[Libs-Or] Google Search

[Matthew Baiocchi]

Google search has gotten a tad janky.


Problem #1: Google search has been getting harder to navigate and less useful - AI overviews, knowledge panels, surfacing metadata, more ubiquitous ads, etc. Sometimes some of these things are useful. Sometimes they are not.


Problem #2 - Google has a habit of ignoring some search terms, substituting other search terms, ignoring quotation marks, and other occasional search engine tomfoolery.


Fix for problem #1: add udm=14 to the search string. This string returns a simplified results page. (Source here: https://tedium.co/2024/05/17/google-web-search-make-default/)


Fix for problem #2: add tbs=li:1 to the search string for verbatim results. (Source here: https://boingboing.net/2024/05/23/what-the-heck-is-udm14-a-new-search-engine-strips-ai-junk-from-google-results.html)


Here's a default search page example with the two problems that everyone sees every day:  https://www.google.com/search?q=what+is+the+salmon+of+doubt


Here's the same example search page using the simplified/verbatim search string fixes: https://www.google.com/search?q=what+is+the+salmon+of+doubt&?tbs=li:1&udm=14


You can bookmark this page if you're looking for the simplified/verbatim search: https://www.google.com/?tbs=li:1&udm=14


To add the simple search to your browser's search engine options, go here: https://tenbluelinks.org/. There are other fixes for other browsers/OSs at the end of this Tedium article here: https://tedium.co/2024/05/17/google-web-search-make-default/.


It is possible to add both the simplified *and* verbatim search strings together as a browser search option using the above guides, it just takes a bit of jury-rigging of the above solutions.


Happy searching!



Matthew Baiocchi
REFERENCE LIBRARIAN
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City of Lincoln City  |  Driftwood Public Library
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