Splitting the search/URL bar in Safari 6?

I had installed the safari extension "Keysearch". You could configure it to use the address bar as a search bar for any site. Before, I could click the address bar, type "ebay macbook" and it was configured to take me to an ebay search of macbooks. Alternatively, I could type "wiki pogo stick" and it would take me directly to the wikipedia entry.

When I wanted to do a google search I could type in the other search box. Now with the combined address bar all such entries default to a google search.

Hello, hello.

I felt compelled to register for MacRumors to respond to this thread.

I think the notion that the new Safari omnibar is dumbed down for "stupid people" aka "moron" who comprise the "lowest common denominator" of computer users is a little over the top.

While I do agree that Apple could appease even more people by allowing both, I think most users will see this as a step forward, not back. After having an affair with Google Chrome, returning to Safari was frustrating until I found Safari OmniBar.

It's not that I, "don't know the difference between a search and a URL," it's that sometimes I want to search, sometimes I want to go to a URL. I believe modern computing is so advanced that my browser can correctly infer what I meant.

In fact, for those of you who were used to a URL bar that automatically adds ".com," you were relying on the built-in thinking ability of your browser, too. They changed the mechanics of it, but implying that it is a modification to help morons is just as silly as calling you a moron for relying on your browser to add .com or .net for you.

@dpk: not a perfect solution to your problem, but try using SnapBack (cmd-opt-S) to get back to your most recent search.

Lastly, I've found solutions for many issues over the years on this forum, and I've considered joining in the past, if only to thank the many contributors. Thank you to all of you.

After I read this thread, I knew at once that I must finally join you to bless you all with my wisdom, and offer my thanks. Thanks for having me!

I agree with this completely. The combined bar takes away functionality and utility that I did not want to give up and makes doing all my searches that much more times consuming and frustrating.

I am getting tired of having functionality forcibly taken away to appease the lowest common denominator. Address Book and Calendar, that to me are almost unusable now in Lion are two other examples.

dpk said:

> What's worse about it? Nothing.

In Safari 5, when you start a search in the search box that search text stays put no matter how many of the resulting links you visit. This means you can easily search for something, check out the results (going as deep as you want), and then easily refine the search by simply hitting your search-bar hotkey (cmd-K for me) and typing. You don't have to navigate all the way back to Google or start from scratch, or rely on saved search history.

There are a lot of people that really like combined search boxes, but there's enough that don't that it should have been retained as an option.

Click to expand...

stevekat said:

I agree with this completely. The combined bar takes away functionality and utility that I did not want to give up and makes doing all my searches that much more times consuming and frustrating.

Click to expand...

Agreed. I’m otherwise quite pleased with Safari 6 so it’s incredibly frustrating.

I like the unified bar, got used to it with Chrome and missed it when I switched to Safari about a year ago.

Seriously what's worse about it someone asked. How about the fact it's trying to figure out what I want to do instead of allowing me to explicitly tell it what to do and often picking the thing I don't want it doing. I've been searching high and low on how to disable it but can't figure out a way to do so. I'm tired of typing in a full url minus the http:// and having it take me to google. Because it's a private url and not something in google it then returns nothing but now I'm getting hits from googles servers once or twice a day now. It's annoying as ****. First the idiotic account questions like where were you on January 1st 2000 that won't allow me to upgrade to 10.8 and now this **** I am more pissed off that I've invested so much money in a company that is obviously being run by a moron now and my out which was being able to switch to windows on my mac now turns out to also be run by an idiot that thinks tiles are the future. Computing today is straight up going to the shiter and it's frustrating as hell.

Knowing how many people I've had to spend ridiculous amounts of time explaining the need to type web addresses into the URL bar and searches in the search bar, this is a welcome change.

Web browser functionality should've been this way from the start. Most DNS servers do a piss poor recreation of this when you just type a word into the URL bar anyway. This was a long time coming.

Annoying as heck

Try this:
Type a search in the uni-dumb-bar
Refine the search in the Google search field
Click a link
Now click back

Result:
You will get your original search w/o the changes you made, because your original search still is in the uni-dumb-bar.

Now:
Delete the text in the uni-dumb-bar, and refine the search in the Google search field -> click the search button

Result:
Your original search text pops up in the uni-dumb-bar again

AAAAaaaaaaarrrrrrrrghhhhhh!!!!

I would love the new unified search bar if when I typed the exact URL of the website I wanted to go to, I was directed to that website. However, I am dumped into Google search results half the time, and have to click the top result to reach my desired destination, adding an extra step. Is anyone else seeing this? Exact URL. Dumped onto Google search results. Why does this happen? Frustrating.

I don't have a issue with it as a general web browser but do when you use it to manage sites, I wish I could just have an extension that lets me turn off search in the address bar as we have all our sites setup with DNS records for web management pages and now none of the aliases work as Safari thinks I'm doing a search, its so frustrating when you spent the time to make all the aliases to make accessing wifi, printing management pages easier only to have to use fully qualified addresses to get to them now.

How is this not a LARGER issue?

I do not understand why copying the botnet Google (who's motivation to kill the URL bar was to drive SEARCH AD REVENUE.)

Apple is at war with Google, so explain this.

1. Open a fresh copy of Safari 6

2. type natgeo. and Look at what Google search suggests!

Result:

NatGeo.com - "Perfect let me click on this."

Google SERP for NatGeo.com

-_- < mfw my Web Browser thinks I am stupid.

Oh, and it's LONG AND UGLY.

NOT TO MENTION: I could select more than 1 search engine. So if I wanted to use Amazon search I could.

SERIOUSLY THIS IS A UX PROBLEM. Google Chrome was not a solution to anything. They became the #1 browser by spamming it from the #1 search engine!!! Not because it is GOOD DESIGN? PFFT GOOGLE + GOOD DESIGN SAME SENTENCE??

I strongly dislike it as well

I don't mind that it is long at all.

I cannot stand the fact that after I search and click on a link (or more than one) my search text is not still there. The text in the unified bar is the url and now I have to either retype the whole thing or go back until I find the google page. I love Apple and most all of their products but this "feature" is ridiculous. I absolutely hate it. (And I am not old. I am 17.)

This is a joke: I type 192.168.0.1 to connect to my router - and instead of going to my router, I get a bing search on 192.168.0.1.

So, people who ask "what's worse about it", here's your answer: I want to be able to enter a domain name or IP address and GET that domain name or IP address - and NOT a stupid search that I just have to click away.

Seems like I have to say "bye-bye Safari". That's a pity. Apple just broke the most important feature any browser has.

Awesome - there's an extension for that, as I just found out:

https://github.com/mcs07/AnySearch-safari-extension

Thanks to ddoggerel who posted that over at the Apple forums:

How to disable smart search field in Safari 6

Why not make it optional?

The implementation of the "smart search" field seems entirely based on copying Google, rather than improving the user experience. iOS devices still maintain the traditional and useful distinct fields for addresses and search. There is no reason not to retain the same option in Safari for the Mac. I am stuck with 5.1.x until Apple restores usability to their browser, and it is frustrating to say the least.

NMF said:

You're asking the wrong question. What's worse about it? Nothing.

Click to expand...

The worst thing about it is when I type an url address it doesn't open the url but takes me to google search instead. Then I have to click the results to open the link. This is really annoying since you have to move your hands from the keyboard, find the mouse, move it and click, and then go back to the keyboard.

iau said:

The worst thing about it is when I type an url address it doesn't open the url but takes me to google search instead. Then I have to click the results to open the link. This is really annoying since you have to move your hands from the keyboard, find the mouse, move it and click, and then go back to the keyboard.

Click to expand...

...only if you mistype your URL.