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"That page, my friends, is called the Google cheat sheet. I went to that page, confident that it would hold no new knowledge for me. I was sure that I alone, beheld the secrets of Google searching. Once again, I was slapped in the face with my idiocy." |
If you’ve read enough of my articles for Cozy Frog, then you know that I have a penchant for self-deprecation. Let me assure you, I don’t do it to endear. I do not feign humility in order to charm you. When I
tell you that I am an idiot or straight up stupid, I am not playing some sort of passive aggressive self-defense. I am telling the truth. I realized a very long time ago that the old saying is true: The more you
learn, the less you know. I am not an expert on anything. I am just a gal, trying to cram as much stuff in my brain as I can before it calcifies.
The sad part is that sometimes I fool myself. I am often guilty of believing that I am indeed brilliant. For example, I used to believe that I was a Google genius. Granted, I’m pretty good at riding the wild search engine but the other day, my ego was dealt a crushing blow. Some user on a message board smacked me down to human size with one link:
That page, my friends, is called the Google cheat sheet. I went to that page, confident that it would hold no new knowledge for me. I was sure that I alone, beheld the secrets of Google searching. Once again, I was slapped in the face with my idiocy.
I’ve written before about how upset I get when I perform a Google news search for porn-related articles. Try it sometime. Go to Google news and type the keyword ‘porn’ in the box and click the button. Better yet, let me save you the trouble. Here’s what happens when you type the word "porn" in a Google news search: You get page after page of articles on people arrested for dealing in child porn. Even when I tried keyword variations like "adult porn" or "Internet porn", I would still get results that have absolutely nothing to do with this industry.
Then I discovered the awesome Google cheat sheet. Now, when I search Google news, I type this in the search box:
Oh happy day! Result after result of articles on adult porn and porn-related issues! Try it! It’s fabulous! Try it with other keywords. Try it on the Google’s web search or image search.
Do you want to search for sexual information but you don’t want to get slammed with a zillion porn links? Then use this before your keyword:
Do you want to know the meaning of a word or slang phrase? Have you tried Merriam Webster online only to discover your word doesn’t exist as far as the dictionary is concerned? You know what I’m talking about. The web has given us all kinds of hip ways to spell common words and computer terminology often takes old words and applies new meanings to them. For example, you’re probably not going to find a definition for the word ‘teh’ at Webster’s. However, if you go to Google and type this:
Click the submit button and up comes a Wikipedia definition for a word so often misspelled it’s become part of message board/chat vernacular. Heck, while you’re at it, look up the definition of the word
"vernacular". Get definitions for "P2P", "chatbot" or any old words you’re not quite sure of. If you misspell the word, Google tells you that too!
Would you like an easy way to find out what other sites link to yours, according to Google? Then type "link:" before your URL. If I type:
link:http://mysillydumbpage.com
I find out just who is linking to my silly, dumb page.
When I tell you that I am idiot, I am not lying. I’m an idiot even when it comes to the subjects of which I am most familiar - like riding the wild Google. Finding this Cheat Sheet page just reinforces my
stupidity. My knowledge of these search tricks won’t make me smarter but it will comfort me. I can search and research topics more efficiently. I will be better informed and will be able to keep you
better informed. I will use the hell out of the Google Cheat Sheet and hopefully, you will too!
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