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I cannot get over how much moaning and whinging people on HN do about supposedly not being able to choose their search-engine on iOS "without jail-breaking" the

I cannot get over how much moaning and whinging people on HN do about supposedly not being able to choose their search-engine on iOS "without jail-breaking" their device when simply switching to another browser like iCab Mobile means they can choose absolutely any search engine they want in addition to the 25 that are included by default. For goodness sake do the minimum amount of research before squealing helplessly about needing to jailbreak your device.

deleted 5y ago
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andiareso 5y ago
Ha! You're complaining about HNers while also being one? You missing a crucial point here. Using an alternative browser on iOS is not actually that helpful. Nine-times out of ten, I use spotlight (swiping down from the home screen) to type search queries because it's much faster than entering an app. This will always use the built-in search provider. Secondly, I use siri to do quick lookups, "search for ravioli recipe" which also uses default search provider. Any context menu like "Lookup" or "Search on X" uses the built-in provider. A blanket statement such as yours suppresses ideas. Let people talk... isn't that why HN exists. I for one think allowing the ability to add a custom search is a no-brainer and I think this deal may be a real reason why it doesn't exist. It's so easy to add this that it seems real shady it doesn't exist...
0xB31B1B 5y ago
Defaults matter, and defaults encode the behavioral choices of like 80% of users. The downstream effects of this are that the default options have the most support. Its totally rational to complain about a bad default option.
- bufferoverflow 5y ago
  80%? I think it's over 99%. Very few people would install a custom browser on mobile, most go with the default.
  - nonameiguess 5y ago
    I highly doubt that, since it would imply 99% of users are using Samsung Internet on Samsung devices rather than Chrome, which doesn't seem to be true. If iOS users are largely using Safari, it's because Safari is actually a good enough browser that it isn't worth switching.
    - andiareso 5y ago
      Eh... I would argue only power-users would switch to chrome on Samsung too. No way in hell the free Samsung phone deals that carriers have all the time are given to more tech savy people than non-tech savy people.
    - exikyut 5y ago
      As someone who has never purchased a new-in-box phone, do Samsung devices ship with Chrome preinstalled by virtue of *handwave* "because Android"?
- Retric 5y ago
  On the other hand, I did change the default iOS browser easily. However, it would have been annoying to have a list of hundreds of options to choose from rather than the major ones.
- Bud 5y ago
  Defaults do matter, I agree, and it's also ok to complain about any given default option if one thinks it's a bad option. That doesn't make it ok to lie and mislead people in the process of making that complaint, though. It's very very easy to change the default search engine setting in iOS. It's about as easy as Apple could possibly make it. To allege otherwise, or to state that "jail-breaking" is somehow required, is simply a lie. Just make the argument without lying.
  - AJ007 5y ago
    I’m not an expert here, but apparently for Google the default is worth at least $1b a month.
Bud 5y ago
You don't even have to switch browsers! The option to change Safari's search engine is in Settings > Safari > Search Engine.
throwaway894345 5y ago
I’ve used DDG as my default browser on iOS/Safari for years without issue. I never even knew this was an issue.
nathanyz 5y ago
Defaults clearly matter as evidenced by the multi-billion dollar payments that Google makes to Apple in order to keep it the default.
- andiareso 5y ago
  Right? Haha they wouldn't be paying for it if they weren't making a profit on that decision! IDIOCY

deleted 5y ago

[deleted]

andiareso 5y ago

Ha! You're complaining about HNers while also being one? You missing a crucial point here. Using an alternative browser on iOS is not actually that helpful. Nine-times out of ten, I use spotlight (swiping down from the home screen) to type search queries because it's much faster than entering an app. This will always use the built-in search provider. Secondly, I use siri to do quick lookups, "search for ravioli recipe" which also uses default search provider. Any context menu like "Lookup" or "Search on X" uses the built-in provider. A blanket statement such as yours suppresses ideas. Let people talk... isn't that why HN exists. I for one think allowing the ability to add a custom search is a no-brainer and I think this deal may be a real reason why it doesn't exist. It's so easy to add this that it seems real shady it doesn't exist...

0xB31B1B 5y ago

Defaults matter, and defaults encode the behavioral choices of like 80% of users. The downstream effects of this are that the default options have the most support. Its totally rational to complain about a bad default option.

bufferoverflow 5y ago
80%? I think it's over 99%. Very few people would install a custom browser on mobile, most go with the default.
- nonameiguess 5y ago
  I highly doubt that, since it would imply 99% of users are using Samsung Internet on Samsung devices rather than Chrome, which doesn't seem to be true. If iOS users are largely using Safari, it's because Safari is actually a good enough browser that it isn't worth switching.
  - andiareso 5y ago
    Eh... I would argue only power-users would switch to chrome on Samsung too. No way in hell the free Samsung phone deals that carriers have all the time are given to more tech savy people than non-tech savy people.
  - exikyut 5y ago
    As someone who has never purchased a new-in-box phone, do Samsung devices ship with Chrome preinstalled by virtue of *handwave* "because Android"?
Retric 5y ago
On the other hand, I did change the default iOS browser easily. However, it would have been annoying to have a list of hundreds of options to choose from rather than the major ones.
Bud 5y ago
Defaults do matter, I agree, and it's also ok to complain about any given default option if one thinks it's a bad option. That doesn't make it ok to lie and mislead people in the process of making that complaint, though. It's very very easy to change the default search engine setting in iOS. It's about as easy as Apple could possibly make it. To allege otherwise, or to state that "jail-breaking" is somehow required, is simply a lie. Just make the argument without lying.
- AJ007 5y ago
  I’m not an expert here, but apparently for Google the default is worth at least $1b a month.

Bud 5y ago

You don't even have to switch browsers! The option to change Safari's search engine is in Settings > Safari > Search Engine.

throwaway894345 5y ago

I’ve used DDG as my default browser on iOS/Safari for years without issue. I never even knew this was an issue.

nathanyz 5y ago

Defaults clearly matter as evidenced by the multi-billion dollar payments that Google makes to Apple in order to keep it the default.

andiareso 5y ago
Right? Haha they wouldn't be paying for it if they weren't making a profit on that decision! IDIOCY