisely the other way around, but I've heard other devs say what you're saying. I wonder what the difference between us is?
- goostavos 7y ago
  Language popularity can make a significant difference. Using DDG for purescript queries gives iffy results often enough that I instinctually add the g!. However, for something like Java, or even Clojure, I find that the top result across both engines is more or less the same
- stjohnswarts 7y ago
  Maybe it's because Google keeps your previous queries and knows more about what you're looking for unless you wipe previous searches, whereas duckduckgo doesn't do that. It just gives you the standard results resulting in a bimodal results curve. For some people those are perhaps better than a concerted AI attempt from Google. Just a hypothesis though, no proof.
majjam 7y ago
I’ve found the same, especially annoyingly ddg often gives me answers to much easier, less specific questions than the ones I search for. Like a keen Stack Overflow user.

NotSammyHagar 7y ago

That's counter to what i have found. Are you just seeing this on local or location related searches?

dstaley 7y ago
No, those are a whole separate thing that I wouldn't expect DDG to match the quality of. It's primarily been software development related queries. For example, a few days ago I searched for "react dnd expected to find a valid target" on Google, and the first result is a GitHub issue describing the issue. All the results on the first page are related to the react-dnd library. The first result for the same query on DDG is an article titled "11 Prison Truths, Revealed By A Female Guard". None of the results on the first page are programming related.
- NeedMoreTea 7y ago
  Don't use react, and it's not in my search set, but regularly and happily search for programming and tech issues on DDG. I find it's far better than Google these days. So I thought I'd try your search without the quotes, as your first result is so far from my experience. First result: https://github.com/react-dnd/react-dnd/issues/1127 https://github.com/react-dnd/react-dnd/issues/1127 Then a couple more from react-dnd's github, then the other seven on the first page are a mix of relevant SO, and github. Seems quite a few people have opened issues on that topic! Maybe they fixed it. :)
  - dstaley 7y ago
    So this is incredibly bizarre. I went back into my history and clicked on the exact entry corresponding to this search query, and the results are now all programming related. The previous first result ("11 Prison Truths, Revealed By A Female Guard") is now on the second page of results.
    - NeedMoreTea 7y ago
      Or maybe landed on a different shard if they organise that way. All searches vary, but generalising DDG does disappear off into the silly and completely unrelated as you hit lower pages, rather than fading into "looks relevant but isn't" of Google. Pages 1 & 2 I find mostly on the money. What has changed is when I !g out to Google I often don't find the results there either, so it's time to get creative with keywords, or try millionshort for blog hunting. A few years ago a !g felt like a much more reliable escape option. Which feels like a mix of DDG getting better so I'm probably escaping harder queries, and Google simply missing the mark more often.
  - fl0under 7y ago
    I use ddg as default search and find it perfectly capable. I tried that same search query and the first result is https://github.com/react-dnd/react-dnd/issues/236 https://github.com/react-dnd/react-dnd/issues/236 Strange that the first result you got does not appear at all in my first page of results, although I get plenty of other pages related to the same react issue (and neither do I use or search for react issues).

bayofpigs 7y ago

I've also switched all my browsers to DDG and agree google is better for programming related searches. Probably because my search history includes all the languages and technology I use regularly so it's able to weight those results higher.

JohnFen 7y ago

> the quality of programming-related searches was just abysmal compared to Google. My experience is precisely the other way around, but I've heard other devs say what you're saying. I wonder what the difference between us is?

goostavos 7y ago
Language popularity can make a significant difference. Using DDG for purescript queries gives iffy results often enough that I instinctually add the g!. However, for something like Java, or even Clojure, I find that the top result across both engines is more or less the same
stjohnswarts 7y ago
Maybe it's because Google keeps your previous queries and knows more about what you're looking for unless you wipe previous searches, whereas duckduckgo doesn't do that. It just gives you the standard results resulting in a bimodal results curve. For some people those are perhaps better than a concerted AI attempt from Google. Just a hypothesis though, no proof.

majjam 7y ago

I’ve found the same, especially annoyingly ddg often gives me answers to much easier, less specific questions than the ones I search for. Like a keen Stack Overflow user.