Another annoying "helpful" feature from Google

[Bucky]

Two actually.

First, when I start to type a search string into Google, it starts trying to guess what I'm searching for. I don't need another distraction on the internet. Internet usage has already made me flaky and distraction prone. This is just making matters worse. While I'm trying to find out info on the Constitutional Convention, Google starts guessing as I type...

Con - "Do you want Continental Airlines? Conroe ISD? Conroe Courier? What, what, what do you want, huh?"

Cons - "Do you want Consumer Reports? Consolidated Communications? constant contact? Well? What is it? Tell me!"

Const - "Do you want constant contact? constipation? constellation energy? C'mon, man, spit it out. Well?"

Consti - "Do you want constipation? constitution? constitutional amendments? I think I'm figuring you out, human!"

It's not so much that I can't handle the distractions (I can't, though) but the annoying thought that I'm not in control of my computer. I used to live under the illusion that when I hit the "search" button, that was when I was allowing my search, my thoughts, to become part of Google's searches. Now it's clear to me that Google is reaching into my computer, into my head in a sense, to try and pull out ideas before I've fully formed them. It's the internet equivalent of talking with someone who's constantly interrupting you--someone in this case who can't even wait for me to finish my thoughts, or even to finish a single word of dialog, before running off with a litany of irrelevant suggestions in the hope that one of them will hit the spot.

Now it even starts popping up suggested websites for me to go to before I finish typing. It just seems rude to me. No matter how fast you are, Google, no one likes a show off--particularly a show off who's getting it wrong with 95% of its guesses.

The second feature appears after I hit the "search" button. Instead of being able to scroll down the page with my down cursor key, a little blue triangle appears on the left hand, toggling along to each of the 10 search suggestions. "You may want to scroll with your down cursor key, bitch," it seems to be saying to me, "but I say you gotta use the mouse to do that now. Do not attempt to adjust your Google. We are controlling transmission. We control the vertical. We control the horizontal."

I like a smooth scroll, just like my eyes scan when I'm running through a newspaper column. But Google insists on making me jump from suggestions 1-5 to 6-10 as it they're on separate pages. I can work around it, but I just don't see the advantage of them putting that extra pointer on my screen. The whole point of Google used to be its simplicity. I don't begrudge them their ads. Dudes've gotta make a buck, after all. But it's like they're using those bucks to just think of new ways to monkey around with my viewing experience, intrude into my comfort zone, and mess up a user interface system that proved to be perfectly acceptable and effective in the past.

But as above, the biggest problem is that they are interfering with how I use my own computer. I think they need to take a hint from Coca-Cola and introduce a Google Classic search engine. The American tradition of trying to fix success continues.

[blogslut]

1. Okay, it sounds like there are three things going on

1) The autosuggest drop-down is, for the moment, permanent with Google. It can't be turned off. This is a fix but it is not an absolute fix:

Set your homepage to this address - http://www.google.com/webhp?complete=0

2) Google Instant can be turned off. Click "Settings" > "Search Settings" from the top of the Google page and scroll down until you find the tickbox that says: "Do not use Google Instant" and tick it.

3) Those arrows probably aren't Google's doing. It sounds like an Internet Explorer addon called "Accelerator". Here is a tutorial on how to disable all or various features of "Accelerator":

http://www.sevenforums.com/tutorials/1020-internet-explorer-enable-disable-accelerator-add-ons.html

[Bucky]

2. But I'm using Firefox (but thanks for the suggestions)

I'm not computer "savvy" as you "kids" like to say "these" days.