Google Searching
Google searches can be effective if you use some of the available tools.
- In the search box, type site:.gov , then your keywords, and this will ensure that only sites ending in .gov will be searched.
- After beginning the search, you have the option of searching the web, images, news, etc. 'Search tools' can help narrow your search. The options will appear underneath these search options, and you'll see Any time, All results, and your location by default.Click the Any time option, and you'll see that you can limit your search to sites modified or time stamped within the hour, 24 hours, year, or a custom range. This will enable you to find government documents that were uploaded in a specific time span. Combined with site:.gov, this can narrow your searches significantly.
- Inserting Link:(URL) into Google allows you to find sites that link to the website you're evaluating.
- Google also has search cheats that operate as alternatives to the NOT operator. Instead you only have to put a - symbol before the word. If you wanted to search for legislation Bill Clinton -Hillary AND -site:wikipedia.org, this would eliminate search results involving Hillary and Wikipedia.
- Use " " marks in your search specifies that the exact phrase has to be used, in the exact order stated.
- If you can't remember the entire quote you're looking for, you can try adding an asterisk between words. This operates as a wildcard.
