How to Use Google to Search for Information on the Internet

You have already learned how to use the Firefox web browser to find web pages on the Internet. You have also learned how to customize your Firefox search engine text box to search for information using a variety of search engines.

Today you will learn how to search for information using Google's search engine by visiting Google's web site: www.google.com

First we will select Google's "SafeSearch" to help us avoid information that is not appropriate for young people. Click on the "Preferences" link on the right side of the search text box and select "Strict Filtering."

Now you are ready to begin searching for information!

When you begin your "query," be as specific as possible:

• Enter a word or group of words in the search text box
  
• Use the minus sign (-) in front of a word to leave it out, for example dolphins -football so you get information on the animal, not the sports team
  
• Put quotation marks (" ") around words that must stay together, for example "pop fly" to research the baseball term
  
• Enter as much information as possible about your query
  
• Click on "Advanced Search" to use Google's advanced search tools
  
• Select up to 100 results in the "Advanced Search" section to see more results on one page
  
• Click on "Advanced Search Tips" to use the full capabilities of Google
  
• Hit return/enter or click "Google Search"
  
• If you click "I'm Feeling Lucky" you will go directly to the first result
  
• Results are listed in order of relevancy based on the number of other web sites that link to that web page

After you have a list of results:

• Click on one of the blue, underlined links to visit a web page
  
• Click the "Back" arrow to return to the list
  
• Open each link in a new tab (hold down the control key when you click on the link or right-click the link and choose "open link in new tab") so that you can easily see all of the web pages you have opened