Eight Useful Ways to Use Google

When most people think of Google, they usually think of the search engine first.  Most of Google's other online products are usually referred to by a different name (such as Gmail) or by something added after Google (Google+, Google Apps, etc.)  However, Google's search page has a lot of useful (and some fun but not so useful) features.  Tomorrow, I will talk about some of those fun ways to use Google, but today, I will cover some of the more useful ways to use Google's search.

As a side note, most of these work in the search boxes or address bars on Internet Explorer, Firefox, and Chrome if they are programmed to use Google.  All of these features are available on various sites, but Google simply makes them all available with just the search box.

Here are ten things that might make your search experience more useful:

1) Weather - You can get the weather without having to leave Google.  Simply type a city or zip code followed by "forecast", and Google will display a detailed forecast for today along with simplified forecasts for the week ahead.  Type your city or zip code followed by "weather" to get the current weather along with the week's forecast.

2) Translate Words - Typing "translate <word/phrase> to <language>" will quickly access the Google translator and display the result.  Just be careful, because while Google Translate is usually pretty good with words, it can be less accurate with longer phrases.  People have made blog posts and videos of what happens when you take a poem or song and translate it through several languages before taking it back to English.

3) Check the Time - Can't remember if London is four or five hours ahead of us (it can be either due to the differences in the daylight savings time dates)?  Type "time in <location>" and Google will give you the current time and date.

4) Do Math - Instead of taking the time to locate a calculator on the internet or find the one installed on your computer, just type your math problem into a search box.  Google will do the math and display the result.

5) Conversions - Need to convert from one unit of measurement to another?  Google can handle it. Simply type "<amount> <unit1> in <unit2>"  (for example, "100 dollars in pounds") and Google will handle the conversion for you.

6) Check Flight Status - Now you don't need to go to the airport and look through many television monitors to see the status of a flight.  Simply type the airline and flight number into a search box to see the status of the flight.

7) Search Public Data - Want to see the latest population estimates or unemployment rate for a particular location?  Simply type what you are looking for and the location into the search box and watch Google give you the data.  Want historical data?  Google gives you a 10-year lookback, and by clicking on "Explore More" underneath the graph, you can view older data.

8) Define Words - If you want a dictionary definition of a word, simply type "define:<word>" to have Google give you its definition.

Tomorrow, we'll look at the fun side of Google by examining some of the little built-in tricks.