'Microsoft Should Scrap Bing and Call it Microsoft Search' (cnet.com)
Chris Matyszczyk, writing for CNET: Does anyone really have a deep, abiding respect for the Bing brand? Somehow, if ever I've heard the brand name being used, it seems to be in the context of a joke. That doesn't mean the service itself is to be derided. It does suggest, though, that the brand name doesn't incite passion or excesses of reverence. The Microsoft brand, on the other hand, has become much stronger under Satya Nadella's stewardship. It's gained respect. Especially when the company showed off its Surface Studio in 2016 and made Apple's offerings look decidedly bland. Where once Microsoft was a joke in an Apple ad, now it's a symbol of a resurgent company that's trying new things and sometimes even succeeding. The funny thing about Bing is that it's not an unsuccessful product -- at least not as unsuccessful as some might imagine. Last year, Redmond said it has a 9 percent worldwide search market share, enjoying a 25 percent share in the UK, 18 percent in France and 17 percent in Canada. And look at the US. Microsoft says it has a 33 percent share here. Wouldn't it be reasonable to think that going all the way with Microsoft branding and letting Bing drift into the retirement home for funny names might be a positive move?
While I think the name Bing is SHIT. renaming it to Microsoft Search would only confuse the average user for no benefit whatsoever. What possible benefit do you think they would gain with a rename?
They figured "Microsoft Search" would associate it with something negative, while Bing would be neutral.
Cortana is less silly name that can be taken a bit more seriously, and it's already kind of intertwined with Bing
The main search is ok, but the video search is the best porn congregator there is. Searches everything, hover to preview the video, etc. Microsoft nailed it.
No, that link you posted to a web comic we've all seen a hundred times is not "obligatory."
âoeBixbyâ. Now there is a horrible name IMHO.
Microsoft's search engine is actually pretty good and in many scenario's it is better than google. basically you can use either without issue, everyone associates google with search though so you get the automatic bias of choosing them.
bada Bing
I don't find the name to be bad. Bing as a search engine has evolved and has been steadily improving to the point that it suffices for 95% of my searches. It clearly has become a viable alternative to those who want to de-google their lives.
Those who deride the name probably have another agenda.
Take the cheese to sickbay, the doctor should see it as soon as possible - B'Elanna Torres, "Learning Curve"
I have to take issue with basically everything positive said about Microsoft in TFA.
I've been continually losing respect regarding Microsoft's ability to put out a quality product in just about any product space. The only thing I can really say about that isn't totally negative about any of their products is that they haven't made Office (not Office 365) worse.
If I was to look at the number of people who use Bing, I would immediately break them down into two groups:
1) People who's work organizations won't allow them to change any system settings or add any software (including Chrome).
2) People who are too stupid to specify Google as their default search engine.
Cue the ACs that feel that I'm unfairly maligning Microsoft...
Mimetics Inc. Twitter
As a verb, Bing better.
Microsoft Should Scrap Bing and Call it Microsoft Search
Scrap it and rename it? Seems a bit wasteful - unless what was meant was "don't scrap it at all."
systemd is Roko's Basilisk.
They really missed an opportunity with Edge and Cortana. Edge should have been called "Bada" and Cortana "Boom" Just think of the marketing they could have done with Bada Bing, Bada Boom.
After all, in 'The Island' (2005), set in the year 2019, the 'Information Directory' looks suspiciously like Bing.
Its the same kind of cluttered and portalesque search engine that was MSN and yahoo and all the others. Google went that way so i switched to duck duck go a few years ago due in part to no tracking and its slimed down no nonsense interface. I mean tahts why we all started using google in the first place right?
Google maps on the other hand i do continue to use because openstreetmap just doesn't do it for me personally. Very frequently, typing in part of an address gets me somewhere else in the world entirely. Especially if the street is also a province, or country name. It gets real confused.
So in the end, the right tool that fits you for the right job. What is bings niche market? what was MSN's? making more money for microsoft and because they need "something" to fill a gap. So it doesnt have to succeed, that would just be a bonus.
-
Have you ever noticed this? B - I - N - G - Bing Is Not Google.
Circumcision is child abuse.
A few days ago here on Slashdot was an article about Google changing the way it handles image searches. Due to a dispute with a commercial entity (Getty Images if I recall correctly), Google was no longer going to serve the full image when you clicked on the thumbnail, just take you to the origin website. It would have made much more sense to just offer content owners a way to opt out of having their images displayed. The Slashdot replies are full of sensible comments and insights.
This weekend, Google made the switch. Now, you can no longer preview an image in Google, not from any source. For me, doing a lot of graphic and imagery intensive work, that was one of Google's most important features. Now suddenly, Google sucks for that purpose. I just tried doing image searches on Bing, and they still work properly, I can see the full image.
Brand loyalty has nothing to do with anything. Getting the job done is everything. So now, when I need to find images, hello Bing, get lost Google. MS should find a way to capitalize on that. Starting with a name change wouldn't be a bad idea.
The URL can be www.microsoftsearch.com That's convenient. Great idea!
Better known as 318230.
I agree. But then again Matyszczyk doesn't exactly roll off the tongue, does it?
Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
I set my search to Bing over a year ago. Results strike me as more useful than Google and I find DDGo is inferior to both.
Microsoft abandoned the "Live" branding in favor of "Bing", and I personally believe this is one of their all time greatest fuckups. Google has the "Play" branding, with "Play Store", "Play Games", "Play Music", "Play Videos" and others. Microsoft's "Live" brand was very similar, and especially with the onset of live streaming that we're seeing, they would have easily had a good and simplistic marketing campaign. Instead, we have Google (YouTube), Facebook (ugh...), and Amazon (Twitch) corning the market currently, with MS not giving fuck all to what could have been the highlight of their business.
... should be something straightforward.
We say "I have googled", but what is the past participle of "to bing", is it "bung"?
Come to think of it -- what is the past and pp of DuckDuckGo -- DuckDuckWent and DuckDuckGone?
And fresh from that success, it's time to for the linux distros to go after mobile users. I'm sure Google will make easier pickings than Microsoft.
(Wouldn't it be cool, if someone, anyone ever paid a price for failure? Like wouldn't it be great if the "designers" who repeatedly screwed up gnome, KDE (and oh, maybe firefox?) were never let near a computer again?)
I mean if T-Mobile can tm magenta and google already considered a verb, then just name it "Search"
Bad idea. Bing is unique and less encumbered by preconceived notions as to what it is.
Many would think Microsoft Search is primarily intended for finding information about Windows, Office 365, etc. Then there's the trust and bias factors to consider. Bing is a more neutral name. Maybe renaming is a good idea, but not to Microsoft Search.
Personally, I find Bing to work well and if Microsoft further improves it, I'll use it more. Many others likely feel the same way. Google results get worse and worse, intentionally to drive page views and ad clicks. Hoping Bing steps up their game.
DuckDuckGo uses yahoo which uses bing.
Works for me.
BING is up there with Adware or popups with its level of dislike.
If corporations worried less about their "brand", and more about their products, we'd all be better off.
I interpreted it as a backhanded compliment.
Remember that even Windows 10 was mostly done on Ballmer's watch, even though it was released on Nadella's watch. After Ballmer, Microsoft couldn't exactly fall much further in everyone's estimation...
sub f{($f)=@_;print"$f(q{$f});";}f(q{sub f{($f)=@_;print"$f(q{$f});";}f});
The dictionary definition of bing:
A heap or pile
I want to ask Microsoft, "your search engine is a heaping pile of *what*, exactly?"
Make use it.
You know just rebranding your shit to "Le Shité" doesn't change the fact it's still shit.
And when you can't find what you're looking for then you go to Microsoft ReSearch to try again? And then you go to Google and never come back.
"Everybody's naked underneath" -- The Doctor
That's funny. I associate Microsoft with making professional software. I associate Google with making data sucking scamware.
I don't respond to AC's.
... for you kids who were born too late. A brilliant take on Microsoft's branding genius. https://www.youtube.com/watch?...
Apparently you've never heard of Windows 10.
Mimetics Inc. Twitter
Bind can earn our respect by performing exceptionally.
The name is fine, it's no weirder than Google or Yahoo as far as names go.
“Common sense is not so common.” — Voltaire
The Microsoft brand, on the other hand, has become much stronger under Satya Nadella's stewardship. It's gained respect.
That has to be written by a shill. Windows 8 and 10 lost whatever 'respect' they think they had left.
The anti-Windows 10 cauterwauling is mostly a Slashdot and niche thing. While Metro and Windows 8 had *major* issues, Windows 10 is doing quite well and is actually a pretty stable OS. It's probably my favorite experience I've had with Windows and reliability since back in the Win2kPro days.
Of course, tech users aren't the hugest drivers... Although important, it's really "consumer" mindshare that would be the determining factor. Anecdotally, non-techies seem to appreciate and be aware of "Microsoft" more than they have been, especially as Apple's stumbling on the computer side (with expensive options) has led to exploration of options.
"Bing" works as something to type into the address bar, but I can't say it's great as a brand. +1 to the article. "Microsoft Search" seems good enough. (And competition at the oligarchy level for Google is at least better than an effective monopoly.)
Hire a Linux system administrator, systems engineer,
Their image-search is top-notch and often has more results than google. At least for "obscure" images.
Windows 2000 - from the guys who brought us edlin
Feb 19, now 2 or 3 days after Google switched the way they serve images, and guess what.
There are already two extensions at the Chrome store that restore the View Image functionality.
https://chrome.google.com/webs...
https://chrome.google.com/webs...
I have 2 tweens and a teen in my house, and they say "search it up". They never say "google it". I've done an experiment where I've switched the default search engine on the home computers to Bing and they didn't even notice.