Google Chrome: Removing Predictive URLs (The Real Solution)

I see this question posted to a lot of Google Groups. Since I have not figured out how to answer a question on a group page (maybe I have to be a Google employee, who knows? No really, who knows?), I thought I would post the answer here.

Problem

When typing in the URL bar in Google Chrome, Chrome offers all sorts of suggestions. You want to prevent this from happening or at least remove some of the suggestions.

Solution

  1. In Chrome, press Ctrl+H.to display your browsing history. Delete the items you want or delete all of them.
  2. On the Chrome Settings page, click Show advanced settings (at the bottom of the page).
  3. Uncheck Use a prediction service to help complete searches and URLs typed in the address bar if it is checked.
  4. Delete any bookmarks that you do not want to appear. (This is the part that many answers miss.)
  5. Close Chrome and restart it.
  6. Press Ctrl+Shift+N each time you start Chrome so that Chrome will not track your Internet history.
  7. If you use other computers when signed into Chrome with the same account, you may have to repeat these steps on your other computers if your settings a synced.
Please let me know if this works or not for you. I appreciate the input.

Comments

  1. Thanks for your trying, but the No.4 is the part of this solution which I wouldn't like to use. This is definitely where Chrome has a lack. In Firefox we can have any bookmarks we like, and still zero prediction we can get if we use Browser.urlbar.maxRichResults and set it to 0 ( http://kb.mozillazine.org/Browser.urlbar.maxRichResults ).

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    Replies
    1. Yes, #4 is a problem. I don't like it, but it is a workaround for people who have this problem with Chrome and want to keep using Chrome. But many people like the predictive URLs in Chrome, so I doubt Google will change this "feature."

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    2. Yes, it is unfortunate that Google clearly does not care about it's customer experience, when it in any way conflicts with their interests. The snide, obvious blow-off comment from the Google employee on that groups page makes that perfectly clear. Chromium is open source, is it not? I wonder if it's time for a split.

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