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Has anyone been able to successfully de-Google their life?

I watch YTs
I subscribe to YouTube TV

I don’t see myself divesting from Google though I’d love too

I don’t use chrome, gmail, nor their other inline services
 
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maflynn said:
I watch YTs
I subscribe to YouTube TV

I don’t see myself divesting from Google though I’d love too

I don’t use chrome, gmail, nor their other inline services
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The big kicker for me is that I want my kids to have access to Google search,YT kids etc. so they learn how to use apps like this correctly but with (imperfect) guard rails in place that I can adjust. As much as I myself try to keep a solid distance away from this “you/your data is the product” part of the web, it would be irresponsible for me to not allow my kids the chance to learn to use & learn them so as such, I do have an Google/gmail credentials so I can use them and be there with my kids as they explore the internet.

At this point, Google is a huge part of that experience.
 
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Puonti said:
There's more to it than I want to go into, but one big reason for me is valuing my privacy more than what Google (or Meta, or Microsoft, or...) offers in exchange for commercializing my data and data about me.
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Again, has their use of your data caused you any harm? All i can see is that I get ads more relevant to what i'm interested in. Never had my CC data, identity, SSN, or anything important really stolen or even mildly abused. I don't think anyone has really.
 
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bunce66 said:
Again, has their use of your data caused you any harm? All i can see is that I get ads more relevant to what i'm interested in. Never had my CC data, identity, SSN, or anything important really stolen or even mildly abused. I don't think anyone has really.
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I don't think anyone serious browses the internet with the ad experience in mind.
 
I was never really on the Google train because back when I was moving away from MSN, all my name-related usernames were taken on Gmail and I wasn't creative enough to think of anything else. 🤣

Never used Chrome because I'm a massive fan of "defaults" so have always stuck with Safari, never felt the need to create a YouTube account as I could just search for whatever I wanted to watch, never downloaded Google Maps because I don't like having multiple applications that do the same thing on my phone.
 
I stopped using Google Search about 15 years ago. I stick to DuckDuckGo and MetaGer for searching. I never used anything else Google except for YT, which I purposely never created an account for despite being tempted at times.

It can be done.
 
You know I've largely given up on degoogling 100%. It's just not really practical to me. Unless you truly want to decouple finding adjacent services for free or low price doesn't exist as much. So for me. I just keep my footprint to core GOogle services I just can't really live without. YT, Waze, and for now Gemini. Gmail is just default of using those services. I don't use Gmail for any serious email correspondence. I sub to MSFT 365. So you could argue I'm just trading one data vacuum for another. From what I can tell though. Since I use Brave as default with ublock origin. And have a diverse footprint of other services spread out mostly used in the Apple Ecosystem. I don't really notice the data mining being sold back to me. I rarely notice ads being targeted at me except in places I purposely let them. FB and IG. Anywhere else I almost never see it. And I'm not the target of any state sponsored entity. So I'm not worried about that. I 've done my due diligence locking down financial data. Yubikey for almost all 2fa portals. Going for privacy is essentially a risk reward balance and tolerance.
 
Many years ago (2018?) I de-googled. I moved 100% off of Google. Stopped using Gmail, Google Photos, Drive, Search, and a number of other Google services (search included).

However, now... I use Google Photos to backup my iCloud photos as I find it extremely convenient to share with my Android family/friends. That and YouTube are about the only two Google services I really use.

I use - Safari, Fastmail, Kagi (Search Engine), Apple Notes, OneNote for Work, iCloud Drive, Apple Maps, Apple Books, Kindle, Apple Music, Signal, Brave for Chrome Replacement, AdGuard Pro and AdGuard Encrypted DNS for Google Ads.
 
I'm trying, but I can't figure out how to delete my Google accounts. I'm moving away from Google/Android and going back to Apple so I'd really like to start fresh. I know I'm forever "in the system," but at least it's a little comforting and liberating.
 
ClaraStahlbaum said:
Has anyone been able to successfully de-Google their life? I have been on the hunt for de-Googling for the longest time. I recently switched to Firefox. I am not sure if this is the right place to post this, so the mods can move this thread if it is the wrong place to put this. I am looking for Advice.
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When I switched to Mac, I didn’t use Chrome because Safari lets me turn off distractions like ads and those annoying chat bots on some websites. Chrome doesn’t have that feature.

I used to like Chrome for the cool stuff like themes and ad-skipping extensions. But I don’t mind Safari not having themes; I can still set a background image for new tabs. And hey, safari let’s you use extensions for ad blockers

I also switched to Bing Search instead of Google Search since December. I think it’s better because I can earn gift cards and Roblox UGCs for free just by doing searches, challenges, and quests on the app and website.

I still use YouTube for entertainment and music, Google Drive for work and school stuff, and iCloud for my personal stuff.

Gmail is still my main personal email. 📧
 
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ClaraStahlbaum said:
Has anyone been able to successfully de-Google their life? I have been on the hunt for de-Googling for the longest time. I recently switched to Firefox. I am not sure if this is the right place to post this, so the mods can move this thread if it is the wrong place to put this. I am looking for Advice.
Click to expand...

Pretty much everything but youtube and gmail. However, I am slowly moving away from gmail to Apple, slowly...
 
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