It's Not Your Older Sister's Search Engine!

It's Not Your Older Sister's Search Engine!

You may not have used the following techniques when using the Google search engine. My purpose is to share with you some search tips to assist you in becoming a more proficient searcher.

The first technique is a simple way to search a single site. Suppose you wanted to search the mwsu.edu site to find out something about Michael Land. In the Google search box you would enter--> site:mwsu.edu "Michael Land". If you want to try this search or another one, click here.

The next technique is a way to compare. Suppose you wanted to use the phrase "better than Excel". In the Google search box, enter--> "better than Excel". Click here to try it. You can also use the phrase "reminds me of nameOfItem".

To search with a term and its synonyms, place a tilde ~ before the search term you want to include the synonyms of, such as science ~assessment.

In Advanced Google Search, you can select from among several file types. You can also do the same in a simple search. Suppose you were looking for a list of endangered mammal species and preferred to have it in Excel file format (xls). Your search would look like this--> endangered mammal species filetype:xls. Or perhaps you wanted it in PowerPoint format--> endangered mammal species filetype:ppt (or pptx or pps.)

Curious or need to know the population or unemployment rate of a city, county, or state? Simple--> "unemployment rate" Goree, TX