Google Search like an Expert : 10 Simple Tricks

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Google has spent over a decade fine tuning crafty tricks to help you search more efficiently. The question is: are you using Google to the best of your—and its—search abilities?

Instead of randomly typing a word or phrase, become a Power searcher and reduce the time to find relevant information. Did you know that even everyday information, like what time it is, becomes a power tool in Google Search? Follow these ten search tips to sail through the enormous waves of data over the internet and Search like a Pro :

1. Search by Site

Have you ever visited a Web site that had a built-in search function? Of course you have. Websites with 1000s of pages makes it very difficult to reach the specific information that you may be looking for. To simplify this, all you need to do is add the “site:_____” command to your Google search.

For Example:  “Gaurav Oberoi” site:digitalacademyindia.com

Google will find every mention of that name at the domain name you picked.

2. Specific Products Search

Google Product Search is probably the fastest way to find a specific item you want to buy. You can also use it to search specific sites, such as Amazon (using the previous “site:” command).

For Example: “Blue socks” or “Blue socks” site:amazon.com

3. Exclude Keywords in the Search

If you want Google to exclude a word while searching the web page, use – (minus) before the search as shown below.

For Example : Ebooks -free

This example searches for the pages which has the word ebooks, and without the word free.

4. Include Synonym Keywords in Search

Instead of searching for only the given word, using ~ before the keyword you can instruct Google to search for web pages with the exact given word or the words which has same meaning.

For example: Piano ~tutorial

In the following example, giving ~tutorial also searches for keywords: guide, manual, reference etc.

5. Search an exact phrase, not each of the words separately

Use quotes to search for an exact word or set of words in a specific order, without normal improvements such as spelling corrections and synonyms. This option is handy when searching for song lyrics or a line from literature.

For Example: “Gangnam Style”

6. Calculator

This is one of the handiest uses of Google. Type in a quick calculation in the search box and get an answer. Normally for doing the metric conversions we will be using some online conversion websites or conversion softwares. Use the +, -, *, / symbols and parentheses on Google to do a simple equation.

7. Use Wildcard when not sure

Use an asterisk (*) within a query is like throwing a wildcard. Google treats the * as a placeholder for a word or more than one word.

For example, [“Google * my life“ ] tells Google to find pages containing a phrase that starts with “Google” followed by one or more words, followed by “my life.” Phrases that fit the bill include: “Google changed my life,” “Google runs my life,” and “Google is my life.”

For Example: [a * saved is a * earned] 

8. Search for a Range

This little-known feature searches for a range of numbers. Separate numbers by two periods (with no spaces) to see results that contain numbers in a given range of things like dates, prices, and measurements.     

For example: [ camera $50..$100]

Use only one number with the two periods to indicate an upper maximum or a lower minimum.
Eg. [world cup winners ..2000 ]  

9. Search Based on File Type

Google Search is full of little helpful features. How many times would you have asked for materials (PDF, PPT, DOC) for a particular topic from a friend? Whether it is for knowledge, preparing a presentation, white-paper or for case studies, Google enables you to search specific filetypes like ppt, doc, pdf etc.

For example: internet marketing filetype:ppt

10. Google Advanced Search Page

If you are not able to remember some of the advanced search syntax mentioned in this article, then use the Google Advanced search page as shown below.

 

My first Entrepreneurship event as an Entrepreneur!

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Recently, I attended the most famous Entrepreneurship event in India, TiEcon Delhi 2012. I met global entrepreneurs who have impacted not only the times gone past, but the times we are living and the times to come; who are embracing the change and creating opportunities which are changing the world for good. The event lasted two days. Business Leaders and Technocrats from all over the world discussed, debated, agreed, argued, networked – through all forms of media, and disappeared with a promise to meet again next year. There were stories of grit, determination, change, hard work and much more all across. Here are my key learning’s:

A.    Accept and Embrace Change – Change is what Entrepreneurs live by. Action and reaction, ebb and flow, trial and error, change – this is the rhythm of living. Today’s young tech entrepreneurs are changing the way the world functions. Our whole community of under-35s are attempting to alleviate global poverty, climate change, and even armed conflict through commercial enterprise. Change reflects opportunities, something undiscovered, and something untried.

           

B.     Birds-eye Vision – We all get busy and focused on the day-to-day. There are fires to put out, payroll to meet, and customers to satisfy. Many times we are so focused, we get tunnel vision. Tunnel vision is when you are so focused on the here and now that a new competitor comes out of left field and eats your lunch. Tunnel vision is when you wake up one day and suddenly realize something big has changed in the world (like the Internet), and your business is not ready for it. The bottom line is, get a birds-eye vision and strategize from a distance.

C.     We will need new skills that we cannot define – No one knows what the next five years will look like. We need to educate the next generation for skills that we cannot define, to solve problems we are not yet aware of. Education needs to be socially constructed and contextually reinvented instead of being dictated. We need to break the mould of right and wrong, to allow space for creativity and innovation. Technology needs to be widely available instead of being confiscated at the classroom door.

D.    Collaboration is the Key – All of us will work together to form new relationships, establish new audiences, and in most cases, substantially improve the world that we live in. Cross countries, cross sectors, cross organizations. Collaboration is especially important for start ups. Share skills, gain support and reduce isolation; forget building or buying – when partnering is the way to go. That extra set of eyes is the key to establish a birds-eye vision. Collaborate to Grow the Pie, Not Just Split It.  

E.     Strategize to Specialize – We will all specialize, grow core competency in our back gardens, mix it with a couple of tablespoon of business skills and will provide client-focused solutions. The arrogance of success is to think that what you did yesterday will be sufficient for tomorrow. Today, companies are increasingly turning to providers of outsourced, specialized business services to help them become more efficient and focus on their core offering.

Be a Lifelong Learner

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The World is changing, and it’s changing fast! Despite all the expertise, no one has a clue what the next 5 years look like. Education is meant to take us into this future. People of all demographics are gathering their own seeds of education and cultivating lush sets of hybrid tools to deal with the rapid knowledge replenishment that’s essential in an economy where massive career specialization and constant innovation reign.

Today, Anyone can put together a personalized educational experience via digital textbooks, synchronised learning etc. Classrooms can be anywhere at anytime. Here’s how you can become a lifelong learner:

    1. Unlock Your Creativity

“If you’re not prepared to be wrong, You will never come up with anything original.”

Creativity is as important as literacy. Our education system, with its definition of right and wrong, forces people out of their creative capacities. But remember, some of the greatest scientific, mathematical, artistic, and other advances came from questioning conventional wisdom and being open to unusual results and new, different ways of doing things.

     2. Leave your perfectionism behind

Experiment, make mistakes, and ask silly questions. If you wait until you know it all, you’ll be waiting a long time. The desire to excel is usually a good thing, but when it spills over into perfectionism it can also cause a lot of trouble, burn you out, and waste a lot of time. The key is finding the balance.

     3.  Share and Network

If you’re great at something, help others who wish to learn. Alternatively, Find people that are either learning the same things you are, or already know them. Just being around those people and conversing with them will put you much farther ahead compared to learning in isolation.

     4.  Have fun

Fun is a very important part of learning. It is a big part of your motivation to continue. Life isn’t a dress rehearsal, so make the most of it.  If you are having to “think” how to have fun, then you know you have a problem. “Feel” your way through fun; go “right” brain! When do people perform best at any task, from sport to nuclear physics? When they’re relaxed, intent on what they’re doing and most importantly, when they’re having fun. So loosen up and enjoy your life. Keep Learning!