by Macey Wuesthoff

Created on: May 30, 2007

God bless the day they invented Google! During those "prehistoric days" before Google, I used to grit my teeth and groan with dread at the thought of trying to find anything on the Internet. Whether you are just learning to wade through the waves of cyber space, or are a professional surfer, finding information on the Internet is easy and convenient through Google.

To start, simply go to your Web browser (the little window at the top of the screen where you type text), type HTTP://WWW.GOOGLE.COM and click the GO button with your mouse or tap your keyboard's ENTER key. (Typing all capital letters isn't required for you to reach or use Google; I'm just using them here for clarification purposes.

Now, you'll find yourself on Google's main page. Save Google to your favorites or bookmarks, as you should find it to be one of the best search engines out there. Now, look at the Google page you'll see a search box where you can type text. Here, you can type any combination of words, general or specific, dependent upon what you're looking for:

Shoes
Blue shoes
Suede shoes
Blue suede shoes
Elvis Presley
Elvis Presley's Blue Suede Shoes

While you can use just the initial Google search page in this manner, it is not always the most ideal method. To take full advantage of Google and to get more concise, specific results, it is best to utilize the ADVANCED SEARCH option, via the link located to the right of the search box. Click that link, and just like that, you reach a page with four different search boxes, labeled as follows:

With all of the words
With the exact phrase
With at least one of the words
Without the words

You can use a single one of these boxes, all of them, or a combination of two or three, dependent upon what you are looking for. For example, let's say you want to order a copy of STEPHEN KING'S IT from an online vendor. You could use the first "with all of the words" field, but to guarantee that you get results only on with that title, "with the exact phrase is a better choice:

With the exact phrase: STEPHEN KING'S IT

I included it in this fashion because Stephen King's name precedes this and most of his titles in that manner, but with a different author, you might use a combination of the following:

With all of the words: MARK TWAIN
With the exact phrase: HUCKLEBERRY FINN
(For only MARK Twain's work, and no one else's; only HUCKLEBERRY FINN, not other Twain works such as TOM SAWYER)

Or

With all of the words: TENESSEE WILLIAMS
With the exact phrase: CAT ON A HOT TIN ROOF
(For only

• 1
• 2
• Next Page >>