Useful tips for finding what you're looking for on the WWW.
About Search Secrets
Posted: Nov 06 '05 / Updated: Jan 02 '06
I wanted to start a blog about finding information on the internet. It's something I hear a lot of people complain about, and I think I can help. One of the first thing I started doing when I got on the net (back when there wasn't much of a 'net) was to try to find information. I was wanting to do web page design, and, as I suspected, the information I needed was not only at the book store in an expensive $50 book, but also right here on the WWW. Since that time, it's gone to quite the extreme, where nearly anything can be found on the web. From baby-making tips to bomb-making tips, it's on the internet. You just gotta know how to find it. =)
I'll be posting my thoughts on the subject as they come, which I expect to be a bit quickly to start, and then less frequently, as there is a finite amount of information to give.
Yahoo! won't like this, but I've gotta say, there's only one place to start your search: google.com. They are the definitive search experts. There is no other. They've built the most powerful search engine on the planet, and I have a feeling they'll only be out-done by themselves for quite some time.
And then there's the BIG reason: Their search engine's relevance and speed. It's amazing how many of the searches I do at Google end up with what I'm looking for being within the top 3 spots. In fact, it is usually right at the top. The same search in many other search engines might not get what I'm looking for on the first 3 pages. While many search engines seem to be figuring it out, don't be fooled. They're only following Google's lead by attempting to reverse engineer what Google is doing, and most are having little luck. Those that do seem to be able to get the relevance close to what Google's technology has set the bar to, still have a long ways to go to match Google's speed.
Some of Google's Other technologies that I use (religiously) are: Google Desktop - More than just a search engine for your hard drive, GD has grown quite a bit since it's early days. The new Sidebar gives GD the ability to become anything you like, so long as you can fit it in the sidebar! With plugins like Adsense Status, Job Search and GDMoney why would you not install Google Desktop?
Google Toolbar - Perhaps still my favorite tool of all, the Google Toolbar has Google search built into it, along with several other features I like. The best of all though has got to be the Spell Checker. With a quick click of a button you can spell check any input field on the internet. This is REALLY important for someone like me... I write code, I don't spell. I have certianly gotten better with age (10 years ago this short entry would have had dozens of mistakes, today it will probably only have 3 or 4, and most will ge google in all lower case letters, which of course, the Google Toolbar will fix. =)
Google Maps - Need to find someting? Want to put maps on your website? Try Google Maps! =)