Google sponsors on linux mint?

[zorbo]

I'm just wondering why are there 5 google links by default on top the google search bar, I thought it seems antithetical the philosophy of linux. Did google pay linux mint to do this or just for plain convenience?

[SMG]

I'm just wondering why are there 5 google links by default on top the google search bar, I thought it seems antithetical the philosophy of linux.

My Linux Mint install does not have a google search bar.

Google search bar sounds like something you installed. Did you happen to install Chrome which is Google's proprietary browser?

[zorbo]

I'm just wondering why are there 5 google links by default on top the google search bar, I thought it seems antithetical the philosophy of linux.

My Linux Mint install does not have a google search bar.

Well, when i open mozilla firefox which was downloaded by default i have this default linux mint screen:


The buttons over the search bar directly link to google products and no i haven't downloaded any search browsers

[Moem]

Ah, so you are talking about the home screen on the default Firefox that comes installed on Mint. A whole lot clearer now, since your first post did not state which program you were talking about.

I don't know the answer, but since you have clarified the question, someone else may.

[SMG]

Well, when i open mozilla firefox which was downloaded by default i have this default linux mint screen:


The buttons over the search bar directly link to google products and no i haven't downloaded any search browsers

That is a search field on a webpage. A search bar is usually an add-on program.

I thought I saw it mentioned in another topic, but I'm not finding it right now. We'll have to see if someone else knows.

[Mick-Cork]

Sometime during a recent FF update the browser default homepage was changed to : https://linuxmint.com/start/tricia/ which has an embedded Google search box. It's easy to change the homepage back to whatever you want in the settings.

The probable reason for it, assuming LM has a Google Adsense account, is that it can generate additional income when a user clicks on an ad in the search results, thereby helping support the distro.

More info here if interested: https://support.google.com/adsense/answer/160530?hl=en

I'm not sure if the five links you refer to are part of the Adsense agreement, but I suspect they've just been added manually for convenience.

Personally I prefer the default results layout that you get with the standard Google search, so I've changed my homepage back to google.ie. I'm blocking ads anyway so it makes no difference to LM.

[t42]

I'm just wondering why are there 5 google links by default on top the google search bar, I thought it seems antithetical the philosophy of linux.

why it is antithetical to the philosophy of Linux? which is directly derived from and similar to the philosophy of UNIX. Already in 1974 some principles seen in Ritchie & Thompson article https://people.eecs.berkeley.edu/~brewer/cs262/unix.pdf (easy to write, test, and run programs; interactive use, elegance of design; self-supporting maintenance system) or see 1994 list by Mike Gancarz: The UNIX Philosophy
- Small is beautiful
- Make each program do one thing well
- Build a prototype as soon as possible
- Choose portability over efficiency
- Store data in flat text files
- Use software leverage to your advantage
- Use shell scripts to increase leverage and portability
- Avoid captive user interfaces
- Make every program a filter

May be you are confusing ethics with philosophy but it is still hard to agree with.

[Hoser Rob]

... it seems antithetical the philosophy of linux. ...

it may be antithetical to YOUR philosophy but if you think that's the 'the' Linux philosophy you are quite mistaken. Linux actually predates Google, and Unix is 20 years older.

[MikeNovember]

Hi,

Firefox as in the distro is personalized by Linux Mint:
- default start page uses Google as search engines,
- search engines list is a limited one, not identical to Firefox default one, and it is difficult to add other search engines.

This allows Mint to have some money from Google, in the same way as Mozilla does for Firefox.

This is not unethical and not opposed to any OpenSource software definition.

People who don't agree with this may:
- change start page in Firefox, with the search engine of their choice (I use mostly DuckDuckGo as search engine, and sometimes Google when DuckDuckGo search results are not satisfactory),
- add search engines, tons at https://mycroftproject.com/,
- add custom search engines with dedicated extensions,
- install and use Firefox flatpak instead of Mint one (automatic update, sandboxed),
- download Firefox from its website and use it instead of Mint one (automatic update),
- use extensions (HTTPS everywhere, Privacy badger, uBlock origin) or "/etc/hosts" as an IP address filter to avoid to be tracked by Google or any other.

Regards,

MN

[legacypowers]

- change start page in Firefox, with the search engine of their choice (I use mostly DuckDuckGo as search engine, and sometimes Google when DuckDuckGo search results are not satisfactory),

When DDG results aren't good, have you considered using a public Searx instance (you can find those in https://searx.space/)?

[Isleepinahammock]

If you’re talking about firefox, google is a major funder of Mozilla it’s parent company. Just switch your search engine to startpage or DuckDuckGo if you don’t want direct google search.