For those of you who want to go beyond simple searches in Google, time to (gasp!) buy a book: “Google: The Missing Manual” by Sarah Milstein and Rael Dornfest. It covers search techniques, must-have tools, and the little-known corners of Google. The link here is to the official site at its publisher, O’Reilly/Pogue Press. You’ll find a free chapter in PDF format, with lots of useful tips.
I was fortunate enough to be a presenter this past weekend at the National Writers Workshop in Ft. Lauderdale, hosted by the South Florida Sun-Sentinel (these annual workshops are presented around the country with local newspapers by Poynter; see full list here. There’s one more this year, in Cambridge, Mass., Dec. 5-7, presented with the Nieman Foundation.) There’s nothing like being with 500 writers, and would-be writers, to get you excited about our business. I was presenting an abridged version of my “Smarter Surfing: Better Use of Your Web Time” workshops and I wanted to share some thoughts on Google that came out of it.
I first started talking about Google as the best search engine for journalists (and others) five years ago. In my workshops, I always ask: “How many people use Google to start all their searches?” At first, almost no hands went up; then a couple, then more and more. I watched the rough percentages shoot up from five to 10 to 60 to 90 to, now, 95-99 percent of the audience.
Yes, that means there are still some folks who don’t use Google first. If they were being noble dissenters, unhappy with Google, that would be one thing. But almost always, they are just folks stuck in their web migratory patterns, happy to use what they have always used.
At my Florida session, a woman who was surprised to see herself in a small minority, asked why Google was better than Yahoo. Members of the audience piped up with “It’s faster,” “more accurate,” and so on. After the presentation, she came up and said she was finally going to switch to Google.
I always say Google isn’t perfect (what is?), but it’s the best place to start your searches. At least for now, until something better comes along. I also point out that I make no money from Google. Though if I had a nickel for everyone I had converted over the years, I could have retired by now.
So, it was time, I figured, to recommend this book. It’s a new one in the “The Missing Manual” series from O’Reilly/Pogue Press (slogan: “the books that should have been in the box”). “Google: The Missing Manual” by Sarah Milstein and Rael Dornfest (311 pages, $19.95), is a must-have for Google fans. I thought I knew everything there was to know about Google, but then spent hours learning more from this book. It’s not written for geeks, which makes it really useful for the rest of us. Milstein — who has contributed tips for WebTips in the past — is a freelance writer and has a way of explaining things in a an easy to understand manner. By the way, the Pogue in Pogue Press, is David Pogue, the prolific New York Times Circuits columnist and author of more than 25 books in the “Missing Manual” series (when does he sleep?)
So what are some of the tips in the book? They are giving away Chapter 3 as a PDF here: Googling Further: Images, News and the Directory. You can read an excerpt that ran on Mediabistro.com.
And here are some tips that Milstein gives away as part of the book promotion:
Five Google Tricks Hardly Anyone Knows
Everyone knows that Google lets you search the Web in a hurry. But Google offers search features and tricks most people aren’t aware of.
- Google lets you search for a range of numbers — a surprisingly handy feature if you’re looking for prices, dates, or product features. Here’s how it works: If you type two periods between the numbers at either end of a range (1970..1990), Google shows you results with every number in between. For example, if you want to find references to boxers in the first half of the 20th century, try 1900..1950 boxers. Google gives you pages mentioning boxers during that entire span of years. This trick is great for prices ($50..75 Tiffany) and other types of numbers, too, like 45..55 MPG Honda, or 400..600 thread count.
- Google is a national Yellow Pages. If you type in your search terms along with a name and state or zip code, Google offers you “Local Results” — listings of relevant businesses in the area you’ve asked for. For example, if you want to send flowers to your cousin in Boise, Idaho, type florist Boise, ID to get a handy list of businesses — along with their addresses and phone numbers — that’ll deliver a bouquet in Boise.
- Google is a calculator. If you type in 2*2=, the blank search box is smart enough to know that you want to perform some math rather than run a search. (If you actually want to search for instances of the equation itself, then put it in quotes, like this: “2*2=.”). The Google calculator can do very complex calculations, and it can also perform unit conversions, like “How many acres in 13 hectares?” or “5 kilometers in miles.” You never have to wonder again how many teaspoons are in a cup.
- When you have a question, type in the answer you want to find, rather than the question. For example, if you want to find out who the original drummer for the Beatles was, try “original drummer for the Beatles.” If you type your query in the form of a question — who was the original drummer for the Beatles? — Google matches your search terms and shows you pages with that question, but not necessarily with the answer.
- If you’re a Webmaster and you’ve accidentally deleted a page from your site, Google may be able to help you retrieve the code. Run a search that’ll find the page you lost, and then in your results listing, click the “Cached” link to see a copy of the page when Google last recorded it. (Google keeps a snapshot of all the pages it tracks.) Right click the cached page itself (on a Mac, Ctrl-click) to get a menu with an option to View Page Source or View Source. Voila! Google delivers your original code and saves your bacon.
Your turn: send your ideas on Google — or anything else Web-related — to poynter@sree.net.
Sree’s Links:
See winners of 2004 SAJA Journalism Awards — prizes will be presented at SAJA’s 10th Anniversary Convention and Job Fair June 17-20, at Columbia University in NYC. See our stellar lineup of speakers, workshops, panels. You don’t have to be South Asian to attend!
