Tips on searching for files on the internet would include:
· Use
a combination of different web browsers and different search engines.
· Use
a toolbar like Google Toolbar which can highlight terms, remember searches,
search within a site and block pop-ups.
· Use
keywords to refine a search.
· Use
phrases enclosed in quotes.
· Use
more than one term or phrase in " " to get fewer results.
· Search
the broader concept, what your term is "about."
· Try
to find distinctive terms in Subject Directories.
· Try
an encyclopedia to learn basic concepts and keywords.
· Ask
a librarian.
· Analyse
the subject.
· Check
for correct spelling of the word or words. When in doubt, refer to a dictionary
or do a spell check in a word processing application.
· Avoid
nonessential words, such as “the,” “and,” “it,” “me,” and “of.” Using these
words strains the search engine unnecessarily, slowing the search and resulting
in a large number of useless hits.
· Use
the plus (+) and minus (-) symbol to refine your search. The plus symbol
retrieves only pages that include the word that follows (similar to AND). The
minus symbol discards pages that contain the word that follows (similar to
NOT). For example, “kids+guns.” Do not use spaces between the words and symbol.
· Be
careful in using punctuation. For example, including a question mark might
result in a “No matches found” message.
· Searching
harder with Google is by clicking the Advanced Search link.
· Google's
main search invisibly combines search terms with the Boolean construct
"AND". When you enter smoke fire – it looks for smoke AND fire.
· To
make Google search for smoke or fire, just type smoke OR fire.
· Instead
of OR you can type the | symbol, like this: smoke | fire.
· Boolean
connectors like AND and OR are case sensitive. They must be upper case.
· Search
for a specific term, then one keyword OR another by grouping them with
parentheses, like this: water (smoke OR fire).
· To
look for phrases, put them in quotes: "there's no smoke without fire".
· Synonym
search looks for words that mean similar things. Use the tilde symbol before
your keyword, like this: eggplant.
· Exclude
specific key words with the minus operator. new pram -ebay excludes all results
from eBay.
· You
can also ask Google to fill in a blank. Try: Christopher Columbus discovered *.
· Search
for a numerical range using the numrange operator. For example, search for Sony
TV between $300 and $500 with the string Sony TV $300..$500.
· Google
recognises 13 main file types through advanced search, including all Microsoft
Office Document types, Lotus, PostScript, Shockwave Flash and plain text files.
· Search
for any filetype directly using the modifier filetype: [filetype extension].
For example: soccer filetype: pdf.
· Exclude
entire file types, using the same Boolean syntax we used to exclude key words
earlier: rugby -filetype: doc.
· In
fact, you can combine any Boolean search operators, as long as your syntax is
correct. An example: "sausage and mash" -onions filetype: doc.
· Google
has some very powerful, hidden search parameters, too. For example
"intitle" only searches page titles. Try intitle: herbs.
· If
you're looking for files rather than pages – give index of as the intitle:
parameter. It helps you find web and FTP directories.
· The
modifier inurl only searches the web address of a page: give inurl: spices a
go.
· Find
live webcams by searching for: inurl: view/view.shtml.
· The
modifier inanchor is very specific, only finding results in text used in page
links.
· Want
to know how many links there are to a site? Try link: sitename – for example
link: www.mozilla.org.
· Similarly,
you can find pages that Google thinks are related in content, using the
related: modifier. Use it like this: related: www.microsoft.com.
· The
modifier info: site_name returns information about the specified page.
· Alternatively,
do a normal search then click the "Similar Pages" link next to a
result.
· Specify
a site to search with the site: modifier – like this: search tips
site:www.techradar.com
· The
above tip works with directory sites like www.dmoz.org and dynamically
generated sites.
· Access Google Directory – a database of
handpicked and rated sites – at directory.google.com
· The
Boolean operators intitle and inurl work in Google directory, as does OR.
· Use
the site: modifier when searching Google Images, at images.google.com. For
example: dvd recorder site:www.amazon.co.uk
· Similar,
using "site: .com" will only return results from .com domains.
· Google
News (news.google.com) has its own Boolean parameters. For example
"intext" pulls terms from the body of a story.
· If
you use the operator "source:" in Google News, you can pick specific
archives. For example: heather mills source:daily_mail
· Using
the "location:" filter enables you to return news from a chosen
country. Location: UK for example.
· Similarly,
Google Blogsearch (blogsearch.google.com) has its own syntax. You can search
for a blog title, for example, using inblogtitle:<keyword>
· The
general search engine can get very specific indeed. Try movie :<name of
film> to look for movie reviews.
· The
modifier film: works just as well!
· Enter
showtimes and Google will prompt you for your postcode. Enter it and it'll tell
you when and where local films are showing.
· For
a dedicated film search page, go to www.google.co.uk/movies
· If
you ticked "Remember this Location" when you searched for show times,
the next time you can enter the name of a current film instead.
· Google
really likes movies. Try typing director: The Dark Knight into the main search
box.
· For
cast lists, try cast: name_of_film
· The
modifier music: followed by a band, song or album returns music reviews.
· Try
searching for weather London – you'll get a full 4-day forecast.
· There's
also a built-in dictionary. Try define :< word> in the search box.
· Google
stores the content of old sites. You can search this cache direct with the
syntax keyword cache:site_url
· Alternatively,
enter cache: site url into Google's search box to be taken direct to the stored
site.
· No
calculator handy? Use Google's built in features. Try typing 12*15 and hitting
"Google Search".
· Google's
calculator converts measurements and understands natural language. Type in 14
stones in kilos, for example.
· It
does currency conversion too. Try 200 pounds in euros
· If
you know the currency code you can type 200 GBP in EUR instead for more
reliable results.
· And
temperature! Just type: 98 f to c to convert Fahrenheit to Centigrade.
· Want
to know how clever Google really is? Type 2476 in roman numerals, and then hit
"Google Search"...
· You
can personalise your Google experience by creating a Google account. Go to
www.google.com/account/ then click "Create Account".
· With
a Google account there are lots more extras available. You'll get a free Gmail
email account for one...
· With
your Google account, you can also personalise your front page. Click
"iGoogle" to add blog and site feeds.
· Click
"Add a Tab" in iGoogle to add custom tabs. Google automatically
populates them with suitable site suggestions.
· iGoogle allows you to theme your page too.
Click "Select Theme" to change the default look.
· Some
iGoogle themes change with time..."Sweet Dreams" is a theme that
turns from day to night as you browse.
· Click
"More" under "Try something new" to access a full list of
Google sites and new features.
· "Custom
Search" enables you to create a branded Google search for your own site.
· An
active, useful service missing from the list is "Personalised Search"
– but you can access it via www.google.com/psearch when you're logged in.
· This
page lists searches you have recently made – and is divided into categories.
Clicking "pause" stops Google from recording your history.
· Click
"Trends" to see the sites you visit most, the terms you enter most
often and links you've clicked on!
· Personalised
Search also includes a bookmark facility – which enables you to save bookmarks
online and access them from anywhere.
· You
can add bookmarks or access your bookmarks using the iGoogle Bookmarks gadget.
· Did
you know you can search within your returned results? Scroll down to the bottom
of the search results page to find the link.
· Search
locally by appending your postcode to the end of query. For example Indian food
BA1 2BW finds restaurants in Bath, with addresses and phone numbers!
· Looking
for a map? Just add map to the end of your query, like this: Leeds map
· Google
finds images just as easily and lists them at the top, when you add image to
the end of your search.
· Google
Image Search recognises faces... add &imgtype=face to the end of the
returned URL in the location bar, and then hit enter to filter out pictures
that aren't people.
· Keeping
an eye on stocks? Type stocks: followed by market ticker for the company and
Google returns the data from Google Finance.
· Enter
the carrier and flight number in Google's main search box to return flight
tracking information.
· What
time is it? Find out anywhere by typing time then the name of a place.
· You
may have noticed Google suggests alternate spellings for search terms – that's
the built in spell checker!
· You
can invoke the spell checker directly by using spell: followed by your keyword.
· Click
"I'm Feeling Lucky" to be taken straight to the first page Google
finds for your keyword.
· Enter
a statistics-based query like population of Britain into Google, and it will
show you the answer at the top of its results.
· If
your search has none-English results, click "Translate this Page" to
see it in English.
· You
can search foreign sites specifically by clicking "Language Tools",
then choosing which countries sites to translate your query to.
· Other
features on the language tools page include a translator for blocks of text you
can type or cut and paste.
· There's
also a box that you can enter a direct URL into, translating to the chosen
language.
· Near
the language tools link, you'll see the "Search Preferences". This
handy page is full of secret functionality.
· You
can specify which languages Google returns results in, ticking as many (or few)
boxes as you like.
· Google's
Safe Search protects you from explicit sexual content. You can choose to filter
results more stringently or switch it off completely.
· Google's
default of 10 results a page can be increased to up to 100 in Search
Preferences, too.
· You
can also set Google to open your search results in a new window.
· Want
to see what others are searching for or improve your page rank? Go to
www.google.com/zeitgeist
· Another
useful, experimental search can be found at www.google.com/trends – where you
can find the hottest search terms.
· To
compare the performance of two or more terms, enter them into the trends search
box separated by commas.
· Fancy
searching Google in Klingon? Go to www.google.com/intl/xx-klingon
· Perhaps
the Swedish chef from the muppets is your role model instead? Check
www.google.com/intl/xx-bork
· Type
answer to life, the universe and everything into Google. You may be surprised
by the result...
· It
will also tell you the number of horns on a unicorn.
Resources:
Have you had a go at converting your Fruitshop logo
electronically using Illustrator?
Upload here as a JPEG keep under 1MB (max. 700pixels
wide... open in Photoshop to check... 72dpi resolution).
Tip - it's the same approach as tracing the Tas map,
giraffe, Breeders Cup etc.... then use
the Eye Dropper Tool to sample the same colour shade, note - you'll need to
double-click the Template layer and turn the template back to 100% opacity
otherwise you'll only get a % tint colour and it won't be the same choice.
In Prepress 3 we will learn how to make a style sheet
(converting a Pantone Spot colour to RGB, CMYK and HEX)... you might want to do
some reading up about it......
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