Wednesday, October 30, 2013

Google Search Secrets is in print and shipping now!

For Immediate Release
Tue, 10/29/2013
Contact:
Rob Christopher
Marketing Coordinator
ALA Publishing
312-280-5052
rchristopher@ala.org
American Library Association
CHICAGO — Google can be an incredibly powerful tool for research, but the top-of-the-page results are seldom the most beneficial to library users and students, and many of the search engine’s most useful features are hidden behind its famously simple interface. In “Google Search Secrets,” published by ALA Neal-Schuman, Christa Burns and Michael P. Sauers reveal tricks and tips for effective Google searches, showing how to get the most out of the service, with:
  • an overview of all the tool’s search services, including Images, Maps, News, Blogs, Discussions, Scholar, Patents and Books;
  • ready-to-use instructions on how to go beyond the simple search box and top results to get library users the answers they need, fast;
  • straightforward guidance on using filters to refine search results, with examples of common searches like images with Creative Commons licenses, news searches set for a date range or into an archive and videos with closed captioning;
  • an explanation of the bibliography manager feature of Google Scholar, which allows students and researchers to build bibliographies with ease;
  • tips for configuring Safe Search on workstations in children’s departments and schools;
  • copious screenshots that walk readers through each topic step by step.
Burns is the special projects librarian, technology and access services, at the Nebraska Library Commission. She provides organization, training and consultation for special projects, such as the Gates Foundation grants for libraries, E-rate, Learning 2.0 and group purchases of library products and services. She also coordinates, produces, and hosts the Commission’s weekly webinar series, NCompass Live. She previously spent more than eight years at Pace University in Westchester County, N.Y., starting as a reference librarian and working her way up to become head of research and information services.
Sauers is currently the technology innovation librarian for the Nebraska Library Commission in Lincoln, Neb., and has been training librarians in technology for almost 20 years. He has been a public library trustee, a bookstore manager for a library Friends group, a reference librarian, serials cataloger, technology consultant and bookseller. He earned his MLS in 1995 from the University at Albany’s School of Information Science and Policy. He blogs at The Travelin' Librarian, and runs websites for authors and historical societies. He has authored or co-authored many books, including “Semantic Web Technologies and Social Searching for Librarians (THE TECH SET® #20).”
ALA Store purchases fund advocacy, awareness and accreditation programs for library professionals worldwide. Founded in 1976 by Patricia Glass Schuman and John Vincent Neal, ALA Neal-Schuman, now an imprint of ALA Publishing, publishes professional books for librarians, archivists, and knowledge managers. Contact us at (800) 545-2433 ext. 5052 oreditionsmarketing@ala.org.

Sunday, October 27, 2013

Mega SERP: A Visual Guide to Google

The folks over at The Moz Blog have created an amazing version of a Google search engine results page (SERP) containing every currently conceivable type of search result. No, you'll never actually see a real-life results page like this, and it is designed for the SEO crowd, but it's an amazing graphic none the less. Click on the image for the original blog post containing the explanation of each area shown.


Friday, October 25, 2013

Google Knows Songs

Here's a new quick search: enter your favorite band's or artist's name followed by the word songs. For example David Bowie songs. At the top of the results screen you'll receive a list of songs along with their album, release date, and length. Click on one of them to see what happens next.


Tuesday, October 15, 2013

Coming Soon! Google Search Secrets, the Book

It's almost here!

After many, many months of hard work, Google Search Secrets is finally at the printer. You can pre-order it from Amazon or ALA.

Saturday, October 12, 2013

Google knows how much to tip (and can split the check too.)

Have a dinner check that you're going to split evenly amongst the diners and also want to know how much to tip? Just search Google for tip for $92.37 (change the amount as appropriate) and search. You'll be presented with an interactive result telling you how much to tip @ 15% and what the total will then be. If you wish to tip more (or less) or have more diners with which to evenly split the check, just adjust those fields accordingly.