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Google searches from Safari give answers in Swedish

Avatar John Elton-Wall
After recent use of Macbook Pro (Mac OS 10.6.8) by Swedish national Google searches (via Safari) are giving results in Swedish as well as in English and planting various other unwanted Swedish Google related items along the top of the window.

Any ideas anyone? I'd like all of our screen area devoted to English language results!

John Elton-Wall

Re: Google searches from Safari give answers in Swedish

Avatar Euan Williams
Hi John,
here are some Google instructions:
http://www.ehow.com/how_2002992_language-preferences-google.html

If your Swedish national was very diligent in the pursuit of a home experience, he/she might also have changed the System language order prefs. Go to System Preferences > Language & Text (top row) > Language.

Next time a "foreign national" visits, set up a new account for her/him so he/she can set up their own preferences without affecting yours. Go to System Preferences > Users and Groups > Password and click on the + sign having used your admin password to unlock it.

Alternatively, get them to use the "Guest User" account which remembers nothing.

Redundant accounts can be closed using the minus sign and following the choices.

Re: Google searches from Safari give answers in Swedish

Avatar John Elton-Wall
Euan, sorry for the delay in responding to thank you for your trouble and assistance. I did write most of a reply last night, but the site timed out on me; and then something else took me away from the machine. Can I remember what I wrote?!

Firstly it wasn't a matter of the system language preferences. It turned out to be a totally Google matter, complicated also I suspect by changes to the Google search results page as presented here in France. Also your thoughtful link was not helpful as I think the guidance referred to earlier incarnations of the French Google. The instructions given simply could not be followed and in any case attempts to use Google.com always produced a Google.fr page.

I discovered that the Swedish friend had accessed his Google account in order to look at his Google mail. Seemingly in France at least this is a signal for Google to produce search results in Swedish. The solution was for me to log on to my own Google account (I happened to have one as I had toyed with the idea of using Google's blogspot). Incidentally Google also knows where I am in France and indicates it on search results pages. Frankly I cannot remember if this applies in the UK or whether it is a new feature – perhaps just in France. Anyway I don't like it any more than I like being a client of the Orange ISP. But that is another story!

I will certainly investigate your suggestions as to User/Guest accounts.
Failing that I could always be really uncharitable and send my Swedish friend upstairs to use MS Vista on the PC.

Again many thanks for your help,

John Elton-Wall
 
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