How To Disable Gmail's Annoying New 'Smart Compose' Predictive Typing Feature (vortex.com) 108
"I've seen this 'Smart Compose' feature described publicly with a range of adjectives," writes Lauren Weinstein, "including intrusive, wonderful, invasive, creepy, accurate, loony, mistaken, helpful, misguided -- well, you get the point, opinions are all over the map...."
My foundational complaint here isn't that Google deployed Smart Compose, but rather that they enabled it by default without providing users even basic related information, including the all important "How the hell do I turn this damned thing off?" -- the very question filling my inbox of late!
So here's how you turn it off. It's easy, IF you know how.
One anonymous reader has another solution. "I'm just using Gmail in HTML-only mode now. Its actually far more usable than their new crap and I'm quite fond of the older look anyway." You could also just stop using Gmail -- but Weinstein thinks it's easier to disable the "Smart Compose feature.
"With the understanding that Google has great AI and is itching to use it whenever and wherever possible, I don't really need it analyzing my email drafts as I type them. At least in my case, its proposed wordings are nearly always -- what's the technical term? -- oh yes, WRONG.
"And the predictions intrusively and continuously interrupt my flow of typing as each one needs to be individually bypassed."
So here's how you turn it off. It's easy, IF you know how.
One anonymous reader has another solution. "I'm just using Gmail in HTML-only mode now. Its actually far more usable than their new crap and I'm quite fond of the older look anyway." You could also just stop using Gmail -- but Weinstein thinks it's easier to disable the "Smart Compose feature.
"With the understanding that Google has great AI and is itching to use it whenever and wherever possible, I don't really need it analyzing my email drafts as I type them. At least in my case, its proposed wordings are nearly always -- what's the technical term? -- oh yes, WRONG.
"And the predictions intrusively and continuously interrupt my flow of typing as each one needs to be individually bypassed."
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Exactly. Thunderbird + access Gmail via POP3. Problem solved.
Was coming here to post this. Although I gave in to the pressure eventually, and so use IMAP nowadays.
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I use TBird on my home PC. Fast CPU, lots of memory, SSD drive. It was nevertheless sluggish at times--it would just stop responding for a couple minutes, not sure why. (Haven't seen that in a couple weeks, possibly there's a bug fix out.) My laptop has a slower CPU and less memory, but it does have an SSD drive. TBird was terminally slow on that, so I usually use Webmail there.
Also, searches on TBird are very slow; much faster on Webmail +IMAP. I suppose that speed does depend on the email server...
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"Exactly. Thunderbird + access Gmail via POP3. Problem solved. The entire concept of "webmail" is stupid and makes no sense."
This is for stupid people who use web-mail.
They also use Excel do do lists and databases and complain if they have formatting or speed problems.
Just ignore them.
Re: Thunderbird still works (Score:1)
Time saver! (Score:4, Funny)
I'm so glad that someone wrote an article telling me how to turn off smart compose. I was afraid that I'd have to type "how do I turn off smart compose" into my browser's bar, but this article has saved me all that effort.
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The question is why aren't they writing about how it breaks accessibility? Tab is for navigating the UI without a mouse - not being held hostage by stupid features.
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I thought they quit making that stuff about 30 years ago, but apparently not. Learn something new every day, I guess.
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Except when you have the cursor in a textbox, then it's for inserting tabs. Web browsers suck for entering code because they break the tab key.
Not even the usual overrides like ctrl-tab (change tab), shift-tab (tab backwards) or alt-tab (switch task on Windows) will override this. You end up having to copy/paste tabs from a proper text editor.
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Tab is supposed to allow navigation while ctrl+m is for inserting tab characters - https://www.w3.org/TR/wai-aria... [w3.org]
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I leaned something. Thanks.
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I see you're trying to turn off smart compose. Would you like some help with that?
Settings > General > Write Suggestions Off (Score:5, Informative)
You would think that page criticizing Google would make it easy to find in this lengthy text how to switch that feature off...
Re:Settings General Write Suggestions Off (Score:3)
You would think that page criticizing Google would make it easy to find in this lengthy text how to switch that feature off...
As a general rule, people are more interested in winning arguments than in solving problems.
Showing how easy it is to disable solves the problem, but weakens the argument.
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people are more interested in winning arguments than in solving problems
Or people just want to be listened to.
Re:Settings General Write Suggestions Off (Score:2)
What's even more interesting is that I don't have that option. I'm not sure why or how.
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Are you using a Google Apps for Education/Business account? The “smart” compose feature probably hasn’t been deployed to you.
I noticed my work email, which is on Google Apps for Edu, does not have this - but my personal Gmail (which I generally avoid using) does.
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We've had it show up on the GSuite stuff at work, but still (so far) with the option to go back to the old view.
On the other hand, when it showed up on my personal email, the first time, there was a little pop-up that asked if I wanted to turn it off. But I guess that's too complicated for some people.
Re:Settings General Write Suggestions Off (Score:2)
Or even easier, just don't turn it on.
A few weeks ago a message appeared asking if I wanted to turn it on. I declined. That's all.
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A few weeks ago a message appeared asking if I wanted to turn it on. I declined. That's all.
You seem to be a lucky person.
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It's Google Clippy! No one wanted MS Clippy either.
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If many complain, or some PR is involved, they might.
"PR"?
So, being co-enablers to the mass censorship & surveillance of roughly three billion people is not sufficiently-bad PR?
Yikes!
I think that says more about us than it does about Google.
Strat
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Five years or so ago, Google tested a new interface to GNews on a small group of users. I hear that it was disliked by that test group. I can't verify that, but I can verify this: after the testing, Google sent the new version out to everyone (in the US--for awhile, one could use the old version if you went to Google's Canadian news page). And there was a huge outcry on their comments page--thousands upon thousands of posts asking them to repent of their sin, and re-instate the old version. I saw only o
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Oh, come on. Have some full-sized aortic pump!
Pay for your email (Score:2)
Re:Pay for your email (Score:4, Informative)
I pay for Goggle Apps and these annoying features are, indeed, enabled by default.
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right, ofiice 365 at work is so much superior.
bahahaha, the paid shit is even worse
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If by "pay for your email" you mean "pay for a server to run it on". I'm not aware of paid mail service that's decent, Gmail went to the bottom of the barrel these days. So why won't you just do it yourself? exim works out of the box with no configuration needed beyond setting a valid hostname+reverse. Add dovecot if you prefer a GUI client (you obviously don't sound like a mutt person...), and there you go.
Worlds easier than that paid shit you promote, where for a simple task you need to ask around eve
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No spying.
You mean, like Google says about Gmail, despite evidence to the contrary?
barely noticed it (Score:5, Interesting)
I think this feature had been going for a couple of days before I noticed it. I guess I'm used to editors doing similar things. But, the implementation also seems to be remarkably non-obtrusive. Nothing seems to have slowed or changed other than I can occasionally tab through a suggestion if I happen to notice it in time. I'll be leaving it on and gradually start using it.
What I find most surprising is that any of the suggestions are actually exactly what I intended to type. A lot of them are.
Of course, we will likely see the required article about some shocking suggestion within days now. I'm surprised it isn't already out there. Someone will sit and spend a few hours working to trigger something so that they can feed someone's agenda with a new viral campaign.
I did note that when typing an email discussing the reason for purchasing a new pair of running shorts that it guessed that I had gained weight and completed a sentence about that appropriately. Some might find that offensive :-)
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Works great in my chat app (Score:3)
I've found the Android / Google keyboard autosuggestions quite useful in a chat app I use. I suppose I tend to frequently use the same phrases there.
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I suppose I tend to frequently use the same phrases there.
Me too:
No.
Have you rebooted it?
Really? The TV, or the box under it?
CAPSLOCK IS JUST TO THE RIGHT OF THE A key.
Your printer probably IS out of paper/ink/toner.
No.
The FBI/CIA is NOT watching you type. You are NOT the 1,000 viewer today. Microsoft will NOT call you. Ever.
No, I don't know what your passwords are. Try PASSWORD.
Unless YOU are now installing a NEW software package, you do NOT need to install anything else. NOTHING. No Thing. Click Cancel.
Do NOT disable the virus scanner.
Yes,
I *was* with you (Score:2)
"Have you rebooted it? â
You're THAT guy. I see.
Raymorris: Your router at 67.3.4.1 has a routing loop with the one at 67.18.9.4. Both are sending the traffic to each other, in a circle.
Support: Let's reboot your computer.
Raymorris: May I please speak to someone who is allowed to touch your equipment.
My ISP's regional network manager gave me his cell.phone number after a couple of those calls.
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I also don't get why people are afraid of it.
In the worst case I just keep typing and the suggestion goes away. Otherwise it can save me a few seconds or in the best case remind me to add a few polite words so I don't come off as aloof or rude.
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What I find most surprising is that any of the suggestions are actually exactly what I intended to type. A lot of them are.
You're not clearing cookies and cache when leaving pages, right? You're always signed in into Google, Facebook & the ilk?
And it comes as a surprise if Google knows what you think?
I'm shocked, I tell you.
Q: How to turn off Smart Compose (Score:1)
A: Go into settings and turn it off.
Was that really worth a whole article?
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Turning off not the point, the point was the very existence of this broken down crap by a company that hires and promotes the ideas of juvenile developers.
Google needs to start letting users vet the random bad ideas of these juveniles before polluting products that are used in the adult world
chrome autocorrect really sucks (somewhat related) (Score:1)
It can't detect trivial finger place,emt typos such as in this sentence where the comma in placement should be an m and the m an n or that ;; in the ,iddle of a word should be ll
I've found that... (Score:4, Funny)
not using GMail has solved all my problems with GMail.
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not using GMail has solved all my problems with GMail.
Sure. How many other problems did that generate?
other garbage features there (Score:2)
"nudges" for emails google *thinks* you should have responded to?
"smart reply" to have buttons at the bottom of a reply with stupid things a 14 year old would say?
seriously, with this plus browsing history on blank tab page the google developers should just off themselves, so google can hire adults.
Use a real MUA (Score:4, Insightful)
Those do not suddenly get strange ideas. I use mutt.
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yes, some of us do email from command line
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yes, some of us do email from command line
yes, I do. "mail".
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yes and mutt can do more, it's a supped up "mail"
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Alive and going strong. I use it for most of my email, private and professional. Had to add HTML-rendering via Lynx, but that is the only real change.
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pine FTW.
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Yeah, used to. Now use mutt because pine's license did something wonky and wasn't going to arsed to build my own package. Still don't check my private email enough to know more than a few keys and at this point have forgotten every pine key except whatever muscle memory brings back and I have to then figure out what the heck I just told mutt to do. Fuck email. I only use it at work now, or when required for account verifications on the stupider websites. Nobody is worth talking to who isn't on IRC anyw
Don't use an ad brands services (Score:2)
I love this feature (Score:3)
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Alphabetical Order (Score:2)
I have another complaint about Google's user interface.
After finding "Smart Compose" in "Settings," I decided to check "Smart Reply." I used my browsers search function to find it. Why does Google (and other companies) put topics in a random order, instead of ordering topics alphabetically. The order may be logical to Google, but I have no idea what they are thinking, and it is a pain to find anything.
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for item in foo_db: [instead of] for item in sorted(foo_db): [python snippet]
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Tavarish, you forgot to say "You have nothing to lose but your chains!"
I'd be happy if it stopped being so laggy (Score:2)
The predictive typing feature is IMO kind of amusing. I used the term "reach out" which I loathe, for the first time, because it suggested it.
In reality, the new upgrades have degraded my experience. It takes a LOT longer to load. Sometimes freezes while typing in my password. Sometimes accepts my password then kicks me back to the login screen (I get these issues on the latest Firefox or Chrome).
Ironically, the new Gmail works best on an older version of IE (11) which I guess doesn't support the feature bl
The Thunderbird email client ... (Score:2)
I find it useful ... (Score:2)
I find the predictive typing feature useful. You can just ignore it by not hitting Tab.
Regarding HTML only Gmail, I used it for a while, and it is fast. The one thing that made me go back to the Javascript user interface is that it did not fill in contacts properly. It was very tedious, and that was a deal breaker for me ... so I am back to the Javascript UI.
Now, how about Skype! (Score:2)
Skype has the same auto suggestions that are just stupid. Unfortunately, I don't think there's a way to turn them off.
Are people really so unable to type 3 word answers without a special suggestion?
This will do it (Score:1)
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Judge Brett Kavanaugh? More like Judge Dredd! https://youtu.be/miVoe7U6Lx4?t... [youtu.be]