As you will see, Google has become synonymous with an online search for good reasons. However, alternatives thrive. And it is healthy for us and the internet to explore these options.
The internet’s early applications were primarily military and academic. Neither sector considered that it would interest the public. But over time, the situation has changed dramatically.
The search for information has become one of the integral components of human activity, and the internet has turned into a significant source of information where we can find nearly all answers to our questions.
These ten websites demonstrate the many ways we now engage with digital data. Let’s take a look at the most popular places for your online search.
1. Google
Google’s machine learning provides us with some of the most accurate online searches. Its artificial intelligence not only uses our keywords to deliver search results but also monitors user behavior to determine their usefulness.
Simply speaking, if a user backpedals from a search engine results page (SERP), Google may take this as a sign that they didn’t get what they wanted. If lots of people click on the same link and spend a lot of time there, this signals that people are getting what they need from the page.
With masses of this kind of data from millions of web users, Google’s machine learning technology has managed to understand user intent, which separates Google from most other search engines. By interpreting the context of keywords, Google is the most likely to know if “orange” should yield information about the color, the company, or the fruit.
2. Bing
Some say that Bing is better for videos that Google. It’s also popular for its larger selection of autocomplete suggestions.
Owned and operated by Microsoft, it stands on the shoulders of MSN search and Windows Live Search. That’s a lot of search experience, aimed at bringing you quality searches of the web, video, maps, images, and more since 2009.
3. YouTube
YouTube is more than a video-based social network. Some describe it as the world’s second-largest search engine. Users upload over 500 hours per minute and watch one billion hours each day.
However, there is some important debate about whether YouTube is really a search engine and whether statisticians have measured searches or traffic. And it’s worth remembering that Google owns YouTube. When you search Google for a video, it stands to reason it recommends YouTube.
Nonetheless, for millions of people -122 million per day to be more precise – YouTube remains one of the go-to websites to post, share, search, and watch videos. And its popular music-streaming service is part of the reason 20 million subscribers paid to experience ad-free videos in 2020.
4. PhoneHistory
PhoneHistory is an easy-to-use reverse phone lookup site. It’s for those times an unknown number has called you and you don’t want to risk answering yet another scammer.
You can use PhoneHistory’s database of 500 million US phone numbers, including cells, to find out more about the number that called, including but not limited to:
- The name, age, and gender of the owner.
- Their current address and location history.
- Their contact information, such as an email address and social media profiles.
- Professional details.
- Education, occupation, marital status, and interests.
- And, of course, the phone number history, including the carrier and previous owners.
5. Nuwber
People use Nuwber to find information about people. Its comprehensive database of US citizens combines with a straightforward interface to connect users quickly to the information they need.
With names, addresses, professions, contact details, and other demographic information available, it’s a hit with people who want to check out vendors or people they’ve met online, such as potential AirBnB hosts.
6. Amazon
Yes, Amazon is considered a store, but you wouldn’t browse one-by-one through its 350 million items for sale. And about 335 million of those items are sold by independent marketplace sellers. They must abide by Amazon’s rules for conduct, but they are not part of Amazon. Amazon connects you to products and sellers using its sophisticated search algorithms.
7. DuckDuckGo
Some advantages of using DuckDuckGo are that it makes the web easily searchable by country, it has strict, refreshing anti-tracking policies, and it offers great safety controls to protect children from inappropriate content.
Like other search engines, DuckDuckGo will earn money by showing you adverts, but they claim not to spy on you or sell your data in the process.
8. Ecosia
This is the eco-conscious option. When you search with Ecosia, it uses the profit from advertising revenue to plant trees at more than 13,000 planting sites around the world.
About 20 million users have used this search engine to plant more than 164 million trees at the time of writing. And they probably found what they were looking for, too.
9. The Internet Archive and the Wayback Machine
The Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library of internet content. Archiving began in 1996. It now contains the following:
- 890,000 software programs
- 4 million images
- 4 million videos
- 7 million audio recordings, including live concerts
- 41 million books and texts
- 735 billion web pages
Through its Wayback Machine, you can visit or revisit more than a quarter century of web history.
10. Wikipedia
Citing this user-generated free encyclopedia is not accepted in many educational establishments. Some have banned its use as a primary source. Nonetheless, it provides free knowledge in many areas and can be a springboard for further research.
At 20+ years old, Wikipedia has survived initial derision to become “the biggest and most-read reference work ever,” with more than 6.5 million articles in English alone.
Final Words
From the most cutting-edge technology to the most socially responsible one, you can search and enjoy the net in the style that suits you best. Whatever you need to know, whatever you wish to buy, whoever you want to find, these ten websites can help connect you to what you seek.
