Google Skills

[neamerjell]

I'm sure that this post will be useful to somebody, since I am seeing people advise newbies and veterans alike to Google something. However, sometimes merely Googling something does not produce any relevant results. This is where hardcore Google-Fu comes in.

One of my favorite features is the quotes "". Using quotation marks around a phrase tells Google to search for that exact phrase in a website.

Example:

It's been there since July

does not return the Weird Al song "Living in the Fridge" (Parody of "Living on the Edge" by Aerosmith). But,

"It's been there since July"

returns the lyrics of the song in the fourth result.

To find an example of this was really hard, Google has gotten a lot "smarter" lately and nearly removes the need for quotation marks in searches.

However, when combined with the minus sign -, it is indispensable! For example, what if you want to find a Chevy Silverado, but not the crew cab models?

Chevy Silverado -"crew cab"

will give you those results.

Google is also an excellent dictionary. Use the "define" keyword to look up any word or phrase:

define: four link suspension

define: differential

Google is also a calculator. Gear ratios anybody? Just type in the calculation you want to do and Google will do it:

For gear ratio of a 12T pinion and a 90T spur, type in

90/12

Result:

90 / 12 = 7.5

It can even handle complex calculations, like what you might do in statistics, physics, or algebra:

(1+sqrt(5))/2

Result:

(1 + sqrt(5)) / 2 = 1.61803399

It even does unit conversion:

1.9 inches in mm

Result:

1.9 inches = 48.26 millimeters

A full list of Google's advanced search features can be found here:

http://www.google.com/help/features.html

I'm sure somebody will find this post useful. Happy Googling!

 

[version_three]

Don't forget, google's calculator can also tell you the "answer to life, the universe, and everything"




LOL yeah, i know I'm a nerd

 

[JeremyH]

You can also used the "Advanced" feature of Google Search and limit your search to certain pages. So, if you dont like having to wait to use the search function on this site (if it applies to you), then you can use the advanced google search and limit the search to this forum....or even certain sections.

 

[-TC5racer-]

You can also used the "Advanced" feature of Google Search and limit your search to certain pages. So, if you dont like having to wait to use the search function on this site (if it applies to you), then you can use the advanced google search and limit the search to this forum....or even certain sections.

I do that to search craigslist you get all of the states on a couple of pages. Works great for finding that hard to find item or rare R/C items

 

[Nubster]

Awesome tips...most of which I did not know. I'll have to give some of them a try...especially adding the quotes around search terms.