Using Google more effectively

[francis]

Interesting/helpful article on The Grauniad's site on using Google (http://www.guardian.co.uk/online/story/0,3605,1117818,00.html). Found when looking up information that David had mentioned about the BPI suing CD Wow! in the Magazines thread (http://www.websitearchitecture.co.uk/forum/index.php?v=stopic&c=106). Turns out they're suing Play.com and having a good hard look at Amazon.com as well.

[Tom]

Since Google has become the eyes and ears of the web, designers need to understand it as well as possible. There is a really good book on searching written with the blessing of Google. You need to fill in a form to request it from the Maritime Campus, but Terry could order a copy for Avery Hill if people find it useful.

Calishain, Tara. - Google hacks / Tara Calishain and Rael Dornfest. - Sebastopol, Calif.; Farnham : O'Reilly, 2003. - 0596004478

Location: Maritime Greenwich
Copies at this location: 2
Shelfmark: 025.04/CAL

[francis]

Is that any good? I have a skim through O'Reilly's Windows XP Hacks yesterday lunchtime, and it seemed as though a fair bit of it was pointless (why am I ever going to need to change the text on a tooltip on a desktop icon?). I did like their advice on how to make Outlook/Outlook Express more secure, though. It seemed to consist of "use another mail client", and was explaining how to configure Eudora (http://www.eudora.com/)! Not quite sure that counts as a Windows XP hack.

[francis]

Found this on Google today in an effort to define the term "website". In Google's search box type:

define:website

bingo!

I tried "meaning of life" but it didn't bring back any results. What use is that?!

[Tom]

Francis, since you already use the link: and define: operators, I guess you will find other useful 'hacks' in Calishain's book.

The range of definitions turned up by define:website is impressive but, as you might guess, none are satisfactory. They are too like defining a car as 'a collection of metal and plastic parts joined together with ticky tacky'. One wants to know more about 'what its for'.

[Terry]

It is 42.

Terry

[francis]

Originally posted by: Terry
It is 42.

Ha ha! I actually tried that, and just got a boring maths definition.

[francis]

More advanced Google searches (http://www.googleguide.com/advanced_operators.html) including:

source: for use with Google news
stocks: for getting company stock information
store: for use with Froogle

Here's a list of all Google's 'stop words' (http://www.ou.edu/webhelp/general/tutorials/google/)