« previous next »
Pages: [1] 2 3 4   Go Down

Author Topic: Imagine if Google never existed  (Read 27005 times)

0 Members and 1 Guest are viewing this topic.

Offline Deep Toaster

  • So much to do, so much time, so little motivation
  • Administrator
  • LV13 Extreme Addict (Next: 9001)
  • *************
  • Posts: 8217
  • Rating: +758/-15
    • View Profile
    • ClrHome
Imagine if Google never existed
« on: September 05, 2014, 02:33:42 am »
I was typing a search query into Firefox's address bar (note that this is not even Chrome's Omnibar) when I started thinking about how much I really rely on Google. I'd say a good 70% of the things I type into my address bar aren't URLs at all but are meant for Google. That's really how we browse the web now, isn't it?

If Google (and other search engines I'm assuming) never existed, I wouldn't know 99% of the things I know about computers and the internet. I'd almost certainly never come across a site like Omnimaga—imagine the link chain you'd have to take to get there from a site like Facebook or Wikipedia's main page!

Of course, that's assuming I'd have heard of Facebook or Wikipedia at all, or that anyone would have, without Google. The Verge ran an interesting piece about a browsing competition without search (basically the "Wikipedia Game" across the entire Internet), and you can imagine how difficult that must be. They say that the Internet is all connected by a titular Web of links, but really it's Google gluing it all together.

A final scary thought: When Google went down for less than five minutes last year (99.999% uptime, which is absolutely incredible if you think about it), traffic on the Internet as a whole dropped by 40%.
« Last Edit: September 05, 2014, 11:35:35 am by Deep Thought »
Logged



Offline Sorunome

  • Fox Fox Fox Fox Fox Fox Fox!
  • Support Staff
  • LV13 Extreme Addict (Next: 9001)
  • *************
  • Posts: 7920
  • Rating: +374/-13
  • Derpy Hooves
    • View Profile
    • My website! (You might lose the game)
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #1 on: September 05, 2014, 05:45:58 am »
You have some bad bb-code bold close tag in there :P
And yeah, there is a reason there are search engines, people use them TONS.
Logged

THE GAME
Also, check out my website
If OmnomIRC is screwed up, blame me!
Click here to give me an internet!

Offline DJ Omnimaga

  • Clacualters are teh gr33t
  • CoT Emeritus
  • LV15 Omnimagician (Next: --)
  • *
  • Posts: 55943
  • Rating: +3154/-232
  • CodeWalrus founder & retired Omnimaga founder
    • View Profile
    • Dream of Omnimaga Music
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #2 on: September 05, 2014, 12:20:23 pm »
Browsing internet with no search engine would be a nightmare x.x
Logged

Offline Keoni29

  • LV11 Super Veteran (Next: 3000)
  • ***********
  • Posts: 2466
  • Rating: +291/-16
    • View Profile
    • My electronics projects at 8times8
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #3 on: September 05, 2014, 01:59:30 pm »
I have a book about the internet that dates back to the time before google. It has a list of interesting websites in the back. Remember that every geocities page had a "links" page? That's how the early internet worked: you'd include large lists of websites you find interesting in your website/book.

This book came out in 1992. The google experiment started 4 years later and did not get popular until much later.
« Last Edit: September 05, 2014, 02:01:56 pm by Keoni29 »
Logged
If you like my work: why not give me an internet?







Offline Eiyeron

  • Urist McEiyolobster
  • LV10 31337 u53r (Next: 2000)
  • **********
  • Posts: 1430
  • Rating: +130/-10
  • (-_(//));
    • View Profile
    • Rétro-Actif : Rétro/Prog/Blog
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #4 on: September 05, 2014, 02:04:05 pm »
If Google never existed? I guess that Yahoo, Ask or Bing would have been the core of Internet instead of Big G...
Logged

Offline Keoni29

  • LV11 Super Veteran (Next: 3000)
  • ***********
  • Posts: 2466
  • Rating: +291/-16
    • View Profile
    • My electronics projects at 8times8
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #5 on: September 05, 2014, 02:14:05 pm »
Possible. Yahoo and ask launched in 1995. This even before google development had started. Bing is a more recent one trying to be like google >.< It launched in 2009.
Logged
If you like my work: why not give me an internet?







Offline Eiyeron

  • Urist McEiyolobster
  • LV10 31337 u53r (Next: 2000)
  • **********
  • Posts: 1430
  • Rating: +130/-10
  • (-_(//));
    • View Profile
    • Rétro-Actif : Rétro/Prog/Blog
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #6 on: September 05, 2014, 02:14:56 pm »
Yeah, I know, but I could have said Lycos or any search engine that could or already existed by this time.
Logged

Offline Keoni29

  • LV11 Super Veteran (Next: 3000)
  • ***********
  • Posts: 2466
  • Rating: +291/-16
    • View Profile
    • My electronics projects at 8times8
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #7 on: September 05, 2014, 02:26:23 pm »
I think it has a lot to do with the name and the choices of the company. I associate Ask with its annoying toolbar that comes with free software. Same goes for babylon. (Babylon is just pure evil with a forced userbase.) Google annoys you with their chrome browser from time to time, but it's actually a good browser, so just download it :P Yahoo's front page is too convoluted. Most people like the clean look of the google search front-page. I dunno, but google just never annoyed me enough to switch. That's about it.
Logged
If you like my work: why not give me an internet?







Offline Eiyeron

  • Urist McEiyolobster
  • LV10 31337 u53r (Next: 2000)
  • **********
  • Posts: 1430
  • Rating: +130/-10
  • (-_(//));
    • View Profile
    • Rétro-Actif : Rétro/Prog/Blog
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #8 on: September 05, 2014, 02:30:22 pm »
Same for me on every points, but specially on Yahoo's homepage : it's too distracting from the main site's functionality : search things in things in the world of Intertubes.

(Haaaaaate babyloooon)
Logged

Offline DJ Omnimaga

  • Clacualters are teh gr33t
  • CoT Emeritus
  • LV15 Omnimagician (Next: --)
  • *
  • Posts: 55943
  • Rating: +3154/-232
  • CodeWalrus founder & retired Omnimaga founder
    • View Profile
    • Dream of Omnimaga Music
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #9 on: September 05, 2014, 08:00:04 pm »
Quote from: Keoni29 on September 05, 2014, 01:59:30 pm
I have a book about the internet that dates back to the time before google. It has a list of interesting websites in the back. Remember that every geocities page had a "links" page? That's how the early internet worked: you'd include large lists of websites you find interesting in your website/book.

This book came out in 1992. The google experiment started 4 years later and did not get popular until much later.
Yeah, I wonder if anybody remembers back when Omnimaga still had a links section? Until April 2006 there was a page just for other calc sites. This is the 1st version: http://xlib.mtv-music-generator.com/omnimagaoldsite/links_v1.html

I think that today, most people no longer link to other sites like this because they figured out that in 2 years, all of them will have ceased to exist. Nowadays people just have an affiliates section or something.


Also, does anyone remember back when webrings were still big?
Logged

Offline Deep Toaster

  • So much to do, so much time, so little motivation
  • Administrator
  • LV13 Extreme Addict (Next: 9001)
  • *************
  • Posts: 8217
  • Rating: +758/-15
    • View Profile
    • ClrHome
Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #10 on: September 05, 2014, 08:23:32 pm »
I learned about both of those things through TI-Freakware—not only does it still have a massive collection of calculator links, but it also at one point have a bug where the front page kept redirecting to its webring page :P
Logged



Offline AzNg0d1030

  • LV7 Elite (Next: 700)
  • *******
  • Posts: 522
  • Rating: +45/-4
  • Hardcore anime watcher.
    • View Profile
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #11 on: September 05, 2014, 09:19:44 pm »
If Google didn't exist is like saying I'm the King of England

:)
Logged
You just lost the game.


Offline Princetonlion.tibd

  • Members
  • LV8 Addict (Next: 1000)
  • ********
  • Posts: 790
  • Rating: +3/-4
    • View Profile
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #12 on: September 05, 2014, 09:52:34 pm »
if Google didn't exist, baidu would be here :trollface:
Logged

Offline Juju

  • Incredibly sexy mare
  • Coder Of Tomorrow
  • LV13 Extreme Addict (Next: 9001)
  • *************
  • Posts: 5730
  • Rating: +500/-19
  • Weird programmer
    • View Profile
    • juju2143's shed
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #13 on: September 06, 2014, 10:32:13 am »
I remember when everyone used AltaVista, it was probably as big at the time as Google's search engine is now. Now it was bought by Yahoo, I think.
Logged

Remember the day the walrus started to fly...

I finally cleared my sig after 4 years you're happy now?
THEGAME
This signature is ridiculously large you've been warned.

The cute mare that used to be in my avatar is Yuki Kagayaki, you can follow her on Facebook and Tumblr.

Offline Princetonlion.tibd

  • Members
  • LV8 Addict (Next: 1000)
  • ********
  • Posts: 790
  • Rating: +3/-4
    • View Profile
Re: Imagine if Google never existed
« Reply #14 on: September 06, 2014, 12:03:16 pm »
Google is shown as a virus site sometimes on the computer I use. I just use yahoo :P
Logged
Pages: [1] 2 3 4   Go Up
« previous next »