Avoid doing a really, really stupid thing and discouraging people from using it as such. Not that you'll be able to anyway. So really, don't be stupid. We Kiwi's call it "pissing into the wind" - something every Kiwi lad learns at a young age to be futile. Today, Google starts "pissing into the wind", asking all of us to watch how we use their name.
So, to spite you I'm going back to Yahooing everything. Actually, Yahoo could probably make hay while the sun shined on this one... Ben says it pretty well over at his blog... Here are Google's pearls of wisdom...
"A trademark is a word, name, symbol or device that identifies a particular company's products or services. Google is a trademark identifying Google Inc. and our search technology and services. While we're pleased that so many people think of us when they think of searching the web, let's face it, we do have a brand to protect, so we'd like to make clear that you should please only use "Google" when you're actually referring to Google Inc. and our services.
Here are some hopefully helpful examples.
Usage: 'Google' as noun referring to, well, us.
Example: 'I just love Google, they're soooo cute and cuddly and adorable and awesome!'
Our lawyers say: Good. Very, very good. There's no question here that you're referring to Google Inc. as a company. Use it widely, and hey, tell a friend.Usage: 'Google' as verb referring to searching for information on, um, Google.
Example: 'I googled him on the well-known website Google.com and he seems pretty interesting.'
Our lawyers say: Well, we're happy at least that it's clear you mean searching on Google.com. As our friends at Merriam-Webster note, to 'Google' means 'to use the Google search engine to find information about (as a person) on the World Wide Web.'Usage: 'Google' as verb referring to searching for information via any conduit other than Google.
Example: 'I googled him on Yahoo and he seems pretty interesting.'
Our lawyers say: Bad. Very, very bad. You can only 'Google' on the Google search engine. If you absolutely must use one of our competitors, please feel free to 'search' on Yahoo or any other search engine."