Monday, March 28, 2011

An undocumented Google search function, AROUND.

This function allows you to specify a tolerance of words in between keywords. Usage is simple, just add this function in between your search terms:

AROUND(x) [where X is the maximum number of words which can appear between your two search keywords]

For example, searching "Albert Winchell" with quotes) will search for the literal string match of "Albert Winchell", but it would not return results about "Albert B Winchell" or "Albert Baker Winchell", etc. This is where you can use the AROUND function. Searching:

Albert AROUND(1) Winchell

Tells the search engine to return results where there are 1 or fewer words between "Albert" and "Winchell".

This can be useful for searching by phrases or error messages which you may not know verbatim.

The AROUND function is definitely a nice function to know about, so keep in mind the next time you are trying to weed out some irrelevant search results.

Here's wiching you a Good Boot

No comments: