Slog

News & Arts

Line Out

Music & the City
at Night

« Q & A with Bagshaw and Bloom | Notes on a News Story »

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Life / Teh Internets Ain't Too Proud to Bing

Posted by David Schmader on Tue, Oct 13, 2009 at 12:51 PM

As Dominic Holden first reported last week on Slog, Microsoft recently donated $100,000 to the campaign to approve Referendum 71, the ballot measure that would secure full domestic-partnership rights for Washington State's same-sex couples.

This was a very nice thing for Microsoft to do, and to show my gratitude, I am going to spend the next ten days using Bing, that new goddamn search engine Microsoft's been trying to ram down my throat for the past few months.

I have reset my home page from Google to Bing. What's more, all verbal references to Google will be changed to Bing; if a friend doubts my claim that Mariska Hargitay has a foundation that takes rape survivors swimming with dolphins, I'll say, "Bing it and see!" If I see a googly-eyed baby, I will compliment its bingy eyes.

Comments (30) RSS

Oldest First Unregistered On Registered On Add a comment

but its not google

Posted by Swearengen on October 13, 2009 at 12:58 PM

Bing sucks, it's supposed to be a decision maker? Fuck that, I'm capable of making my own catastrophic decisions without the help of some damn search engine!

Posted by Cato the Younger Younger on October 13, 2009 at 1:05 PM

What if, by some fluke in the space-time continuum, someone from google read this and decided to donate $100,001 to approve ref 71?!?!?

Then we can take a deep breath, and go back to the way things were.

Schmader, I appreciate the idea, and as much as I dislike it, I too, will be binging only for 10 days. Microsoft deserves a little pat on the back...but that's it. Just a pat.

Posted by TaniaLeeKarate on October 13, 2009 at 1:08 PM

I use Bing quite a bit, because I'm not comfortable with that other company so completely dominating something as important as search.

Also, Bing works pretty well, in my experience.

Posted by shabadoo on October 13, 2009 at 1:10 PM

3: Thank you for joining me. Also, you're right: if Google coughs up a penny more than Microsoft, it's back to Google.

Posted by David Schmader on October 13, 2009 at 1:10 PM

You guys and your misguided ideas that $100K actually represents a lot of money to Microsoft. This is the equivalent of me walking down the street and giving some loose change to a bum. Get over it.

Posted by Fifty-Two-Eighty

on October 13, 2009 at 1:13 PM

What about videos? Search for videos using Google and then with Bing. Bing offers a richer previewing experience.

Posted by raindrop on October 13, 2009 at 1:22 PM

6: 100 grand may be pennies to Microsoft, but it's more than all the donations to defeat Ref. 71 combined, and the donation has earned Microsoft plenty of heat from anti-gay bigots. So fuck you.

Posted by David Schmader on October 13, 2009 at 1:24 PM

raindrop:

Then use bing for videos! who says we have to be tied to only using one search engine?

can I get some metacrawler amens? (wow.. I didn't realize metacrawler still existed. probably not a useful now)

Posted by Beetlecat on October 13, 2009 at 1:26 PM

David,

In light of your decision, please note that the past tense of "bing" is "banged".

Posted by The past tense of tweet is Tw@ on October 13, 2009 at 1:30 PM

Thanks for finally giving me a good reason to try Bing. The marketing is utter crap, and their 'product placement' of Bing in TV shows was an embarrassment, but the $100k to Approve Ref71 is a really good reason for me.

Oh, and @6, no one claimed that $100k was a lot to Microsoft....but it is a lot to Approve Ref71...and it makes Ken Hutcherson more miserable....so get over yourself.

Posted by Gregus on October 13, 2009 at 1:31 PM

$100,000 also bought them a David Schmader\Slog Bing ad. It reminds me of this post...

http://slog.thestranger.com/slog/archive…

...by David Schmader. just sayin.

Posted by Cochise. on October 13, 2009 at 1:31 PM

For some reason I read the "David Schmader" by-line as "Charles Mudede" and I was laughing and laughing and laughing uncontrollably. I mean, nice work here Schmader, thank you for reminding me about the MHRVSDC (Mariska Hargitay Rape Victim Dolphin Camp), but can you imagine if Charles had posted this? What a riot!

Posted by Meags on October 13, 2009 at 1:34 PM

Go Bing yourself!

Posted by Gus on October 13, 2009 at 2:03 PM

Bing Images wouldn't bring up anything of Dita von Teese because "there may be sexually explicit content" and told me to change my search terms -- meaning to change mz search. Fuck Bing.

Posted by Judith on October 13, 2009 at 2:04 PM

...Not to mention whether Mariska's mother was actually decapitated....

http://www.snopes.com/movies/actors/jayn…

What if I 'bing' cherries?

Posted by Rhett Oracle on October 13, 2009 at 2:06 PM

@15 Turn off safe search and it works fine.

Posted by pragmatic on October 13, 2009 at 2:10 PM

I actually really like the Bing travel search page. It let's you search for flights within a user-specified window of time (you get to pick when it starts and ends), as opposed to other sites that only have pre-defined time windows. And you can pick "search nearby airports" and then select or de-select the ones that you want (as opposed to just having to include all the nearby airports).

I like this site better if I'm really flexible on airports, but Bing is pretty good.

Posted by Julie in Eugene on October 13, 2009 at 2:39 PM

I changed my homepage to Bing.
Will try it out for the next 10 days.
Thanks for the heads up.

Posted by Bill W.

on October 13, 2009 at 3:05 PM

@ 6: And how much loose change have you donated in support of Ref 71 lately? Or to a bum, for that matter? Nada? Uh, huh--I thought so...

Posted by My Other Car's the Tardis on October 13, 2009 at 3:32 PM

I use Bing Maps all the time at work. I work in public utilities drafting, and often need to see exactly where telephone poles are located. The satellite photos on Bing are clearer than Google, and the Bird's-eye View feature is pretty slick.

Posted by Chris in Vancouver WA on October 13, 2009 at 3:33 PM

@6: Of course 100,000 isn't a big deal for Microsoft. But 10 days of using a different search engine isn't a big deal for a normal person. So it seems pretty even to me.

Posted by Ben on October 13, 2009 at 4:29 PM

Why the hell not? I'll do the same.

Posted by NaFun

on October 13, 2009 at 4:55 PM

I like Bing. Decided to try it for a few days. Never went back.

(By the way, the verb tenses area as follows: Bing, Bang, Bong.)

Posted by Gramatix on October 13, 2009 at 5:40 PM

Sorry, $100,000 doesn't make up for years of M$ stifling innovation, producing crappy bug and virus catching junk software. Microsoft and its Bing can go fuck off.

Posted by Tom on October 13, 2009 at 6:10 PM

You can make your search bar in firefox automatically search bing instead of google. Takes about a minute and $100k is a lot more than I'll ever be capable of donating. I'm a fulltime binger. Or banger. I like it already.

Posted by prompt on October 13, 2009 at 8:15 PM

which version of "santorum" pops up first on bing?

Posted by Libby on October 13, 2009 at 8:51 PM