Allow for multiple search providers on the search bar.

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1

With the rise of LLM search providers, it would be nice to be able to switch from to another without having to type it in. Like a combobox prioritized with search providers that you have most recently used so you can conveniently switched. This is not a request for multiple simultaneous searches, but rather just a quick selector to take the text you have typed in and go to the provider on selection change. You have the list of providers and some sense of history and the search bar is quite long on the desktop. It should not be too deep of a change.

I routinely search different things with different engines. LLM searches are quite different from Search Engine searches. It is true that many engines are including LLM responses, but LLMs searching the web for a specific list of links is not.

This has been requested in the past but I believe this specific use case can have be cause for renewed interest.

Thanks!
LOVE Brave!

2

@Codedad

I use a bookmarks folder that contains a few bookmarks to search engines. The bookmarks folder is near the top of all bookmarks.

I can quickly choose a search engine and then enter the search criteria text in the search field . . . thus, avoiding the use of the URL address bar as a search field facsimile ← that, in my experience, leads to some trouble, as the URL address field “think tank” tries to parse, sort out, what it estimates is the user’s objective: go to OR search for.

Given the incredible workload of trying to figure out, several million forms of writing, stretching from poor to good.

I mention that, because I wonder, at what point, does the URL address field become an over-booked task-control terminal?

May interest:

Brave Search has incorporated the DuckDuckGo list of !bangs:

https://duckduckgo.com/bangs

Found a comprehensive list of !bangs:

https://duckduckgo.com/bang_lite.html

Submit a new !bang or Update an existing !bang:

https://duckduckgo.com/newbang

NOTE: !bangs work in the Brave Search Engine’s search field at:

https://search.brave.com/

AND: !bangs work in the Brave Browser URL Address Field - IF Brave Search is set to be the browser’s default search engine.

Also may help:

[email protected][email protected] #171Apr 2, 2025 07:58AM

Hi,

On behalf of Chrome, I’d like to extend an apology for the disruption this recent change has caused those who relied on it for their day to day browsing or work. We took your feedback seriously, actively reviewed and explored a range of options, and I’m happy to announce we decided to bring this functionality back. You can expect to start using your saved keyword shortcuts again in the next Chrome release (136 milestone) at the end of this month.

We made the initial decision to discontinue offering keyword shortcuts based on limited usage data and internal polling of developers to see if they use this feature regularly. The goal of the deprecation was so we can focus on improving the experience for other widely used features in the Omnibox and support long term code maintainability goals. We recognize that changes like this can significantly impact the daily workflows of a subset of users, regardless of the volume of usage data. We will keep those lessons in mind and find alternative ways to support our engineering goals without disrupting your workflows.

Here in Chrome, we strive to provide the best browsing experience for our users. Thank you for your understanding and for helping us improve Chrome!

https://issues.chromium.org/issues/397720842#comment171

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3

@89wk,

All fair points! I appreciate the time you took for the reply.

I am a heavy user of the bookmark bar. Mine is quite full, but the suggestion is good. I will look at prioritizing some things. I do use the search bar shortcuts to different search providers.

I put this out there partially because I know the low hanging fruit of new convenience features has been quite well picked-over. If the Brave folks were looking for one, this would have been my vote.

Thanks