this post was submitted on 11 Feb 2025
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DeGoogle Yourself

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[–] hulfpa@lemmy.ml 132 points 1 week ago (14 children)

This move makes zero sense to me. Why, change it? It's not it's official name or international recognized name so wtf

[–] lorski@sopuli.xyz 1 points 6 days ago

Ass kissing pure and simple. Kneel to the dictator level shit.

[–] Darorad@lemmy.world 104 points 1 week ago (5 children)

Curry favor with the trump admin

[–] davel@lemmy.ml 72 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (4 children)

And it will undoubtedly pay off for them. This is the first brazenly tech oligarchy-driven administration.

Remember who was at Trump’s inauguration? Musk, obviously, but also:

  • Tim Cook, CEO of Apple
  • Jeff Bezos, CEO of Amazon
  • Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta
  • Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet

.
Trump, a populist president, is flanked by tech billionaires at his inauguration

Tim Apple isn’t your friend, either. No oligarch is.

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[–] iAmTheTot@sh.itjust.works 29 points 1 week ago (3 children)

To be clear, they've changed names in line with official government policy before, not just for Trump's admin.

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[–] stevedice@sh.itjust.works 62 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

The USA is now part of a list of "sensitive countries" with authoritarian states with their own version of reality. When users in one of the countries on this list visit Google sites, they see that government's version of reality. This is nothing new. Google does it all the time with disputed territories. It's only news because it's the first time the US has an authoritarian government.

Here's how it looks when visiting from a Mexican device with the language set to Australian English while located in Hungary.

1000019054

Edit: undoxxed myself lol

[–] KSPAtlas@sopuli.xyz 16 points 1 week ago (2 children)

In Google maps set to Polish while in the UK, it shows

Zatoka Meksykańska (Zatoka Amerykańska)

Which translates to

Gulf of Mexico (Gulf of America)

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[–] pelespirit@sh.itjust.works 38 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

Distraction from:

  • closing down the Consumer Protection Agency, USAID, and the Education Agency
  • cutting off funding to the universities
  • stealing our student, treasury and health records while taking over the purse
  • not following federal judge's orders
  • building an unregulated concentration camp in Cuba
  • etc.

Edit: That's why trump did it. All tech companies are in his hands now.

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[–] MolecularCactus1324@lemmy.world 17 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (1 children)

I think I heard that Trump did it because he thinks it gets him around some Biden era rule that he can’t reverse that bans oil drilling in parts of the “Gulf of Mexico.” It’s really stupid. Exxon and Chevron have both “acknowledged” the name change.

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[–] HappySkullsplitter@lemmy.world 91 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (6 children)

It's even weirder because America doesn't mean just the United States

Geographically, America is too ambiguous of a name for the Gulf of Mexico

Wouldn't the Gulf of California also qualify as being the Gulf of America?

The Caribbean Sea?

Basically every river system from the Mississippi and and the Amazon are also "American" from northernmost point of North America to the southernmost point of South America, it's all "America"

Naming the Gulf of Mexico "America" is almost as bad as naming a country "earth"

[–] SendMePhotos@lemmy.world 31 points 1 week ago (5 children)

Hey since America is the center of the earth, we should change it to the Gulf of Central America!

[–] pdxfed@lemmy.world 27 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Mexico's full name is ”The United States of Mexico", I think they should rename their map's version to Gulf of The United States just to add to the confusion and make the point these things, like all facts, are useless when people suffer no consequences from making them up.

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[–] SeekPie@lemm.ee 69 points 1 week ago (3 children)
[–] Aetherion@lemmy.world 23 points 1 week ago (2 children)

Organic Maps is really cool :-)

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[–] Limonene@lemmy.world 61 points 1 week ago (4 children)

Meanwhile on Openstreetmap:

name Golfo de México

name:en Gulf of Mexico

official_name:en_US Gulf of America

Showing just enough acknowledgement to confirm they've discussed the executive order, but they aren't going to follow it.

[–] PrettyFlyForAFatGuy@feddit.uk 58 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (5 children)

Even in the UK they have put Gulf of America.

The UK Government doesn't recognize that name and have officially stated they wont (at least in the short term)

[–] generic_computers@lemmy.zip 32 points 1 week ago (3 children)

I live in the US and I won't recognize the name either.

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[–] helloyanis@jlai.lu 54 points 1 week ago (20 children)

No better time than the present to switch to OpenStreetMap

For Android, I use OsmAnd~ which uses OpenStreetMap data and allows you to download maps to calculate routes offline, something Google Maps couldn't do for routes by foot and by bike last time I tried.

It also has better coverage for some small paths in natural areas like forests. Give it a try!

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[–] DontRedditMyLemmy@lemmy.world 49 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

I will continue deadnaming the gulf with the name assigned at birth. It's just going through a phase.

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[–] jokeyrhyme@lemmy.ml 46 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Planet America, orbiting the American sun, in the galaxy called America

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[–] fmstrat@lemmy.nowsci.com 37 points 1 week ago (6 children)

Time for a repeat comment: Organic Maps does everything Google Maps does (except traffic conditions), and is FOSS. Please encourage places to contribute business information to Open Street Maps.

[–] chiliedogg@lemmy.world 15 points 1 week ago (6 children)

"Except traffic" is not a little thing. It's like putting up an ad for a house with all the features you'd expect, except a roof.

With my daily commute, there are a dozen routes I can take and traffic conditions make it so that from day to day, there can be an hour difference between different routes. It's literally the only reason I use navigation apps over a cheap GPS unit with no live online connection requirement to navigate.

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[–] Hux@lemmy.ml 35 points 1 week ago (4 children)

Using the website from outside of the US shows it with its proper name, but then the asshat version in parentheses.

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[–] baggachipz@sh.itjust.works 27 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

Yes, Tim Apple bent the knee, but the company seems to be holding steadfast.

Apple Maps

Edit God dammit, they changed it. Cowards.

[–] jaschen@lemm.ee 26 points 1 week ago (3 children)

In Taiwan it says:

Gulf of Mexico(Gulf of America)

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[–] chemicalwonka@discuss.tchncs.de 24 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (36 children)

Degoogled since 2018

hardcore mode, google domains blocked by DNS

YouTube scrap data

GrapheneOS with used Pixel

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[–] Flax_vert@feddit.uk 23 points 1 week ago

1000062835

Meanwhile in the UK

[–] eldesgraciado@lemm.ee 22 points 1 week ago (9 children)

This is pathetic and reeks of insecurity big time. Hope that this debacle improves your QoL, Americans.

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[–] kamen@lemmy.world 20 points 1 week ago (3 children)

The irony is that it doesn't specify which America.

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[–] sabreW4K3@lazysoci.al 19 points 1 week ago (1 children)

America is so fucking weird!

[–] jodanlime@midwest.social 15 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Only most of us. Please send help.

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[–] Spoilt@lemmy.world 19 points 1 week ago (3 children)

Mexico should rename "America"

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[–] DieserTypMatthias@lemmy.ml 17 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (5 children)

Fuck Google and Samsung and everyone else who is preinstalled on my phone from the factory. I switched my phone OS to an AOSP GSI without the Google mobile services. Will probably be switching to WordPress from Blogger.

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[–] gunpachi@lemmings.world 15 points 1 week ago (1 children)

“There's no saving America -- we need to pull it out by the roots. Wipe the slate clean. Burn it down! And from the ashes, a new America will be born. Evolved, but untamed!”

— Senator Armstrong.

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[–] someacnt@sh.itjust.works 15 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (14 children)

I wish I could degoogle my android phone. Sadly, it would mean many of the apps I use would stop working..

As far as I understand, only F-droid apps would work on e.g. GrapheneOS - is this wrong? I believe there would be issues with

  • Local chatting app
  • Local map app (As good as OrganicMaps is, it seems to have limited support in route finding)
  • Local banking app
  • Local investing app
  • Apps for university affairs
  • Zoom

I feel so sad that I am locked to the platform..

EDIT: Just checked, seems like everything is reported to work except for local banking app. Sadly, it is too convenient to ditch..

[–] vulture_god@lemmy.dbzer0.com 15 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago) (2 children)

I moved to GrapheneOS a few months ago and haven't really looked back. Someone else below covered using the Sandboxed Google play / Aurora Store (I use both, in addition to fdroid).

Although I could conceivably install more apps, using GrapheneOS had made me think more deeply about whether I actually need an app, instead of using a web browser. It's true that using the web is a degraded experience (likely intentionally so, in some cases), but this is a cost I'm willing to pay for better security and privacy.

Finally, I wanna rep Magic Earth as a solid alternative to Google maps. Route finding is accurate and includes traffic warnings, etc. It uses OpenStreetMap data FWIW.

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[–] taanegl@lemmy.world 15 points 1 week ago (1 children)

Gulf of America.

Don't catch me slipping tho.

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[–] digdilem@lemmy.ml 14 points 1 week ago (8 children)

It's not google's fault. It was told to do so and has. Does anyone seriously expect them not to have done this?

Every American company, or company doing business in America, needs to toe the line of an unpredictable and vindictive president, especially one as fat and tempting as Google.

Now there'll be a disconnect in mapping between what some sources say and what others do, but anyone with a little history knowledge knows this isn't the first time.

[–] Xatolos@reddthat.com 37 points 1 week ago (5 children)

I'm not in the USA, I am not a US citizen. No reason I should be seeing this while I'm in the EU.

[–] nexguy@lemmy.world 16 points 1 week ago

Submit a correction. Many people should.

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[–] SoftestSapphic@lemmy.world 32 points 1 week ago (31 children)

There's no legal requirement to comply.

This is voluntary

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