FEBRUARY 2008 • VOL 2 • ISSUE 2
Tips for Effective “Googling”
You may already be a whiz at searching the Internet. But just in case you’re not and would like a few tips, here you go!
It’s really easy to search on Google (or any search engine, for that matter). Just type in one or more search terms (a word or phrase that best describes what you want to find) in the Search box and hit the “enter” key or click the “search” button.
Be Specific and Use Multiple Search Terms
I was recently looking for a new watchband for my watch, so I googled replacement watchband leather (three search terms) to narrow my search to exactly what I was looking for. The order in which you list the terms affects the results. I assume it ranks the first word as the most important.
Capitalization
Google searches are NOT case-sensitive. So it doesn’t matter if you capitalize proper names or not.
Automatic “and” queries
Google automatically searches for pages that include all of the terms in your query. There is no need to connect the words together with “and.” In the case of my watchband search, I included leather so that I would only get results for leather watchbands.
Exclusion of Common Words
Google ignores common words and characters such as "where" and "how", as well as certain single digits and single letters, because they can slow down your search without improving the results. If a common word is essential to getting the results you want, you can include it by putting a "+" sign in front of it. (Be sure to include a space before the "+" sign.)
Phrase Search
Or you can do a phrase search, which means putting quotation marks around two or more words. Common words in a phrase search (e.g., "where are you") are included in the search. If I had enclosed my search phrase “replacement watchband leather” in quotes, the search results would have shown only pages on which that exact phrase appears, with the words exactly in that order. This would have been too specific for my search for watchbands, but in some cases it would be appropriate.
Negative Terms
If your search term has more than one meaning (bass, for example, could refer to fishing or music) you can focus your search by putting a minus sign ("-") in front of words related to the meaning you want to avoid.
Feeling Lucky?
I never knew what the “I’m Feeling Lucky” button did until I researched this subject for this article. I guess I never felt lucky enough to click it. ;-) After you've entered your search terms, you can click the "I'm Feeling Lucky" button, and you will be taken directly to the most relevant website that Google found for your query and you'll bypass all the other search results. Well, good luck and happy searching!
For more information, go to: http://www.google.com/help/basics.html