Find what you need on Google
MCC Faculty Summer InstituteMay 2012
Illustration by Alex Eben Meyer, courtesy of Slate.com
Why Google It?
» Google is the most popular search engine on the web
˃ Google is constantly expanding its capabilities and offerings˃ It pays to know how to take advantage of all that it offers
» Rather than telling students NOT to use Google, maybe we should tell them HOW to use Google
The More button
…more…and more
…and even more
Predictive searching
» When you undertake a search, think in terms of the answer you are looking for, rather than the question you are asking
» Similar to what librarians call a “reference interview”
» This process is a brief mental exercise in defining your target
» Anticipate what you want to see on the page – a term, an attribute
Questions?
• If you ask a question, you will get a question in your results
• Google will take you to “answer sites”
Order matters
Some things you may not know about how Google searches…
Small words
» When you enter a search term, Google reads the entry and works as though the first word is more important than the second which is more than the third, etc….
» Google assumes an “and” between words – if you enter “and” it will search for the word “and”
What the Google Search
Engine “thinks” when you enter a search term with multiple
words
» How many times does the term appear ?
» How close is the term to the beginning?
» Is the term in the web address?
» Is the term in the title?
Google’s automated thesaurus
» You enter
“death tax”
» Google also looks for
“estate tax”
OperatorsExample Use
medic* common variations “Death be not proud” Exact phrase-cat Eliminate from keywords1998…2000 Search within date rangeFiletype:pdf type of file soughtIntitle:word looks in titlesite:edu looks in certain sites
More
» Author:driskell» Calculator terms works in search box» Define:indemnify» Unit converter
Illustration by Alex Eben Meyer, courtesy of Slate.com
Keyboard shortcuts
» Command – F Find on page» Command / Zoom in/zoom out» Command L Takes you to address bar» Command ~ New window» Command shift 3 Screenshot» Command shift 4 Partial Screenshot »
Google Scholar
» Pros Cons
*More results *More resultsMore types of sources Not as flexible as fee-basedGood on relevance Not as current
*”More results” can be good or bad, depending on your situation.
In conclusion…
» Google has an excellent library of teaching tools available
» In student-friendly, YouTube-video format, you can start, stop, and repeat until you have a set of directions mastered
» They keep information up-to-date
Bibliography
“How to Use Google Search More Effectively [INFOGRAPHIC].” Mashable. Web. 9 Mar. 2012.
“SCGettingStarted - Help’s Library.” Web. 9 May 2012.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V7-2XtgqY-Y