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| How To Make The Most Out Of Google Search |
Do you know how to Google? You probably don't. There are certain tweaks Google keeps on adding
to provide a better search functionality to its users. Even the most
seasoned Googler might not know every tip and trick available with just a
few extra keystrokes in the search bar. Here are some handy Google
search tricks that will make your life a hell lot easier! (You can thank
us later :P)
1. Related Words
You're looking for something, but you can't really find it. What do you
do? You search for the nearest synonym. So instead of searching for each
synonym individually, you can use the tilde (~) character before a
search term to indicate that you're looking for approximate matches.
2. Search by file type
This trick has been a lifesaver on many occasions for me, and is one of
my favorites. It is especially helpful if you're looking for documents,
or presentations to gather some research data or see how others have
done it. But instead of searching the whole web, you can specify a file
type (.ppt or .doc) to see relevant results only.
Just add "filetype:PPT" at the end of a search query to look for a specific file type.
3. Search within a range
This trick is especially useful if you want to research products that
fall within a certain price range, for e.g. smartphones. Type in your
search term, and then separate the low and high price range with two
periods (..). You can also use this trick to work with dates, i.e. look
for an article published within a specified period.
4. Fill in the blanks
Don't you just hate it when you know the most part of a phrase, but
can't remember one key word? The lyrics of a song maybe, or something
your chemistry teacher told you about, but you can't remember what
reacts with what to make what. Well, Google does a very good job at
helping you out there. Enter your search tern, and replace all unknown
words with an asterisk. It is considered as a blank, and Google will try
to find the answer for you.
5. Timer
For those of you who like to keep tabs on how much time they're spending
on a certain activity online, this Google timer can be invaluable. You
can now set a countdown timer without having to install an app. Simply
type in "set timer for" in the search bar, and watch as a timer appears.
Set the time, and hit "Start." You'll hear an alarm go off when the
time ends.
6. Title
You want to search for a specific title, instead of keywords contained
within an article? Simply type "intitle:" then the term you want. This
will ensure the specified term is in the title of all the webpages in
your results.
7. Site Search
You read an interesting article about link building on QuickSprouts, but
you don't have the link and you can't remember the article's name or
its author. Or maybe you'd like to search more such articles by the same
author. Simply type "site:" followed by the URL of the website you'd
like to search. Then add your search terms.
8. Exact order
You want to find out the origin of a quote, but Google keeps giving
results that are nowhere close. Put your search phrase inside quotation
marks, and Google will search the words in the exact order you enter
them.
9. Convert currency
You've received a payment from abroad in US dollars, and want to know
how much you have in your local currency? Type in the name of the
currency you currently own, add "to" and then type in the name of the
currency you need to get.
10. Exclude results
You want bread recipes that don't list "yeast" as an ingredient. Or
maybe you want to pull video results that are not from YouTube. Either
way, you'll have to use an exclude query. After you enter your desired
search terms, add a minus sign (-) followed by the words you want
excluded.
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