Google Guide

Google Guide is an online interactive tutorial and reference for experienced users, novices, and everyone in between. I developed Google Guide because I wanted more information about Google’s capabilities, features, and services than I found on Google’s website.

–Nancy Blackman, Google Guide

Google Guide is one of those good ideas that had to happen: a guide to using Google. Only this is much more than the usual boolean hints. It has three separate levels, for one thing, expert, novice and teen, as well as information on how to develop a website, get indexed, and maybe even make some money via Google Ads.

Google searching seems simple but in fact has a lot of built in and almost hidden functionality. Blackman, for example, provides a ‘cheat sheet’ on how to do calculations with Google. She also has a page of other Google shortcuts, including quick ways to go directly to maps using specific addresses, to check on weather conditions when you travel, and to look up definitions, stock quotes and phone numbers.

It would take too long to list all of the various Google hints and helps this site offers, but suffice to say that if you want to become the best Google searcher on your block, this is the place to go. Once you get your Google on, you can try one of the many other specialty search engines that keep cropping up. If you want to search for a sound, for example, try Find Sounds.

About Ray Watkins

I was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, at Our Lady of the Lake Hospital. I grew up in Houston, as a part of what we only half-jokingly call the Cajun Diaspora. At a certain point during the Regan administration, I had to leave, so I served in the Peace Corps, Philippines, from 1987-89. I didn't want to return to the United States just yet, so I moved to Paris, France, where I lived for three years or so. I then moved back to Austin, Texas, where I had received my Masters Degree, and (eventually) began a Ph.D., which I completed in 1999. I spent a year at Temple University and then accepted a position at Eastern Illinois University where I worked until May of 2006. I now work exclusively on line (although that may change) for Johns Hopkins, the Art Institute Online, and Smarthinking.com. I can be reached most easily via email: raywatkins [that 'at' symbol] writinginthewild.com

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