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Comment by Waterluvian | Hacker News Reader

It hurts Google to allow the product to choose what customers have access to it.

Extend this to map search - If only I could exclude all starbucks, 7/11, even Denny's from my map searches for 'coffee shop'. No hate to those who like the coffee from there, but I want a proper coffee shop and if I could filter out certain chains, I would do it in a caffeinated heartbeat. This applies to not just Google maps though.

At least you can -exclude those names. Gas station convenience stores come up for "grocery store" searches, yet they're all named differently.

Google maps doesn't seem to support `-exclude` like Google/DDG search does.

You're right. I noticed this on Bing Maps before, but hadn't noticed Google following suit.

It makes these sites so much less useful. Their unique location catalog is the reason I usually prefer Google, then Bing, over Here Maps or whatever OSM thing. But it's harder and harder to query it to receive anything useful.

Maybe Google will make you to be able to exclude white men owned businesses in your map searches but excluding brands is not something they seem willing to do

https://www.google.com/business/identity-attributes/ "You can now help your business stand out on Google Maps and Search by displaying the Black-owned attribute, in addition to the Women-Led..."

btw, I don't see a big distinction here if I actually would like to boycott Starbucks so I better boycott Google Maps then.

>You can now help your business stand out on Google Maps and Search by displaying the Black-owned attribute, in addition to the Women-Led

Wow, that's insane. I've always assumed this stuff is made up by conspiracy nuts (like the "War on Christmas"), but there it is right on their page!

This frustrates me to no end. Usually, I search for "independent coffee shop" to narrow results, but then still have to zoom in until my nose is touching the pavement before I can see anything other than large chains. Even worse, if there aren't enough "popular" results, I'll get things that are very much not coffee shops, like Target or Arby's

This would be an interesting app to build on OpenStreetMap data.

To add to this...

A lot of those super annoying ad-filled websites you get directed to from Google Search... Guess who's providing those ads and making money when you accidentally click an ad while trying to get off the website?

This is a great, pithy expression for exactly what is driving the toxic behavior--nicely phrased.

Amazing phrasing.

I see what you did there ;)

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