Whoogle search engine

[GreyGeek]

https://whoogle.sdf.org/

It is another "we don't track you or link your IP address to your search requests" search engine.

I also tried installing it in Anaconda using pip. It installed but did a couple things I didn't like:
1) asked for the account password. I can't see a need for that unless they wanted to snoop a/or control
2) downgraded or uninstalled several modules. Understandable, but in the process possibly rendering other modules defective or unusable? A better solution could be to create an environment specifically for Whoogle with as few modules as necessary and let it do what it wants in that environment. Or, figure out a way to use firejail to isolate a whoogle_env environment when installing and using whoogle.

[kubicle]

https://whoogle.sdf.org/

It is another "we don't track you or link your IP address to your search requests" search engine.

I also tried installing it in Anaconda using pip. It installed but did a couple things I didn't like:
1) asked for the account password. I can't see a need for that unless they wanted to snoop a/or control
2) downgraded or uninstalled several modules. Understandable, but in the process possibly rendering other modules defective or unusable? A better solution could be to create an environment specifically for Whoogle with as few modules as necessary and let it do what it wants in that environment. Or, figure out a way to use firejail to isolate a whoogle_env environment when installing and using whoogle.

It's a self hosted google search proxy. You're installing the server software on your machine so it isn't surprising it asks for your password.

It doesn't connect to a 3rd party server (it connects directly to google), so there is no-one in-between that could snoop you. However, that also means it doesn't really protect you from IP tracking, google will still get the IP address of the host the proxy is running on when you use it. It is meant to be run on a self-hosted server (like a rented VPS), which doesn't mean it is completely anonymous, but it might be still be preferable to expose your server's IP for the searches rather than your devices' you use the search with (depending on circumstances).

It's main purpose isn't IP protection, of course, but to remove ads and clean up search results/links.

[GreyGeek]

Ya, the documentation made it quite clear that it uses one's own hardware as the hosting platform, and that it uses Google's search results stripped of ads, etc. Other search engines do that as well, while stripping your IP address from your search requests and results. Still, hosting on one's own equipment doesn't, IMO, justify the need to know my account password. The link I gave, https://whoogle.sdf.org/ , uses their website. I doubt that they will keep that link working for too long to avoid a ton of traffic. With DDG and StartPage, whoogle isn't really an advantage.

[kubicle]

Ya, the documentation made it quite clear that it uses one's own hardware as the hosting platform, and that it uses Google's search results stripped of ads, etc. Other search engines do that as well, while stripping your IP address from your search requests and results. Still, hosting on one's own equipment doesn't, IMO, justify the need to know my account password. The link I gave, https://whoogle.sdf.org/ , uses their website. I doubt that they will keep that link working for too long to avoid a ton of traffic. With DDG and StartPage, whoogle isn't really an advantage.

You need admin privileges to install (system wide) software (hence the need for your password). Pip, by default, installs to /usr/local (system wide), although you can use the --user option for user only installation, which shouldn't need a password.
They run a publicly available instance of the proxy on their servers (the link you posted), likely mainly for testing purposes (so people can see how it works and decide whether it's something they'd like to set up on their own iron).

Startpage works in a similar way, it acts as a google search proxy...since it's running on startpage's servers google only sees that server's IP (and not yours), but obviously Startpage sees your IP and you have to trust them not to track you instead (I'm not saying you can't trust them, btw). Running a google proxy on your own server means you don't have to trust the provider of the proxy (as you can usually trust yourself). Even if your server's IP is exposed, there are advantages.

[GreyGeek]

I did install Anaconda locally using the "--user" parameter deliberately. As a result I don't need to use my system password when using Anaconda.

Pip, and my Anaconda modules, are installed under /home/jerry/Anaconda3

[COLOR=#54ff54][B][COLOR=#000000]...[/COLOR][/B][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000]:[/COLOR][COLOR=#5454ff][B]~[/B][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000]$ locate bin/pip [/COLOR]
/home/jerry/anaconda3/bin/pip 
/home/jerry/anaconda3/bin/pip3 
/home/jerry/anaconda3/pkgs/pip-20.2.4-py38h06a4308_0/bin/pip 
/home/jerry/anaconda3/pkgs/pip-20.2.4-py38h06a4308_0/bin/pip3 
/home/jerry/anaconda3/pkgs/pip-20.3.1-py38h06a4308_0/bin/pip 
/home/jerry/anaconda3/pkgs/pip-20.3.1-py38h06a4308_0/bin/pip3 
/home/jerry/anaconda3/pkgs/pip-20.3.3-py38h06a4308_0/bin/pip 
/home/jerry/anaconda3/pkgs/pip-20.3.3-py38h06a4308_0/bin/pip3 
/home/jerry/anaconda3/pkgs/pip-21.0.1-py38h06a4308_0/bin/pip 
/home/jerry/anaconda3/pkgs/pip-21.0.1-py38h06a4308_0/bin/pip3 
/usr/bin/pip3

and

/home/jerry/anaconda3/pkgs/

which contains ALL the packages I've installed while using Anaconda. None exist in system directory locations outside of /home/jerry/anaconda3, except those that were installed when I installed 20.04. They are few in number and installed in:

/usr/lib/python3/dist-packages/

This might lead one to believe that pip3 in /usr/bin is being used. But, it is not. When my Anaconda environment is activated the reference to pip3 changes from

[COLOR=#54ff54][B]...[/B][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000]:[/COLOR][COLOR=#5454ff][B]~[/B][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000]$ echo $PATH [/COLOR]
/home/jerry/anaconda3/condabin:/home/jerry/.local/bin:/home/jerry/bin:/usr/local/sbin:[B]/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin[/B]:/sbin:/bin:/usr/games:/usr/local/games:/snap/bin

to

[COLOR=#54ff54][B]jerry@jerryAspire-V3-771[/B][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000]:[/COLOR][COLOR=#5454ff][B]~[/B][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000]$ conda activate [/COLOR]
(base) [COLOR=#54ff54][B]jerry@jerryAspire-V3-771[/B][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000]:[/COLOR][COLOR=#5454ff][B]~[/B][/COLOR][COLOR=#000000]$ echo $PATH [/COLOR]
[B]/home/jerry/anaconda3/bin[/B]:/home/jerry/anaconda3/condabin:/home/jerry/.local/bin:/home/jerry/bin:/usr/local/sbin:/usr/local/bin:/usr/sbin:/usr/bin:/sbin:/bin:/usr/games:/usr/local/games:

shows that anaconda3/bin is searched first when conda is activated.

I didn't mind whoogle using my system as a server, but, IMO, whoogle does not need root access if it is just searching the web and reporting results. IF and when an appimage for it is released, which can be use inside of firejail, I will re-reconsider using it. Until then, the web link is good enough for me.

[kubicle]

I'm not familiar with anaconda, so I can't really "troubleshoot" that.

I didn't mind whoogle using my system as a server, but, IMO, whoogle does not need root access if it is just searching the web and reporting results. IF and when an appimage for it is released, which can be use inside of firejail, I will re-reconsider using it. Until then, the web link is good enough for me.

Err...I'm confused. Does it ask for your password when you're trying to use it (this would be strange)? or when you are installing it (this should be normal...or at least has a logical explanation)?

The way whoogle works is that you install the server software (either locally on your machine or on a server...could be remote or local server)...and then configure the server software and set it up to start automatically and listen to connections on a specific port etc. these are things that generally can require root access)...you'd then connect to the whoogle software with something like http[s]://localhostort (on localhost) or http[s]://server_url_or_IPort and see the whoogle search page (you don't need root access to do that or to use the search). The whole proxy server is running locally (or on your server)...and connects directly to Google...it just sends the searches to google and filters back the results.

And on second look, I'm not that sure that sdf.org is actually connected to whoogle development, they just might be running an instance that is publicly available, so you can probably use it if you like (though it has the same trust problem that you have with startpage, it's not the same as running your own instance.

And it's not really "whoogle using your system as a server"...you are "running your own whoogle server" (that is no in no way connected to any other whoogle servers out there)

[Don B. Cilly]

Just sneak a Raspberry Pi inside a lamppost (for power) next to your local takeaway (for which you have the wifi password) and... Bob's your.. aunt... or something

[Fred47]

DuckDuckGo has a password so it can save your personal settings. At some point you have to have some trust in what they say is true.