Column | Google and Web Tech Tips

The computer search engine Google has some neat new
features that will keep wily web surfers searching late into the
night.
The two most amazing of these new features are Google Local
and Google Maps.
Google Local serves as a map search of local businesses and
services. A user types in a location and a search. Then, a list and
map show the results. Say you are looking to order a pizza tonight.
Go to Google Local, type in “pizza” and then your address. Poof. A
list of nearby pizza parlors will pop up along with a map of their
locations.
    Wonderful.
    Then there is Google Maps where the space age meets the
computer age. Google Maps is similar to Google Local but it also
has a satellite feature. The viewer can take a look at their
hometown as it appears from overhead. It’s astounding. Give it a
try.
    Any frequent Internet user should add a Google Toolbar to their
browser. Downloading this function puts a Google Box at the top of
an Internet browser. This way, no matter what webpage one is
looking at, you can always type a search into the top of the page
and hit enter. It saves a lot of time since one does not have to type
www.google.com into the top of the page and wait for Google to
load ever time a search is desired.
    Downloading the Google desk bar itself is easy. Just access
toolbar.google.com and click download.
    In addition to allowing more convenient searches, this feature
also blocks annoying pop-up pages and saves a history list of
recent searches for quick reference. Google News also works
effectively. They have a feature that sends you an email alert any
time a selected word or phrase shows up in the news. For
example, Google will send you an email every time the phrase
“Argo Community High School” shows up in the news pages that
Google searches.
    In order to sign up for this, log onto google.com/alerts and follow
the instructions. It works pretty well. I tried it for the first time last
week. I used the phrase “Willow Springs” and got seven or eight
emails in one week. Most of the “Willow Springs” news was from
“Willow Springs” in another state. But one or two of the items
related Willow Springs, Illinois. (Maybe if I add “Illinois” or “IL” to
the phrase it will work better.)
    The Google search engine giant is also developing more tricks.
(Check out labs.google.com for a breakout of Google technology
currently in the works.) These include new video searches to
access TV programs online and Google Scholar to archive
academic journals. Despite all these innovations, one should not
rely purely on Google. Yahoo! searches usually display completely
different results.
    The cool site yagoohoogle.com actually splits the screen in half
and shows Yahoo! and Google search results side by side.
    While I’m writing about computers, I have two more thoughts.
First, if you have not updated your browser in the last three
months, do it. Most use Internet Explorer to browse the web. Just
go to microsoft.com/downloads and download the latest version of the
explorer. It’s free, quick and safe. This simple step will vastly
improve web viewing and security.
    Thought number #2: Make desplainesvalleynews.com your
homepage. Just type www.desplainesvalleynews.com into
“homepage” under your “internet preferences.”

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