[petjuh]

Am I the only one left in the world who actually likes Google and has a positive opinion of them?

I remember switching from AltaVista to Google and thinking they're much better. I remember a friend forwarding me an invitation to join GMail on its first beta day and how impressed I was with the 2.2 GB storage. I remember switching to Google Chrome when I read about its beta release on Slashdot. It was much faster than Firefox.

Personally, the company I loved to hate was Microsoft, and for me Google was the good guy.

Question to those who hate Google - are you old or young? Have you used the Internet in the 90s, before Google came? Have you used email where you lose your emails once you exceed the 20MB capacity, and you need to pay money to increase it? Have you used Internet Explorer because it was everywhere?

Have you seen what Google replaced?

[volongoto]

I'm not young and I remember the times when Google replaced Alta Vista and then Hotmail (and released Wave).

I don't think people forgot about those days, but mostly think that the Google they liked has kicked the bucket. (Google's motto was "Don't be evil" those days, remember? It was removed from the code of conduct in 2018).

I think today, Google (together with Facebook and friends) is actively harming the open internet we loved. So, yes, we see what Google has replaced, but I don't think that is enough to worship a corporation forever.

[Crash0v3rid3]

Don't be evil was never removed from their code of conduct, it's literally the last line: https://abc.xyz/investor/other/google-code-of-conduct/

Why does this keep getting spread?

[volongoto]

I stand corrected. Wikipedia says "In April 2018, the motto was removed from the code of conduct's preface and retained in its last sentence." Thank you.

But I think my point remains valid. Google's "attitude" changed dramatically in the recent years and we are just responding to that.

[mav3rick]

Clearly shows you bought false information on HN without making your own opinion.

[twsted]

"Hate" is not the right word here.

Corporations tend to lose the original good feelings of their founders.

On the other end, people is coming to recognize, more and more, the value of privacy. To understand that "I have nothing to hide" is a meaningless phrase in this context.

What can we do?

The primary thing is to always pay attention and be vigilant towards those to whom we give our data. Even if it's very difficult, being the tracking so pervasive nowadays, even for us HN' readers.

Another palliative is to split our data among different cloud vendors, in order not to let anyone have all your information.

In my opinion, at the end, we should use more paid services.

[erklik]

I am young. I don't hate Google. I honestly don't see what is that horrible thing that I must hate them about?

Advertisements? Are we gonna pay for Gmail and Youtube?

Is it them treating certain search results as preferable? Yes, that's the point of a search engine.

The worst thing that Google does is just shut down good services too quickly but that's not really something to hate them that much for.

Maybe I am just ignorant.

[blntechie]

I was a borderline Google fanboy and has come around to avoid them as much as possible. All in a span of about 14 years.

[patd]

Most of your positives are more than 10 years old. In the meantime they've remove the "Don't be evil" motto, their Android/Chromebook support is very short lived, they've killed countless services people relied on, ...

I don't think Google is evil like Microsoft was in the 90s but I don't blindly trust them as I might have done in the past.

[Crash0v3rid3]

It's really sad how much this misinformation gets spread...

Don't be evil is literally the last line of their code of conduct: https://abc.xyz/investor/other/google-code-of-conduct/

[volongoto]

Yes, but it is no longer their "motto" (the guiding principle for the company). So, it appearing in the CoC does not mean that it's the guiding principle.

But I think you are raising a good point. Why is this piece of "misinformation" being spread so much? What do you think? I think it is because it corresponds to people's experience with Google: "an entity once liked by the users and did good deeds has quit doing those." So, it may be "misinformation" as you put it, but I don't think it bears no value.

[Crash0v3rid3]

No longer their motto? Can you please provide a source?

"Why is this piece of "misinformation" being spread so much? What do you think?"

Because of multiple articles spreading this misinformation a few years back, for example:

"Google Removes 'Don't Be Evil' Clause From Its Code of Conduct" - https://gizmodo.com/google-removes-nearly-all-mentions-of-do...

Then the article literally mentions at the end that it's still in the code of conduct...terrible reporting from multiple outlets.

[volongoto]

What sort of a source do you need? Is Google's current slogan/motto still "Don't be evil"?

[Crash0v3rid3]

You said in your last comment: "Yes, but it is no longer their "motto" (the guiding principle for the company)."

Where exactly did you read that?

[saalweachter]

What is their current motto, out of curiosity?

[mav3rick]

Chromebooks have 6.5 years of updates. How is that short lived ?

[xdavidliu]

> GMail on its first beta day and how impressed I was with the 2.2 GB storage.

Off the top of my head, I distinctly remember GMail beta being on april fools day in 2004ish, and it was exactly 1 gb of storage