Advanced Search & Discovery Tips

date: '2017-07-21T15:23:16+10:00'

It’s amazing what you can find simply by searching the web. Advanced techniques for searching the web have an array of tools and tips, that we’ll try to cover here. In the first instance, i’ll highlight some of the more advanced capabilities of Google and how to use it.

Google Custom Search Engine

Google Custom Search Engine is a tool that can be used to create parameters around a type of search using the linked data markup that’s often embedded for SEO purposes using Schema.org or by specifying a particular type of syntax that restricts the search to a particular zone. For example, if you are searching for information about a person; then in your advanced options within your custom search you’d add the schema concept Person.

or if you wanted to find information within a particular zone, for instance on Australian Websites then you’d put in the *.au. Not all websites use schema.org mark-up and if they do, they don’t necessarily do it well. So this may restrict the results you get if you get more specific than web developers have otherwise considered.

Advanced Search

Google knows how to search more than simply entering a word or sentence. Here are a few examples.

The first important consideration is the use of “to declare particular words”. For example, if we search “telecommunications law” we’ll get one set of results. If you wanted to find a particular document, then you might also add filetype: (then extension) for example: “telecommunications law” filetype:pdf

Other examples have been listed here noting that these methods can also be used with Google Advanced Search.

Making things even more interesting; once you’ve figured all that out; you’re then able to set-up an Alert which will do the search and provide you any new results into your inbox when they become available to search, on a frequency you choose.