Big Googly Brother

Other discussions not related to the Permanent Portfolio

Moderator: Global Moderator

Post Reply
Fred
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 318
Joined: Fri Aug 07, 2015 4:55 pm

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Fred » Sat Feb 20, 2016 6:23 am

TennPaGa wrote: Even more disturbing, the search-ranking business is entirely unregulated, so Google could favour any candidate it likes without violating any laws.
What a laughable sentence. So lets set up a new government agency to regulate search-ranking to show no favoritism. And Obama can appoint Lois Lerner to head it.
Last edited by Fred on Sat Feb 20, 2016 6:27 am, edited 1 time in total.
Jack Jones
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 522
Joined: Mon Aug 24, 2015 3:12 pm

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Jack Jones » Sat Feb 20, 2016 7:00 am

TennPaGa wrote:

Google, for all intents and purposes, has no competition...
https://duckduckgo.com/

What does it mean when someone says, "for all intents and purposes": I know there are counterexamples to what I'm about to say, but I don't care to explain why they aren't relevant?
User avatar
Mountaineer
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 4959
Joined: Tue Feb 07, 2012 10:54 am

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Mountaineer » Sat Feb 20, 2016 7:21 am

Jack Jones wrote:
TennPaGa wrote:

Google, for all intents and purposes, has no competition...
https://duckduckgo.com/

What does it mean when someone says, "for all intents and purposes": I know there are counterexamples to what I'm about to say, but I don't care to explain why they aren't relevant?
And,

https://www.ixquick.com

https://startpage.com

Reviews of private search engines:  https://www.expressvpn.com/blog/ixquick-startpage/

http://securityspread.com/2013/07/21/se ... ly-secure/

Duckduckgo seems a bit faster that these two on my MacBook with the Safari browser.

... M
DNA has its own language (code), and language requires intelligence. There is no known mechanism by which matter can give birth to information, let alone language. It is unreasonable to believe the world could have happened by chance.
User avatar
BearBones
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 689
Joined: Sat Sep 18, 2010 4:26 pm

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by BearBones » Sat Feb 20, 2016 8:43 am

Thanks, you all. Will try DDG and Startpage. Anyone pay for a private VPN?
User avatar
Pointedstick
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 8864
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2012 9:21 pm
Contact:

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Pointedstick » Sat Feb 20, 2016 8:53 am

As others have pointed out, there is plenty of competition. The author of this article comes off as hysterical and uninformed. Google is ripe for a fall as their core product--search--becomes clumsier and creepier all the time. Non-tech people I know routinely complain about Google's search. It's full of ads, they can't find what they want, when someone tells them to Google something, they get different results, and things like that. The big switch to alternatives is an inevitability that is already taking place.

I use DuckDuckGo, personally. Don't need Google for anything anymore.
Human behavior is economic behavior. The particulars may vary, but competition for limited resources remains a constant.
- CEO Nwabudike Morgan
User avatar
Early Cuyler
Full Member
Full Member
Posts: 81
Joined: Sun Mar 11, 2012 12:24 am

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Early Cuyler » Sat Feb 20, 2016 9:41 am

BearBones wrote: Thanks, you all. Will try DDG and Startpage. Anyone pay for a private VPN?
I like private internet access.
You know how I feel about handouts...cash is much more flexible, hell, cash is king!
User avatar
Mark Leavy
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 1950
Joined: Thu Mar 01, 2012 10:20 pm
Location: US Citizen, Permanent Traveler

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Mark Leavy » Sat Feb 20, 2016 10:08 am

BearBones wrote: Thanks, you all. Will try DDG and Startpage. Anyone pay for a private VPN?
I use ExpressVPN.  It works perfectly for me.  ~$100 / year for unlimited data on my 2 devices. (Mac and iPhone)  Plenty of servers all over the world.

Almost all of my wifi access is via hotels, coffeeshops and AirBnB's, so not using a VPN is too much risk for me.
I also like that I connect via a US server when I'm overseas.  It prevents Google and Expedia and every other website from trying to post results in Portuguese or whatever the local language is.  It also allows me to access media content that is country restricted, by simply routing through a server in a non-restricted country.
User avatar
Austen Heller
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 154
Joined: Tue Aug 24, 2010 6:58 pm

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Austen Heller » Sat Feb 20, 2016 12:32 pm

Mark Leavy wrote:
BearBones wrote: Thanks, you all. Will try DDG and Startpage. Anyone pay for a private VPN?
I use ExpressVPN.  It works perfectly for me.  ~$100 / year for unlimited data on my 2 devices. (Mac and iPhone)  Plenty of servers all over the world.
Interesting. I think I will also start using DDG.  I don't know much about these VPNs.  Does it make sense to use one of these, even if you don't leave the US and only use computers in your house (no coffee shops, etc)?  $100/year seems cheap for an added layer of security against hacking.
User avatar
Pointedstick
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 8864
Joined: Tue Apr 17, 2012 9:21 pm
Contact:

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Pointedstick » Sat Feb 20, 2016 12:37 pm

Google Maps is still very good, but I'm back to being a Mac user so I can use Apple Maps instead. I'll agree that the options for high-quality Google Maps alternatives are much rarer on Windows or Linux.
Human behavior is economic behavior. The particulars may vary, but competition for limited resources remains a constant.
- CEO Nwabudike Morgan
User avatar
Mountaineer
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 4959
Joined: Tue Feb 07, 2012 10:54 am

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Mountaineer » Sat Feb 20, 2016 2:13 pm

MangoMan wrote: If you know how to shop, you can get a good VPN for under $20/year. For instance, the very service I use, Cyberghost is available here for $12.99/year. The only difference between this and their full price service [which still is reasonable] is a few less servers. I have never had an issue with the cheaper product.

http://milled.com/cyberghost-vpn/8jvjZVGQwZpTknsJ
Any issues with them being located in Romania - either distance or location?

... M
DNA has its own language (code), and language requires intelligence. There is no known mechanism by which matter can give birth to information, let alone language. It is unreasonable to believe the world could have happened by chance.
User avatar
dualstow
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 14234
Joined: Wed Oct 27, 2010 10:18 am
Location: synagogue of Satan
Contact:

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by dualstow » Sat Feb 20, 2016 2:50 pm

BearBones wrote: Thanks, you all. Will try DDG and Startpage. Anyone pay for a private VPN?
I used DuckDuckGo most of the time.

VPN: Like EarlyCuyler, I use Private Internet Access (PIA). It's too early for me to recommend them. Everything was working great since I signed up a few days ago, but today, it kept disconnecting. Customer Service told me in a live chat, that it's an OSX socket thing, and to turn off the computer for 5 minutes. I asked if I would have to do this all the time, b/c I normally only put the computer to sleep, shutting down every few months. Cust Svc disappeared again and eventually came back and said, vaguely, "This should fix the problem."  :-\ So we'll see. I'd already signed up for one year.
Sam Bankman-Fried sentenced to 25 years
User avatar
BearBones
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 689
Joined: Sat Sep 18, 2010 4:26 pm

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by BearBones » Sat Feb 20, 2016 3:30 pm

Great info. Thanks all.
Anyone use OpenDNS?
If I use OpenDNS, Ghostery, and Duck Duck Go, is my IP address still visible to all sites I go to?
Jack Jones
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 522
Joined: Mon Aug 24, 2015 3:12 pm

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Jack Jones » Sat Feb 20, 2016 3:54 pm

BearBones wrote: If I use OpenDNS, Ghostery, and Duck Duck Go, is my IP address still visible to all sites I go to?
Yes. If you don't want people to know your IP, use Tor.
User avatar
Maddy
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 1694
Joined: Sun Jun 21, 2015 8:43 am

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Maddy » Mon Feb 22, 2016 8:19 am

I feel very, very old.
"We are on the verge of a global transformation; all we need is the. . . right major crisis. . . and the nation will accept the. . . new world order." David Rockefeller (1994)
Libertarian666
Executive Member
Executive Member
Posts: 5994
Joined: Wed Dec 31, 1969 6:00 pm

Re: Big Googly Brother

Post by Libertarian666 » Mon Feb 22, 2016 8:37 am

Maddy wrote: I feel very, very old.
When you write an email, do you put the whole text in the "subject" line?  ;D
Post Reply