# Pitting MSN Search (minor, but irritating) **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [June 1, 2005, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434 "2005-06-01T20:06:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![NeitherHeidiNorGretchen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c2a13f/32.png) [@NeitherHeidiNorGretchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NeitherHeidiNorGretchen)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 8:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/1 "2005-06-01T20:06:35Z")
So I have the Google toolbar. I love Google. Google is how I search. Unfortunately, I have msn as my home page. This means that anytime I open IE to perform a search, and I go to type my find words in the search frame on my Google toolbar, my cursor “mysteriously” jumps to the MSN search frame and my find words are entered there. This bugs the crap out of me! If I clicked in the Google frame, that is what I wanted, nevermind that you MS folks seem to think you know what is good for me. I know, I know, if this is my biggest worry, I am lucky. But I feel manipulated and cranky. Too stubborn to change to another home page (though I should - any recommendations?) or to even try MSN search now because of this trickery. Hmph. NHNG ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/2 "2005-06-01T20:08:41Z")
Grrr…I’m with you. I fucking hate MSN anything. Years ago, on my Packard Bell (don’t hit me, my parents bought it!) it came with MSN. Well, not knowing much about computers, I deleted the program instead of uninstalling it. And then for whatever reason I could NOT get the MSN icon off my desktop. It kept saying “Program cannot be found: Cannot delete”. Or something stupid. I could have reinstalled MSN, I guess, but I was so pissed that it was stuck on my computer that I refused. It was still there when I finally got rid of that thing. Grrr! ---
**Author:** ![TVeblen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/4bbf92/32.png) [@TVeblen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TVeblen)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 8:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/3 "2005-06-01T20:14:27Z")
There _is_ nothing more mundane and pointless than MSN. Off to it’s true home, MPSIMS. Veb ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 8:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/4 "2005-06-01T20:16:54Z")
For years and years, my home page has been about:blank - I’m just about ready to accept changing it to [google.com](http://google.com), but this laxity is a sign of the apoaclypse. ---
**Author:** ![Cherry2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cherry2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cherry2000)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/5 "2005-06-01T22:52:40Z")
**NeitherHeidiNorGretchen** , I have noticed the same thing(MSN hijacking my search string). Put me down as well for one “no like”. I have actually only noticed this happening in the past month or so. Is it a new thing? Whatever it is, it sucks. :mad: ---
**Author:** ![treis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/bc79bd/32.png) [@treis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/treis)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/6 "2005-06-01T23:03:51Z")
[http://epod.usra.edu/](http://epod.usra.edu/) Thats my homepage, gives me about two seconds of Neato! when I open my browser. ---
**Author:** ![Cowgirl\_Jules](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4af34b/32.png) [@Cowgirl\_Jules](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cowgirl_Jules)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 11:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/7 "2005-06-01T23:08:50Z")
I dunno 'bout you, but the SDMB is _my_ home page on my home computer… ---
**Author:** ![Cliffy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/59ef9b/32.png) [@Cliffy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cliffy)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/8 "2005-06-01T23:39:24Z")
Is it not the case that when pages with forms load generally they direct the cursor to the first form? Because it is in my experience. And therefore it’s not MSN’s fault. Set Google to your homepage, and you won’t have this problem. –Cliffy P.S. Welcome to the SDMB, **NeitherHeidiNorGretchen**! I dig your username. However, as is my custom, I tend to refer to people by a diminutive form of their username, so I’ll be calling you **Heidi** from now on. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Wallflower](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Wallflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wallflower)\ **Post date:** [June 1, 2005, 11:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/9 "2005-06-01T23:48:58Z")
> [@Cowgirl Jules](#): > > I dunno 'bout you, but the SDMB is _my_ home page on my home computer… I actually have mine as MPSIMS. I couldn’t wait through that one click to get here. And welcome to the madhouse **NeitherHeidiNorGretchen**! ---
**Author:** ![Mangetout](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mangetout/32/19_2.png) [@Mangetout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mangetout)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2005, 7:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/10 "2005-06-02T07:36:13Z")
I always turn off address bar searching in IE (go to Tools\>Internet Options\>Advanced, then scroll down to ‘Search from the address bar’ and select the option ‘Do not search from the address bar’) - this way, you won’t be treated to an extended wait followed by a (usually fruitless) MSN search page every time you accidentally type [gfoogle.com](http://gfoogle.com) or something like that in the address bar. ---
**Author:** ![NeitherHeidiNorGretchen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/c2a13f/32.png) [@NeitherHeidiNorGretchen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NeitherHeidiNorGretchen)\ **Post date:** [June 2, 2005, 9:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/pitting-msn-search-minor-but-irritating/306434/11 "2005-06-02T21:34:00Z")
> [@Cliffy](#): > > Is it not the case that when pages with forms load generally they direct the cursor to the first form? Because it is in my experience. And therefore it’s not MSN’s fault. You are probably right. I just want it to _intuit_ that I prefer Google, you know? > [@](#): > > P.S. Welcome to the SDMB, **NeitherHeidiNorGretchen**! I dig your username. However, as is my custom, I tend to refer to people by a diminutive form of their username, so I’ll be calling you **Heidi** from now on. 😉 Thanks, Cliffy! As you probably gathered, I am called Heidi on a regular basis, so I will, indeed, answer to it. NHNG