This pretty much sums up my experience. I really really really want to use and love DDG but the results just aren't nearly as good as google, especially for specific phrase searching. I LOVE the not storing searches, simplicity etc. but I can't love the search yet.
I know running a mail server is probably a pain in the ass, but if the owner of DDG made it so people could have @duckduckgo.com or @cuiler.com or whatever he's using now I think that would help spread the engine immensely (that and making it better).
as he said, solidifying the brand. specifically: i get the feeling a lot of developers here want to be all knowing of the "cool new thing." many of them think thats DDG, and a DDG email address would be a badge they show off. I know for sure if I switched from my gmail address a TON of people would ask me why and what the hell DDG was.
Mail and calendaring and maps and web hosting and machine translation are all cool services, but they don't have a whole lot to do with being a good search engine.
I know running a mail server is probably a pain in the ass, but if the owner of DDG made it so people could have @duckduckgo.com or @cuiler.com or whatever he's using now I think that would help spread the engine immensely (that and making it better).