I don’t use any Google services and haven’t for a long time, and even then only a short-term gmail account for a specific purpose. The last to go was the search engine after switching to Duck Duck Go.
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Has anyone de-googled (stopped using Google services)? What was your experience?
- Thread starter digitaldave
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I am trying but I am stuck on the calendar. Early on my family wanted a shared calendar. We picked google. We share the calendar among 1 Apple watch, 2 Macs, 4 iPads, and 2 iPhones and one old touch. My fear is that when I try to go to a shared Apple calendar, I will loose our history And repeat events.
Nothing is going to happen if you don't at least make the effort.
Thanks for the heads up! 😞 I just read an article depicting Weinberg as a great person , family person etc . Too perfect to be true.
About Startpage: there are too many ads to start from, half page is ads. Longtime ago I used it but than left it because of that.
Update: I just looked for Startpage ip: it’s in Fremont, California
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Have not done a complete de-google since I still use YT and with that I still have my gmail that has been used for many years. I have had Protonmail for years too but never gotten quite used to it. So after some research I ended up choosing between Fastmail and mailbox.org and in the end price was the main deciding factor (Approx 15€/year vs 45€/year).
Mail - mailbox.org
Notes - standardnotes.com
Backup - sync.com
Navigation - Apple Maps
Have been using Apple Maps exclusively for several months already. And to my surprise it works quite well for my needs so no issues with this. The notes app is very basic but fits my basic needs well.
Only frustration was with syncing approx 140 GB from Drive to sync.com. Took over 2 days(!) even though I have a 500/500 connection and manually having to delete my pictures from Google Photos one by one (no option to delete all) so that was a process.
Mail - mailbox.org
Notes - standardnotes.com
Backup - sync.com
Navigation - Apple Maps
Have been using Apple Maps exclusively for several months already. And to my surprise it works quite well for my needs so no issues with this. The notes app is very basic but fits my basic needs well.
Only frustration was with syncing approx 140 GB from Drive to sync.com. Took over 2 days(!) even though I have a 500/500 connection and manually having to delete my pictures from Google Photos one by one (no option to delete all) so that was a process.
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Stopped using Google a long time ago and went to DuckDuckGo for my searches. DuckDuckGo doesn't track you, Google does. furthermore, I don't have to wade through so much garbage (paid planted sites that Google places) with DuckDuckGo. That said, when entering a tracking number for a package I use Google (simpler and more straight forward). One last point, when I'm looking for as much information as possible on a subject, I don't limit myself to any particular search engine.
For search engines:
Use Startpage.com it gives Google results
Use yandex, its not private but I believe it has different search results they have their own index
Brave Search still in Beta but they have their own index
Bing: independent index
Searx: is open source software anyone can deploy that gather results from many search engines privately. Example
DuckDuckGo, Yahoo, Qwant, Ecosia: gives Bing results more or less
I was trying to get rid of google a few years ago, maybe more like 5 or so years ago, but, I had all these playlists and stuff with youtube which used my main gmail email, I just couldn't take the time to make links for everything, now I've added even more, and, I was trying today to sign in to my gmail account so I could add a new email addy to the list so it doesn't go to junk, but, I haven't signed in on my computer for a while and it didn't want to recognize me, so, in trying recovery now it says:
"Google couldn’t verify this account belongs to you."
I refused to give google my phone number, I don't trust their privacy policies at all, so I have limited options, or I guess, no options to recover my account.
WHY THE EF IS MY PASSWORD NOT ENOUGH TO SIGN IN?
Thing is, I am signed in on multiple apple devices via apple's email app(s). So, on the very same computer I am signed in and can use my gmail account with the email app, I can't sign in through a web browser to do anything with my account. THIS MAKES ZERO SENSE!
I see a post from last year that google would be implementing 2 factor authentication, but not sure how it would roll out.
I am soooooo regretting not making the time to get rid of my gmail those years ago!
Now, I have to get rid of all my gmail and switch to my iCloud email for anything that matters.
"Google couldn’t verify this account belongs to you."
I refused to give google my phone number, I don't trust their privacy policies at all, so I have limited options, or I guess, no options to recover my account.
WHY THE EF IS MY PASSWORD NOT ENOUGH TO SIGN IN?
Thing is, I am signed in on multiple apple devices via apple's email app(s). So, on the very same computer I am signed in and can use my gmail account with the email app, I can't sign in through a web browser to do anything with my account. THIS MAKES ZERO SENSE!
I see a post from last year that google would be implementing 2 factor authentication, but not sure how it would roll out.
I am soooooo regretting not making the time to get rid of my gmail those years ago!
Now, I have to get rid of all my gmail and switch to my iCloud email for anything that matters.
Been using DuckDuckGo for quite a long time now. It's good. But now and then I need to do some absolute serious searching down to the nitty-gritty. That's when I head back to Google. It's the best search engine - period. As long as those visits are few and far between I don't worry about Google tracking my activities.
you can use startpage.com , its just a middle man between you and google, so you will get the same results as google. There is also brave search which I like but its no where near as good as Google, its actually still in beta
Brave Search
Search the Web. Privately. Truly useful results, AI-powered answers, & more. All from an independent index. No profiling, no bias, no Big Tech.
search.brave.com
Another option is https://kagi.com/you can use startpage.com , its just a middle man between you and google, so you will get the same results as google. There is also brave search which I like but its no where near as good as Google, its actually still in beta
Brave Search
Search the Web. Privately. Truly useful results, AI-powered answers, & more. All from an independent index. No profiling, no bias, no Big Tech.
It's going to be paid at some point but the goal is to be a search engine that isn't monetized with ads and cares about privacy. It's pretty good already and supports the same ! commands as DuckDuckGo.
I have mostly ditched Google services, only using Google Search, Youtube and the Nest Thermostat, which I planning to replace with a ecobee. I am mostly done with Google since they pulled an anti-consumer move by killing off the free version of Google Apps/GSuite that I was grandfathered and forcing a paid subscription despite saying it will be free for life, which costs more than Microsoft Office 365 Business offerings that I am already subscribed to.
I ended up getting another business account without the desktop apps for my main email and created shared mailbox for other addresses that I was also using. The Business version probably has better privacy and also more flexibility such as creating shared mailboxes (aka additional email addresses) without buying additional licenses. Also, I trust Microsoft a bit more over Google when it comes to privacy. Overall, the experience of using Microsoft Exchange Online is not bad, even with iOS and its default apps, compared to GMail, which keep causing the macOS Mail app to keep launching, forcing me to use a different app for email.
Outside of Youtube and Search, I do not use any other Google services. Besides that, I am mostly done with them after I finally ditch the Nest.
I ended up getting another business account without the desktop apps for my main email and created shared mailbox for other addresses that I was also using. The Business version probably has better privacy and also more flexibility such as creating shared mailboxes (aka additional email addresses) without buying additional licenses. Also, I trust Microsoft a bit more over Google when it comes to privacy. Overall, the experience of using Microsoft Exchange Online is not bad, even with iOS and its default apps, compared to GMail, which keep causing the macOS Mail app to keep launching, forcing me to use a different app for email.
Outside of Youtube and Search, I do not use any other Google services. Besides that, I am mostly done with them after I finally ditch the Nest.
Kagi is a bad choice imo for the following reasons:-
1) It will be expensive. I think it will be $20-30/user which is 3 times the price of Netflix and nearly same for MS Office. Thats not all, it will have a cap limit meaning after you reach your cap it will be pay as you go. This is just too expensive for something that people can do the same for free with an adblocker+stargpage.com/google.com
2) To use Kagi you have to be logged in, if you use multiple devices and multiple browsers you will soon notice that its not convenient in addition it raises privacy concerns as each search can be tied to your paid account which is tied to your subscription service/card.
The only way I see this working is if Kagi can actually serve better search results than Google, which I really doubt since they use Google to give you results for your search query in the first place.
The cost depends on how much you use the search engine. Where have you read/heard that it will be 20-30 per user??
They claim not to log anything. It's up to you if you can/want to trust them.
What are you talking about? Kagi does NOT use Google. They have their own index. You can search with google if you are not satisfied with their results, by adding "!g" in front of the query like with DDG.
I haven’t used most Google services in years. The only Google service I use is YouTube. I never had a gmail account to begin with.
In 2020 I had a job doing some driving and had the work phone on Google maps giving me directions and my phone with Apple Maps and Siri at the same time to do side by side comparison. Both on iPhones. Where I live the Apple Maps was more accurate by half a block. It would put me in front of the house while Google had me 5 houses away. In the county Google would be off by 1/4 mile at times. I also liked how Apple gave directions better.
In 2020 I had a job doing some driving and had the work phone on Google maps giving me directions and my phone with Apple Maps and Siri at the same time to do side by side comparison. Both on iPhones. Where I live the Apple Maps was more accurate by half a block. It would put me in front of the house while Google had me 5 houses away. In the county Google would be off by 1/4 mile at times. I also liked how Apple gave directions better.
I’m using DDG right now for search on the phone but they’re not going to start censoring/altering their search results so I’m looking for a new search engine to use in Safari. Haven’t used Chrome on the home computer in years.
1- They need about 20K users with a minimum of $20 subscription to stay operational. 20K users with each paying $5 will not cut it for them to keep on going.
2- If you think they have their own index you are completely delusional. Kagi takes search results from Google+Bing+their own index called teclis , combine them together and give it to you. They pay Google+Bing for each query made (hence they pay as you go), the more you search the more they have to pay Google and Bing.
Kagi's own index is called Teclis and you can judge its usefulness by visiting https://www.teclis.com and use it for few days and tell me how you like it as a Google replacement.
The search engines that claim not to rely on Google or Bing and actually might be useful are:-
Yandex, Brave Search, Mojeek, Baidu(I think, although Chinese only), and and Huawei new attempt Petal .
Privacy wise Brave Search and Mojeek as the others are Russian and Chinese, usability+Privacy you are left only with Brace Search.
Try Brave Search. I would say use Startpage but I believe they too do some censoring.
I've always liked Apple Maps, I left google back when they started requiring signing in to access bookmarks, at that time, Apple Maps was faster anyway, and I had a driving job using it all the time. In rural areas, neither one was perfect. Now, I think, Apple Maps does well, ...except:
The biggest issue I had, and still have, was Apple's acquisition of Yelp for POI, Yelp may have been good on computers pre-smart phones, but, became totally inaccurate, too slow to update, various other issues by the time it was available as an iOS app. I was sorry to see Microsoft acquire Foursquare, which I had been using at that time, wish apple would have bought it instead, foursquare was much more active and accurate. Around the time Apple Maps first came to be, I had a driving job, and I was using both Foursquare and Yelp, Foursquare was 1000% better. Microsoft bought it and basically killed it with their major changes to it. I gave apple feedback about yelp several times, but, I still think they don't get it.
Anyway, I've been changing my email for many things, but, still not sure what to do about youtube, it's the only google service I use.
please note that other video services are starting to emerge to compete with YouTube, they are no where near as good especially with content but its an option and a starting point:-
Rumble, Odysee, Utreon,
I’ve also started to use some different email providers too. I still use my Yahoo! from 1998 and a second newer one for various things. They flat out say they scan it.
So I use ProtonMail for my bills, doctors, bank, and anything else important. Yahoo! gets saved for junk and spammy type stuff.
Depending on what’s going on I’ve seen people live stream on Telegram and sometimes multiple platforms at once such as during the trucker protests.
and Vimeo has been around for much longer. The interface could use some updating, but, that would have come had Apple gone over there instead of putting their vids on YT, that was sooooo disappointing, Apple knowing full well google's the opposite of apple, in that, with google you are the product. Unless Apple is secretly working on a platform that will blow all others away? ...Vimeo has real creative work on it, attracts real artists. YT has a bunch of people trying to get hits on it, so it's a sheet show.
There is a free service from DuckDuckGo that creates as many aliases as you want and forwards it to your address of choice. I use this from spammy sites to forward to Protonmail. There is also paid options like SimpleLogin
Telegram's problem is that it has no search function AFAIK. You either know where you go or you don't.
Vimeo has failed imo . They are expensive and I am not sure who they cater to. I have been browsing the internet for a long time and have hardly seen any one host their videos on Vimeo. Why pay $75/month for vimeo when you can do it for free on YouTube with unlimited storage.
Can't blame Apple for choosing YouTube, they want to reach for the customer and the customer is on YouTube. They search videos exclusively there and interact with the video using their Google accounts, and there is a YouTube app everywhere from phones to TV's . Can't say the same for Vimeo. Vimeo is more of a service to host your videos for your site, than a place to come and watch videos. Even worse for Vimeo, I believe you can upload your own video on your own website server so why use Vimeo at all?