Omni bar solves an obvious problem: the vast majority of the time showing a DNS error is way less useful than guessing where the user meant to go. That’s the alternative.

If I set my default search engine to Mojeek and type in “spotify” will they not suggest spotify.com? If I type in “sp<tab><enter>” is that taking away my agency from potentially going to spootify.com instead?

I am game for a conversation on the power of defaults and monopolies but that’s very different from saying suggestions are bad because people should just remember everything.

This article is 15 years too late. It's old hat and search engines are dying.

And combining the two was a good idea: the browser can detect when you're entering a URL.

> We call this phenomenon searchception: the illusion created by the merging of browsers (and operating systems) with search engines, where every attempt to go somewhere online loops back into a search event. Events that can tracked, filtered, and monetised.