> I wish we could just add our own default search with a search string template like when the Internet was still alive.

Can't we? The %s thing works in Vivaldi. Worked in Chrome last time I checked.

Firefox still lets you do this.

You can add any URL as a custom search engine by providing a string template for the query.

It doesn't have to be a formal "search provider". Any URL that accepts a query string will work.

IMO the problem with Firefox is that custom search engines in Firefox can't use POST requests, even though it's supported. You may want to check Mycroft Project [1] out for that.

[1]: https://mycroftproject.com/

The only major browser that I can think of that doesn't support custom search URLs, including making one the default, is Safari.