Most of us use Google frequently as our search engine of choice. It is quick and easy to use but Google now offers much more so why not take a closer look.
The basic Google search page offers the main search box with a few extra links in the top left corner. If you click the “More” link, you’ll discover a whole range of extra features. Here are just a few:
- Image Search – comprehensive photograph/image search
- Google News – search news headlines (World, Australia, Business, Sport, Sci-Tech and more) – personalise it to suit your interests
- Google Maps – interactive mapping with street/road maps, satellite image or terrain maps. Go to Street View for a close-up look or get driving directions.
- Book Search – browse entire libraries – views range from full text, limited previews to snippets depending on copyright.
- Google Scholar – search the scientific literature – full bibliographic data provided in the search result
- Google Translate – if you need to translate some text or a whole website from one language to another, use this tool
Quick Unit Conversion – Google offers a quick unit conversion (including currencies) via the search box. Simply type “amount old unit” in “new unit” into the search box to see the answer above the results list. Also works for simple calculations.
For example:
12 acres in hectares (answer is 4.86)
23+(34*2)= (answer is 91)
100 AUD in USD (answer is $63.89 on current rates)
Google Applications – Google now offers much more than search. The Gmail service is a great add-on to your existing email or can replace it entirely. Other apps worth checking out are Google Docs, Picasa, Calendar and Blogger.
