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These kind of Easter eggs were way more endearing when Google wasn't the incumbent monopoly powering the surveillance economy.

thombat 4y ago
And you could kid yourself that it might just be a labour of love from a single engineer, rather than the product of a marketing team responding to quarterly strategic product directives triggered by engagement metrics.
deleted 4y ago
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echelon 4y ago
I feel like Google could be "easily" defeated (for a tech titan). Step 1: get antitrust regulators to break up the search+advertising business from Chrome+Android products. Don't let Google favor Google products. Step 2: build a better search engine. Can't be hard with all the crap results that Google returns now. If Chrome and Android no longer default to Google, a new engine could grow and thrive. Even the EU taking action could begin to chip away at this monopoly.
- bryanrasmussen 4y ago
  Ok, but this is currently on the front page of HN https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32205535 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32205535 "Why Writing Your Own Search Engine Is Hard (2004)"
  - ImJasonH 4y ago
    OTOH, 2004 was a long time ago, and a lot has changed. That article could be a college freshman in the fall.
    - bryanrasmussen 4y ago
      >OTOH, 2004 was a long time ago, and a lot has changed. evidently from discussion of the article not for the better. >That article could be a college freshman in the fall. evidently not https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Patterson https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Patterson - also do college freshmen get articles in the ACM? on edit: misunderstood witticism regarding age of the article to mean that it could have been written by a college freshman - didn't understand why 'in the fall' but now I get it.
      - oliveshell 4y ago
        No one said anything about the article’s author. The parent commenter was remarking on the age of the article itself, which was published in 2004 and therefore turns 18 this year.
        bryanrasmussen 4y ago
        ok thanks. on edit: have edited my comment to take this into account.
- mongol 4y ago
  Step 2 is ripe for the right competitor. When Google entered the search engine market, it blew people away by providing incredibly relevant results, compared to the competition. You would be hard pressed to say the same today. However, the same quality of results can still be achieved, I am quite sure. It is "just" a matter of figuring out how, and executing on it. Given how Google found success, I think it is actually just a matter of time until a new challenger makes their entrance.
mongol 4y ago
Agreed. I don't know what to make of this. Is it marketing, the result of developer creativity or the outcome of an A/B-test, and why do Google search result quality go downhill so quickly?
- imglorp 4y ago
  It could have been in support of one of the recent Batman reboot movies. Stealth marketing?
  - deleted 4y ago
    [deleted]

thombat 4y ago

And you could kid yourself that it might just be a labour of love from a single engineer, rather than the product of a marketing team responding to quarterly strategic product directives triggered by engagement metrics.

deleted 4y ago

[deleted]

echelon 4y ago

I feel like Google could be "easily" defeated (for a tech titan). Step 1: get antitrust regulators to break up the search+advertising business from Chrome+Android products. Don't let Google favor Google products. Step 2: build a better search engine. Can't be hard with all the crap results that Google returns now. If Chrome and Android no longer default to Google, a new engine could grow and thrive. Even the EU taking action could begin to chip away at this monopoly.

bryanrasmussen 4y ago
Ok, but this is currently on the front page of HN https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32205535 https://news.ycombinator.com/item?id=32205535 "Why Writing Your Own Search Engine Is Hard (2004)"
- ImJasonH 4y ago
  OTOH, 2004 was a long time ago, and a lot has changed. That article could be a college freshman in the fall.
  - bryanrasmussen 4y ago
    >OTOH, 2004 was a long time ago, and a lot has changed. evidently from discussion of the article not for the better. >That article could be a college freshman in the fall. evidently not https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Patterson https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anna_Patterson - also do college freshmen get articles in the ACM? on edit: misunderstood witticism regarding age of the article to mean that it could have been written by a college freshman - didn't understand why 'in the fall' but now I get it.
    - oliveshell 4y ago
      No one said anything about the article’s author. The parent commenter was remarking on the age of the article itself, which was published in 2004 and therefore turns 18 this year.
      - bryanrasmussen 4y ago
        ok thanks. on edit: have edited my comment to take this into account.
mongol 4y ago
Step 2 is ripe for the right competitor. When Google entered the search engine market, it blew people away by providing incredibly relevant results, compared to the competition. You would be hard pressed to say the same today. However, the same quality of results can still be achieved, I am quite sure. It is "just" a matter of figuring out how, and executing on it. Given how Google found success, I think it is actually just a matter of time until a new challenger makes their entrance.

mongol 4y ago

Agreed. I don't know what to make of this. Is it marketing, the result of developer creativity or the outcome of an A/B-test, and why do Google search result quality go downhill so quickly?

imglorp 4y ago
It could have been in support of one of the recent Batman reboot movies. Stealth marketing?
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]