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Do You Google?

Important Google Tidbits

  • Google searches are not case sensitive; searching for ukulele is the same as searching for UKuLEle.

  • Search operators are case sensitive; searching for ukulele OR banjo recognizes OR as an operator, while ukulele or banjo does not.

  • Google’s default behavior is to search for pages that contain all of your search terms.

  • The order you specify search terms is relevant; earlier terms are deemed more important.

  • Google excludes common words (known as stop words) such as I and the.

  • Some operators can be combined, while others must be used alone.

Basic Google Operators

  • + forces words to be included in the search results. This is useful with stop words that otherwise would be discarded. For example, to search for hammered dulcimers rather than mountain dulcimers:

    +hammered dulcimer

  • – prevents a search term from being included in the search results. For example, to search for Stillwater references that do not mention Oklahoma:

    stillwater –oklahoma

  • OR or | results in documents that contain one or both of the search terms. For example, to search for pages that contain Dell, IBM, or both:

    dell OR IBM

  • “ ” forces Google to search for the exact phrase contained in the quotes, including stop words. For example, to search for pages about the Three Stooges:

    "three stooges" 

  • ~ asks Google to search for synonyms of the given word. For example, to search for cooking tips (or cooking help or cooking guides or …):
    cooking ~tips

  • • * can be used to represent any word. For example, to find references such as apples with cinnamon, apples with bruises, etc.:

    "apples with *"

  • . . (i.e., two periods with no space between them) is used to search for a range of numbers. For example, to find 2 dulcimers up to 10 dulcimers:

    "2..10 dulcimers"

    To find phrases such as I play 1 dulcimer and they play 5 dulcimers:

    "play 1..5 dulcimer OR dulcimers"

Other Google Tips & Tricks

  • Search-by-site – Searches for matches on a specific website. For example, to find video courses on the OSU site:

    "video course" site:okstate.edu

  • Search-by-document-type – similar to search-by-site:

    "squirrel heads and gravy" filetype:mp3

  • Area code lookup –Enter a 3-digit number and area code to find the location of the corresponding area code. For example, the following tells you about the area code that includes Stillwater:

    area code 405

  • In a like fashion, enter a 5-digit number to find information about a zip code:

    74075

  • Search-by-stock-symbol – Enter a valid ticker symbol to see current information. For example, to see current data on Apple Computer:

    appl

  • Word definitions – Discover the definition of a word or phrase. For example, to learn the definition of gigabyte:

    define:gigabyte

  • Calculator – Enter an arithmetic expression and google will calculate its value. Operators are +, –, * (multiplication), / (division), % (remainder), and ^(exponentiation). For example, the following returns 20:

    5 % 3 * (4 + 6)

    and the following returns 48.92625, the cost of a $45 item with Stillwater & OK sales taxes applied: 45 * 1.08725

  • Google also performs many different unit conversions. For example: 

    • 1 cup + 2.5 tablespoons in ounces

      9.25 US fluid ounces

    • 100 km in miles

      62.1371192 miles

    • 98.6 fahrenheit in celsius

      37 degrees Celsius

    • 100 british pounds in dollars

      161.1400 US Dollars

  • To translate from one language to another, visit: http://translate.google.com

  • To learn more about the many possibilities of Google search, visit: http://www.google.com/help/features.html

Google Maps

  • Google Maps is at: http://maps.google.com

  • Its basic usage is for finding locations.

  • Addresses can be entered in many forms:

    • 1107 S Duck, Stillwater, OK

    • Public Library, Stillwater, OK

    • Library in Stillwater, OK

  • Google Maps uses satellite photos, and it provides names of streets, roads, and some businesses and attractions.

    • Note: These satellite images are not real-time; they may be weeks or months old.

  • By dragging Pegman onto the map you can get a streetview of many locations.

    • As you drag Pegman onto the map, but before you release him with the mouse, You will be shown (in blue) the locations that have streetview.

    • This is great when you are driving to a location for the first time and want to see the area so you’ll recognize it while driving.

  • Google Maps also provides turn-by-turn directions from one place to another.

    • Go to Google Maps and then click on the Get Directions button.

    • Enter starting and ending locations.

    • You will be given detailed directions, distances, and time estimates.

Google Earth

  • Google Earth is a stand-alone (i.e., non-browser-based) product similar to Google Maps.

    • These two products share many of the same features.

    • However, Google Earth has more capabilities, since it is not dependent on a browser.

    • It can show 3D views of select structures, for which people have constructed 3D models.

  • You now can access many Google Earth features by clicking on the “Earth” link in Google Maps.

Google Docs

  • Google Docs is a browser-based suite of productivity apps.

    • Like Microsoft Office, it contains word processor, spreadsheet, and presentation apps.

    • These share many of the features found in Microsoft Office.

    • It’s free.

    • Your documents are stored on your Google account so that you can access them from any computer with a browser.

  • Google Docs also contains a forms app that lets you create and send surveys, quizzes, etc. The results are collected automatically into a spreadsheet.

  • Google Docs also contains a drawing app that lets you create drawings, designs, charts, etc.

  • You can upload existing documents from your computer, and they will be converted to Google Docs format.

  • You can download documents to your computer and save them in different formats, such as MS Office, PDF, and PNG.

  • One of the strongest features of Google Docs is its collaboration ability.

  • For example, if you are working in MS Word with 2 other people, it may go like this

    • You email the draft document to your friend.

    • Each makes their changes and emails the modified document back to you.

    • You compare the changes from each person and combines them into a single document.

    • Repeat.

  • With Google Docs, collaboration is easier:

    • Create or upload the original document.

    • Select the document and click Share.

    • Enter the email addresses of your friends, and then click Invite Collaborators.

    • A secure link is emailed to the invitees; they click on the link to view and edit the document.

    • Only those with whom you’ve shared the document can view/edit it.

    • Changes are displayed immediately to others who are viewing or editing the document.

    • As collaboration is taking place, participants can text-chat (live) in the same browser window. (You instead could use a product such as Skype to set up a voice chat conference call.)

    • Previous versions of the document also are saved and available to the collaborators.

    • A document (word processing, spreadsheet, presentation, or drawing) can be shared with up to 200 people.

    • Up to 50 people can edit a word processing document, spreadsheet, or drawing at once.

    • Up to 10 people can edit a presentation at once.

  • You can access Google Docs at http://docs.google.com

Google Sketchup

  • Google Sketchup is an app for designing 3D models and scenes.

    • It is a great deal of fun, and simple enough that your young grandchildren can use it.

    • I (and many others) use it to design wood-working projects, such as furniture.

  • It can be found at http://sketchup.google.com




  • For example, it can be used for:

    • Kitchen design.

    • Video game design.

    • Landscape design.

    • Furniture design.

  • There are many good tutorials on the Web for using Sketchup:

Google Warehouse

  • If you’d rather let someone else do the hard work, or if you need “props” to help liven up your Sketchup scenes, consider Google Warehouse.

    • http://sketchup.google.com/3dwarehouse

    • The site contains literally hundreds of thousands of pre-designed models.

    • You can search to find the model you want.

    • You can import the models directly into your Sketchup document.

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