📰 News & Media 📰 Bitch about how abysmal googles drug info search results are

[LucidSDreamr]

When you google anything about even a prescriptions drug but also illicit drugs, all the google results are rehab business with very limited and usually wrong information. Like they are basically just advertisements for rehabs you get for every drug related search.

It’s pretty pathetic that the power of a Google search engine gives worse answers than this small website. Like I trust this website as one of the best sources of information on all drugs, but I know Google has blocked the website.

The best information I can get through Google is to put “Reddit” in front of my search phrase. Reddit usually has the answer but also a lot of misinformation so you kind of have to know the answer you’re looking for there.

 

[SeekingOblivion]

Yes, whenever I google psychiatric conditions this happens as well, along with a bunch of suicide prevention websites/numbers to call.

 

[foodcrisis]

i just found BL has a reddit searching "blue light website"

i can't find it searching just "harm reduction" but "harm reduction message board" will put it on the second page..

i heard if you add blue light to your searches it will work the same way reddit does, but i think you could just use the search feature on this site. most people looking for help aren't gonna think to add blue light to the search.

people on this site were telling me to use duck duck go.. i didn't really try it.. actually makes me want to do some of the same searches on each engine and see how different they are... i've just been using google. i think the AI turns up some pretty accurate stuff with opinions on music.... got to dig through tons of stuff looking for drug info though.

 

[Shinji Ikari]

DuckDuckGo

 

[HeadphonesandLSD]

It's all FUBAR no matter the topic. All the alternatives are just as bad the only difference is they don't sell the top rankings for cold hard cash. If they do they aren't as obvious about it. I run a SearXNG instance on my home server. The results are still pretty garbage. But at least I'm able to get them from about 80 providers without going to them directly. The only issue is most of them block my instance after a few searches so I have to throttle it. Most of the big providers (google, ddg, yandex) accuse traffic coming from my IP address of being a "bot". Technically, I guess it is. But it's total bullshit. They just aren't getting any metadata out of my queries anymore and can't invade my privacy through my web browser. So they block me for awhile or attempt to make me fill out endless captchas.

We're watching the web die. I wish they'd go on and shut it down for good. This slow spiral into TV 2.0 has been horrible to witness. Everyday they re-run some old story in the news with new faces. It's boring as fuck. I can't believe people are still engaging with it. At least 75% of activity must be bots by now artificially inflating the stats. It wasn't supposed to be this way.

The worst part about google is they used to have a really good way to query for information. I spent years developing my google-fu. Only to see it all be wasted so they could better serve some idiot that talks to himself.

 

[shreddedlettuce]

I "got my feet wet" before Google existed. ( I'm an old fart I know )

But the "Big Fat" hard cover Martindale had me engrossed and my "interest, knowledge and then self experimental" journey began around 1988.

Fast forward a few decades and here we are 2025 and it is a new world in terms of information and how quickly one can get answers and I am loving this new era too.

However, I have always felt privileged to have turned those pages and read up on substances, their trials, their LD50, side-effects etc from a Book used by pharmacy students and professionals alike.

@LucidSDreamr the way to kinda beat Google at this is to use Google to find the pdf version of "Martindale-The-Complete-Drug-Reference-36th-Edition" - at least this is a free download.
It is dated obviously, but definitely worth downloading and saving. At least you will get the majority of the answers you are looking for.

If you can find older editions that are free downloads then grab those too, as the "illicit drugs" eg. LSD, Mescaline etc were "profiled" in the older editions - I remember back in 1988 reading those sections with complete focus.


FWIW The 41st edition of Martindale: The Complete Drug Reference is the latest and final print edition which retails at around $1000 a copy (used/2nd hand). ( the 36th-Edition pdf I downloaded has 3709 pages and costs nothing - I must say that if I were wealthy I probably would like to purchase the last print edition just for a memento).


I guess growing up without the internet and not being able to get answers to questions immediately wasn't a thing back then. I am glad it was that way too, because I had access to a Martindale and no internet to distract me.

Now you can too, even if it is dated. The info is priceless.


This isn't a solution to the Google issue, but in "my books", it is,

THE BOOK.