# What's up with Google? **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [May 30, 2004, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758 "2004-05-30T04:23:05Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/1 "2004-05-30T04:23:05Z")
Is anyone else having a problem with it? When I try to search the only links it offers are to other search engines. I know I read a while back that there were concerns about new programs being able to overcome Google’s algorithyms (sp?) and cause it to fail as the massively wonderful search engine it has been, leaving the door wide open to spammers and other parasites of the internet… Has this happened? (Not panicking here, just want to know.) ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/2 "2004-05-30T04:30:31Z")
And of course I thought I was posting this in In My Humble Opinion, since I am of course asking for opinions! :smack: Sorry Mods. Help a girl out here please? ---
**Author:** ![Corixidae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@Corixidae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corixidae)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/3 "2004-05-30T04:35:15Z")
What are you searching for? I haven’t had any problems with the searches I’ve done in the last couple days: [ul][li]baltimore newspaper[/li][li]butcher knife[/li][li]margarita recipe[/ul][/li] (to name but a few) But if we had an example search you’d run to see if we got similar results… ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/4 "2004-05-30T04:44:58Z")
Good idea, thank you. Here they are: [baltimore newspaper](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=baltimore+newspaper) [butcher knife](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=butcher+knife) [margarita recipe](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=margarita+recipe) Hope that works. ---
**Author:** ![Nightwatch\_Trailer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9dc877/32.png) [@Nightwatch\_Trailer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightwatch_Trailer)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/5 "2004-05-30T04:51:09Z")
I got over a million hits for “Baltimore newspaper,” using your link. I don’t think that helps. You’re sure you didn’t change your preferences? (I don’t even know if you could change it in this manner, but…) ---
**Author:** ![Corixidae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@Corixidae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corixidae)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/6 "2004-05-30T04:53:33Z")
I meant… what terms were YOU searching for? Not, would you mind linking my search terms back to me so we can see what we get when we click the links? 😉 ---
**Author:** ![t-keela](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a3d4f5/32.png) [@t-keela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/t-keela)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/7 "2004-05-30T05:08:07Z")
I use it all the time and I get the links to other sites as well. If you’ll just click next page it’ll go to results that Google provides. Do you also get the pop up window as well. If so, just close it and click next page of results and you ought to be good to go. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![t-keela](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a3d4f5/32.png) [@t-keela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/t-keela)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/8 "2004-05-30T05:11:36Z")
An afterthought, try using the advanced search option, good luck. BTW I hate that crap. If I wanted to use other search engines I wouldn’t be using Google. I guess I’m gonna see about changing some options and cutting that BS out. ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/9 "2004-05-30T05:12:12Z")
**Nightwatch Trailer** Yes, there are over a million hits on that link, but did you try any of them? All of the ones I’ve tried lead to other search engines, not web pages. Are you saying the links are giving you different results than me? **Corixidae** I’ve presented those links as examples of what I’m talking about. The search results are to other search engines. Is that what you get when you google those terms? And no I haven’t made any changes, preference or otherwise on it. Thanks again. ---
**Author:** ![leenmi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/f1d935/32.png) [@leenmi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/leenmi)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/10 "2004-05-30T05:17:53Z")
When I click on the links posted by **AveDementia** , I get the search results which go through to the intended address. **Ave** , you have strangeness going on that we don’t. Can you try a different browser?And have you run any tools to detect and remove spyware/viruses/malware recently? ---
**Author:** ![t-keela](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a3d4f5/32.png) [@t-keela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/t-keela)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/11 "2004-05-30T05:28:11Z")
Mine is doing the same thing. The first page of links is to other search engines. The second, third etc. pages all go to the sites described. When I attempted to make any preference changes the entire Google site froze up and cut me off. When I went to the advanced search option however it seemed to work okay. It’s been doing this for a few days now. I never really thought much about it. Other than the fact that I don’t want or need the first page of other choices. I’ll see if I can copy and paste the results for y’all to see. Be right back. ---
**Author:** ![Corixidae](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9d8465/32.png) [@Corixidae](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Corixidae)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/12 "2004-05-30T05:35:16Z")
I searched on **nightwatch trailer** and got 5,490 results, the first of which led to the [hollywood.com](http://hollywood.com) page for the movie; the second to a site called [killermovies.com](http://killermovies.com); etc. None of the results on the first page lead to other search engines, and I have Google set to display results in blocks of 30 per page. Definitely some oddness with your browser—possibly some spyware got installed? What search engines are you being directed to? Are they other mainstream engines like Yahoo or MSN or the like, or more obscure ones? ---
**Author:** ![Nightwatch\_Trailer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9dc877/32.png) [@Nightwatch\_Trailer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightwatch_Trailer)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/13 "2004-05-30T05:36:55Z")
> [@AveDementia](#): > > Yes, there are over a million hits on that link, but did you try any of them? All of the ones I’ve tried lead to other search engines, not web pages. Are you saying the links are giving you different results than me? The links work fine for me…they lead to pages and not other search engines. ---
**Author:** ![Nightwatch\_Trailer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/9dc877/32.png) [@Nightwatch\_Trailer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nightwatch_Trailer)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/14 "2004-05-30T05:42:17Z")
> [@Corixidae](#): > > I searched on **nightwatch trailer** and got 5,490 results, the first of which led to the [hollywood.com](http://hollywood.com) page for the movie; the second to a site called [killermovies.com](http://killermovies.com); etc. Just offhand, my moniker doesn’t reference this movie **Nightwatch**. It’s from a different movie altogether. 😃 Ok, hijack over. ---
**Author:** ![t-keela](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/a3d4f5/32.png) [@t-keela](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/t-keela)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 5:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/15 "2004-05-30T05:44:08Z")
This is a copy of the first page I got when I typed in Baltimore newspaper. There is also a popup at the end of this that appeared as well. I would have been back sooner but it cut me offline completely with an error message that WAOL was not loading or some such. It sounds like an AOL problem. I’ve been having problems getting some sites to load. Including the SDMB. I had to delete some new cookies to get back online and shut down the command to update them. results 1 - 10 of about 1,060,000 for baltimore newspaper. (0.21 seconds) Tip: Find maps by searching for a street address with city or zip code Baltimore Newspaper: Compare Prices Compare prices at 40,000 Stores. Find the Best Deals at [BizRate.com](http://BizRate.com)! Search Baltimore Toolbar - FREE Download One-click access to Baltimore news. The FREE download also featues access to local businesses, schools, and churches. baltimore newspaper: Find more information here. Need more information on baltimore newspaper, sit back and let us find it! We pull from the some of the biggest search engines on the internet, so you don’t have too! You can find more on: baltimore newspaper right now. Having trouble finding information on: baltimore newspaper, why not give us a try? We pull from more than 15 leading search engines in real time giving you the best results the internet has to offer. **the popup is this** [http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=baltimore+newspaper&btnG=Google+Search](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=baltimore+newspaper&btnG=Google+Search) Find baltimore newspaper Using the FREE 2020Search Toolbar! Having trouble finding baltimore newspaper? Get the 2020Search toolbar and say “good-bye” to those annoying pop-ups. Many other useful features such as: text highlighter, multi-search engine, drag & drop, e-mail results and more! Find baltimore newspaper with Free WebSearch Tools Click here to download WebSearch Tools and search 15 engines for baltimore newspaper at once now with FREE Pop-up Blocker, Yellow/White Pages, Free Games, Maps, Skins, Cursors and more! Find local newspaper at [Smartpages.com](http://Smartpages.com) Find local business listings at [SMARTpages.com](http://SMARTpages.com), the online yellow pages directory of SBC Communications. SMARTpages also offers city guides, shopping guides, white pages and much more. **Any attempts to correct this format resulted in me being thrown offline** 😕 I could close the popup and then click next page to get the results from my search though. ---
**Author:** ![Etherman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/958977/32.png) [@Etherman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Etherman)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 6:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/16 "2004-05-30T06:07:00Z")
You’ve got spyware. Go get [Ad-Aware](http://www.lavasoftusa.com/) and [Spybot S&D](http://www.safer-networking.org/). And head over to [Trend](http://www.trendmicro.com) and do an online scan just to be safe. Out of curiosity, could you do one of those searches again, and copy and paste the URL from your location bar here, then let me know what you were searching on? I just want to see how they are doing it. ---
**Author:** ![Hedda\_Rosa](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hedda_rosa/32/1204_2.png) [@Hedda\_Rosa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hedda_Rosa)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 6:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/17 "2004-05-30T06:11:33Z")
I know less than squat about how search engines work, but when I read the OP my first thought was spyware/malware is causing this. Just google “malware” and you should find a wealth of information. No, but really. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 6:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/18 "2004-05-30T06:13:47Z")
Yep, looks like the same deal, **t-keela**. And just over the last few days, as well. > [@](#): > > Definitely some oddness with your browser—possibly some spyware got installed? What search engines are you being directed to? Are they other mainstream engines like Yahoo or MSN or the like, or more obscure ones? I doubt it’s spyware. We have Spybot and run it regularly. Firewall and all that, too. No strange mail or attachments, etc. They’re obscure ones. [Bizrate.com](http://Bizrate.com)? Never heard of it. No Yahoo or MSN that I’ve seen. > [@](#): > > Can you try a different browser? I can’t. But **t-keela** has a different one than me and appears to be getting the same results. If that helps. I’m not having the problems that she (he?) is though. My websurfing is fairly smooth. Loading the Dope board is occasionally fussy after I’ve been at for a while, but all in all pretty much trouble free. ---
**Author:** ![AveDementia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/bc8723/32.png) [@AveDementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AveDementia)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/19 "2004-05-30T06:21:35Z")
> [@Etherman](#): > > You’ve got spyware. > > Go get [Ad-Aware](http://www.lavasoftusa.com/) and [Spybot S&D](http://www.safer-networking.org/). > > And head over to [Trend](http://www.trendmicro.com) and do an online scan just to be safe. > > Out of curiosity, could you do one of those searches again, and copy and paste the URL from your location bar here, then let me know what you were searching on? I just want to see how they are doing it. I was composing my post when you posted. I’ll run the Spybot tonight when I’m done with the computer for the evening. We’ll see if that’s it. [http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=baltimore+newspaper](http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=UTF-8&q=baltimore+newspaper) That is the unlinked link- if I clicked the right button that is. baltimore and newspaper are the terms. Thanks everyone. ---
**Author:** ![Rico](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/rico/32/3582_2.png) [@Rico](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rico)\ **Post date:** [May 30, 2004, 6:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758/20 "2004-05-30T06:25:51Z")
Someone else had this problem a while back. [Look here.](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=251783&highlight=google+hijack) It’s something that got downloaded when you clicked on a link somewhere. Really. It does happen. Even when you’re totally vigilant about everything. There’s info in that thread that should help you. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-up-with-google/247758.md?page=2)