Google Hacks, 2nd Edition

Google Hacks, 2nd Edition

by Tara Calishain, Rael Dornfest
Released December 2004
Publisher(s): O'Reilly Media, Inc.
ISBN: 9780596008574

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Book description

Whether you're a high school student looking for the latest info on your favorite rock group, or a seasoned attorney researching an old case, you're probably using Google. It seems like everyone is. And who can blame them? With access to more than three million documents in over 30 languages, Google is a researcher's dream. It's no wonder, then, that nearly 150 million Google searches are conducted each day. As a result, people are hungry to learn new ways to maximize its usefulness. Truth is, there are dozens upon dozens of techniques to learn--each designed to make your Google search more time-efficient, more productive, and more fun. And Google Hacks, Second Edition has the inside scoop on them all. An absolute must-have guide for anyone who searches the Internet--and these days that's just about everybody--Google Hacks, Second Edition takes its best-selling predecessor one step further. In plain language, Google Hacks, Second Edition is an updated collection of industrial-strength, real-world tested solutions to practical research problems. Best of all, each of its 100 hacks are easy to read and digest--no confusing terminology or extraneous information to hamper your understanding. And although they can be read in just a few short minutes, when put to use, they can easily save you hours of research time. Now that's bang for your buck!

Table of contents

  1. Google Hacks, 2nd Edition
    1. Dedication
    2. Foreword
    3. Foreword to the First Edition
    4. Credits
      1. About the Authors
      2. Contributors
      3. Acknowledgments
        1. Tara
        2. Rael
    5. Preface
      1. Why Google Hacks?
      2. How This Book Is Organized
      3. How to Use This Book
      4. How to Run the Hacks
        1. Command-Line Scripts
        2. CGI Scripts
        3. Using the Google API
        4. Learning to Code
      5. Where to Go for More
      6. Conventions
      7. Using Code Examples
      8. Safari Enabled
      9. How to Contact Us
      10. Got a Hack?
    6. 1. Web
      1. Hacks 1-20
      2. Google Web Search Basics
        1. Phrase Searches
        2. Basic Boolean
        3. Negation
        4. Explicit Inclusion
        5. Synonyms
        6. Number Range
        7. Simple Searching and Feeling Lucky
        8. Case Sensitivity
      3. Full-Word Wildcards
      4. The 10-Word Limit
        1. Favor Obscurity
        2. Playing the Wildcard
      5. Special Syntax
      6. Mixing Syntax
        1. How Not to Mix Syntax
        2. How to Mix Syntax
          1. Titles and sites
          2. Title and URL
        3. The Antisocial Syntax Elements
        4. All the Possibilities
      7. Advanced Search
        1. Query Words
        2. Language
        3. File Format
        4. Date
        5. Occurrences
        6. Domain
        7. Safe Search
        8. Additional Google Properties
      8. Quick Links
      9. Language Tools
        1. Search Specific Languages or Countries
        2. Translate
        3. Interface Language
        4. Local Domain
        5. Making the Most of Google’s Language Tools
      10. Anatomy of a Search Result
      11. Setting Preferences
        1. Interface Language
        2. Search Language
        3. SafeSearch Filtering
        4. Number of Results
        5. Settings for Researchers
      12. Understanding Google URLs
      13. Browse the Google Directory
        1. Searching the Google Directory
      14. Glean a Snapshot of Google in Time
        1. See Also
      15. Graph Google Results over Time
      16. Visualize Google Results
        1. Starting to Browse
        2. Expanding Your View
        3. Visualization Options
        4. Making the Most of These Visualizations
      17. Check Your Spelling
        1. Embrace Misspellings
      18. Google Phonebook: Let Google’s Fingers Do the Walking
        1. The Three Syntaxes
        2. Using the Syntaxes
        3. Caveats
        4. Reverse Phonebook Lookup
        5. Finding Phonebooks Using Google
      19. Think Global, Google Local
        1. See Also
      20. Track Stocks
        1. Beyond Google for Basic Stock Information
        2. More Stock Research with Google
      21. Consult the Dictionary
      22. Look Up Definitions
        1. Google Definitions
        2. Slang
        3. Industrial Slang
        4. Researching Terminology with Google
        5. Where to Go When It’s Not on Google
      23. Search Article Archives
        1. Articles from the NYT
        2. Magazine Articles
      24. Find Directories of Information
        1. Title Tags and Wildcards
        2. Finding Searchable Subject Indexes with Google
      25. Seek Out Weblog Commentary
        1. Finding Weblogs
        2. Using These “Magic Words”
      26. Cover Your Bases
        1. See Also
      27. Repetition Matters
        1. How Does This Work?
        2. A Theory
        3. So What?
      28. Search a Particular Date Range
        1. The daterange: Syntax
        2. Searching by Content Creation Date
      29. Calculate Google Centuryshare
      30. Hack Your Own Google Search Form
        1. Hidden Variables
        2. Mixing Hidden File Types: An Example
        3. Creating Your Own Google Form
      31. Go Beyond Google’s Advanced Search
        1. See Also
      32. Use Google Tools for Translators
        1. Hacking the Hack
    7. 2. Advanced Web
      1. Hacks 21-49
      2. Assumptions
      3. Like a Version
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. The Results
      4. Capture Google Results in a Google Box
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. The Results
        4. Integrating a Google Box
        5. Making the Google Box Timely
          1. The code
          2. Running the hack
          3. The results
          4. Hacking the hack
          5. The results
      5. Build Google Directory URLs
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. The Results
        4. Hacking the Hack
      6. Find Recipes
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
      7. Track Result Counts over Time
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. The Results
        4. Working with These Results
        5. Hacking the Hack
      8. Feel Really Lucky
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
      9. Get Random Results (on Purpose)
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
          1. Modifying the modifiers
          2. Adding a touch more randomness
      10. Permute a Query
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
      11. Weight a Query Keyword
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
      12. Restrict Searches to Top-Level Results
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
          1. More depth
          2. Query tips
      13. Search for Special Characters
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
          1. Choosing special characters
          2. Excluding special characters
      14. Dig Deeper into Sites
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
      15. Summarize Results by Domain
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. The Results
        4. Hacking the Hack
          1. Going back for more
          2. Returning comma-separated output
      16. Measure Google Mindshare
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Fun Hack Uses
      17. SafeSearch Certify URLs
        1. Danger, Will Robinson!
        2. The Code
        3. Running the Hack
        4. Hacking the Hack
      18. Search Google Topics
        1. Why Topic Search?
        2. The Code
        3. Running the Hack
        4. Search Ideas
      19. Find the Largest Page
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Usage Examples
        4. Hacking the Hack
      20. Perform Proximity Searches
        1. Making the Most of GAPS
        2. The Code
        3. See Also
      21. Meander Your Google Neighborhood
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
          1. Noticing/ignoring file extensions
          2. Ignoring domains
      22. Run a Google Popularity Contest
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
      23. Scrape Yahoo! Buzz for a Google Search
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. The Results
        4. Hacking the Hack
      24. Compare Google’s Results with Other Search Engines
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Why?
      25. Scattersearch with Yahoo! and Google
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
      26. Yahoo! Directory Mindshare in Google
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
      27. Glean Weblog-Free Google Results
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
      28. Spot Trends with Geotargeting
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. Hacking the Hack
      29. Bring the Google Calculator to the Command Line
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
      30. Build a Custom Date Range Search Form
        1. The Form
        2. The Code
        3. Running the Hack
        4. Hacking the Hack
      31. Search Yesterday’s Index
        1. The Queries
        2. The Code
        3. Running the Hack
        4. The Results
        5. Hacking the Hack
    8. 3. Images
      1. Hacks 50-53
      2. Google Images Advanced Search Interface
      3. Google Images Search Syntax
      4. Borrow a Corporate or Product Logo
        1. Google Images
        2. Annual Reports
      5. Browse the World Wide Photo Album
        1. Random Personal Picture Finder
        2. WebCollage
      6. Google Cartography: Street Art in Your Neighborhood
        1. The Gory Details
        2. Running the Hack
      7. Capture the Map
    9. 4. News and Groups
      1. Hacks 54-58
      2. Google News
      3. Google News Search Syntax
      4. Advanced News Search
      5. Making the Most of Google News
      6. Receive Google News Alerts
      7. Beyond Google for News Search
      8. Scrape Google News
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Script
        3. The Results
        4. Hacking the Hack
      9. Visualize Google News
      10. Google Groups
      11. 10 Seconds of Hierarchy Funk
      12. Browsing Groups
      13. Google Groups Search Syntax
        1. Mixing syntaxes in Google Groups
          1. Some common search scenarios
          2. Tech support
          3. Finding commentary immediately after an event
      14. Advanced Groups Search
      15. Go Deeper into Groups with Google Groups 2
        1. Monitor Group Activity
        2. Search Group Messages
        3. Sign In
        4. This Must Be the Future
      16. Scrape Google Groups
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. The Results
      17. Simplify Google Groups URLs
    10. 5. Add-Ons
      1. Hacks 59-70
      2. Keep Tabs on Your Searches with Google Alerts
        1. Google Alerts
        2. GoogleAlert
      3. Add Google to Your Toolbar or Desktop
        1. Browser Search Boxes
        2. The Official Google Toolbar
        3. The Mozilla Googlebar
        4. Desktop Search Boxes
      4. Google Your Desktop
        1. Installing the Google Desktop
        2. Searching Your Desktop
        3. Google Desktop Search Syntax
        4. Searching the Web
        5. Behind the Scenes
        6. Twiddling Knobs and Setting Preferences
        7. See Also
      5. Google with Bookmarklets
      6. Google from Word
        1. Install the Web Services Toolkit
        2. Create a New Template
        3. Install the Google Interface VBA Code
        4. The Code
        5. Running the Hack
        6. Hacking the Hack
      7. Google by Email
        1. Hacking the Hack
      8. Google by Instant Messenger
        1. The Code
      9. Google from IRC
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. The Results
      10. Google on the Go
        1. Google by PDA or Smartphone
        2. Google by Cell Phone
        3. Google by SMS
        4. Froogle on the Go
      11. Visit the Google Labs
      12. Find Out What Google Thinks ___ Is
        1. The Interface
        2. What You Get Back
        3. Practical Uses
        4. Expanding the Application
      13. The Search Engine Belt Buckle
        1. What in Blazes Is a Search Engine Belt Buckle?
        2. Step 1: The Video
          1. Shoot the footage
          2. Encode for Pocket PC
          3. Get the settings just right
        3. Making the Belt Buckle
    11. 6. Gmail
      1. Hacks 71-80
      2. Gmail Search Syntax
        1. Phrase Searches
        2. Basic Boolean
        3. Negation
        4. Grouping
        5. Mixing Syntax
      3. Additional Resources
      4. Glean a Gmail Invite
      5. Create and Use Custom Addresses
      6. Import Your Contacts into Gmail
        1. Anatomy of a Contacts CSV
        2. Feed CSV to Gmail
        3. Out of Outlook (Express)
        4. Hopping out of Hotmail
          1. By way of Outlook (Express)
          2. By way of copy-and-paste
        5. Yumping from Yahoo!
        6. Moving from .Mac
        7. Hand-Crafting a CSV
        8. Last-Ditch Effort
      7. Import Mail into Gmail
        1. Forward Desktop Mail
          1. Installing the hack
          2. Running the hack
          3. Hacking the hack
        2. Migrate from an Existing Web Mail Service
          1. Hop from Hotmail/MSN
          2. Yank your Yahoo! Mail
        3. See Also
      8. Export Your Gmail
        1. Installing the Hack
        2. Running the Hack
        3. See Also
      9. Take a Walk on the Lighter Side
        1. Installing the Hack
        2. Running the Hack
        3. See Also
      10. Gmail on the Go
        1. Installing the Hack
        2. Running the Hack
        3. See Also
      11. Use Gmail as a Linux Filesystem
        1. Implementation Details
        2. Installing the Hack
        3. Running the Hack
        4. Things You Should Know
        5. Outstanding Issues
        6. See Also
      12. Use Gmail as a Windows Drive
        1. See Also
      13. Program Gmail
        1. Python
          1. Installing the hack
          2. The code
          3. Running the hack
          4. Hacking the hack
          5. See also
        2. Perl
        3. PHP
        4. Java
        5. .NET
    12. 7. Ads
      1. Hacks 81-85
      2. Google AdSense
      3. Google AdWords
      4. Get the Most out of AdWords
        1. Matching Can Make a Dramatic Difference
        2. Copywriting Tweaks Generally Improve Clarity and Directness
        3. Be Inquisitive and Proactive with Editorial Policies (But Don’t Whine)
        4. Avoid the Trap of “Insider Thinking” and Pursue the Advantage of Granular Thinking
      5. Generate Google AdWords
        1. Choosing AdWords
        2. Exploring Your Competitors’ AdWords
      6. Scrape Google AdWords
        1. The Code
        2. How It Works
        3. The Results
      7. Determine the Worth of AdWords Words
        1. By Hand
        2. Programmatically
          1. The code
          2. Running the hack
          3. The results
          4. Hacking the hack
      8. Serve Backup Ads
    13. 8. Webmastering
      1. Hacks 86-91
      2. Google’s Importance to Webmasters
      3. The Mysterious PageRank
      4. The Equally Mysterious Ranking Algorithm
      5. Keeping Up with Google’s Changes
      6. In a Word: Relax
      7. A Webmaster’s Introduction to Google
        1. Search Engine Basics
        2. Submitting Your Site to Google
        3. The Search Engine Optimization Template
      8. Get Inside the PageRank Algorithm
        1. So What Is the Algorithm?
        2. And What Does This Mean?
        3. So What’s the Use of the PageRank Calculator?
        4. How Does the PageRank Calculator Work?
      9. 26 Steps to 15K a Day
        1. A. Prep Work
        2. B. Choose a Brandable Domain Name
        3. C. Site Design
        4. D. Page Size
        5. E. Content
        6. F. Keyword Density and Keyword Positioning
        7. G. Outbound Links
        8. H. Cross-Links
        9. I. Put It Online
        10. J. Submit
        11. K. Logging and Tracking
        12. L. Spiderings
        13. M. Topic Directories
        14. N. Links
        15. O. Content
        16. P. Gimmicks
        17. Q. Linkbacks
        18. R. Rounding Out Your Offerings
        19. S. Beware of Flyer and Brochure Syndrome
        20. T. Keep Building One Page of Content Per Day
        21. U. Study Those Logs
        22. V. Timely Topics
        23. W. Friends and Family
        24. X. Notes, Notes, Notes
        25. Y. Submission Check at Six Months
        26. Z. Keep Building Those Pages of Quality Content!
      10. Be a Good Search Engine Citizen
        1. Thou Shalt Not:
        2. Thou Shalt:
        3. What Happens If You Reform?
        4. What Happens If You Spot Google Abusers in the Index?
      11. Clean Up for a Google Visit
      12. Remove Your Materials from Google
        1. Google Web Search
          1. Making sure your pages never get there to begin with
          2. Removing your pages after they’re indexed
          3. Removing that content now
          4. Reporting pages with inappropriate content
        2. Google Images
        3. Google Groups
          1. Preventing your material from being archived
          2. Removing materials after the fact
        4. Google Phonebook
    14. 9. Programming Google
      1. Hacks 92-100
      2. Signing Up and Google’s Terms
      3. The Google Web APIs Developer’s Kit
      4. Using Your Google API Key
      5. What’s WSDL?
      6. Understanding the Google API Query
        1. Query Essentials
        2. A Sample
        3. Intersecting Country, Language, and Topic Restrictions
        4. Putting Query Elements to Use
      7. Understanding the Google API Response
        1. Can Do
        2. Can’t Do
        3. The 10-Result Limit
        4. What’s in the Results
          1. Aggregate data
          2. Individual search result data
      8. A Note on Spidering and Scraping
      9. Program Google in Perl
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. The Results
      10. Install the SOAP::Lite Perl Module
        1. Unix and Mac OS X Installation via CPAN
        2. Unix Installation by Hand
        3. Windows Installation via PPM
        4. A Note About Expat
      11. Program Google with the Net::Google Perl Module
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
      12. Loop Around the 10-Result Limit
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Script
        3. The Results
        4. Hacking the Hack
      13. Program Google in PHP
        1. The Code
        2. Running the Hack
        3. See Also
      14. Program Google in Java
        1. The Code
        2. Compiling the Code
        3. Running the Hack
        4. The Results
      15. Program Google in Python
        1. PyGoogle Installation
        2. The Code
        3. Running the Hack
        4. The Results
        5. Hacking the Hack
      16. Program Google in C# and .NET
        1. The Code
        2. Compiling the Code
        3. Running the Hack
        4. The Results
      17. Program Google in VB.NET
        1. The Code
        2. Compiling the Code
        3. Running the Hack
        4. The Results
    15. Index
    16. Colophon

Product information

  • Title: Google Hacks, 2nd Edition
  • Author(s): Tara Calishain, Rael Dornfest
  • Release date: December 2004
  • Publisher(s): O'Reilly Media, Inc.
  • ISBN: 9780596008574