|
|
Tips for using Google in Genealogy Searches |
Search for your ancestors using this interactive directory of the best free genealogy search engines. Search top world-wide & specialized genealogy databases from one genealogy search site! The Ancestor Search site also has unique custom genealogy search engines found no where else. |
| Home | Ancestry | Getting Started | Google Searcher | Surname Finder | Surname Origins | Freebies | Tools | Help | ||||||||||||
|
||
|
Home
>
Free Genealogy Search Help
> Using Google in Genealogy Searches
|
Using Google in Genealogy Searches-by Kathi Reid
Since the Google search engine went live in September 1999, it has changed the way people search the web. Today, many genealogists use Google for their genealogy internet and surname queries, and for good reason. Not only does Google produce accurate and relevant search results, Google is extraordinarily fast and flexible. However, Google has evolved over the years and the tips and tricks have changed and evolved also. Below are some tips for genealogy searches to get the most from all that Google has to offer. (Many of these ideas apply to all search engines) Word for Word
Google MathUse the power of Google's advanced search:
Use double quotations [ " ]when you want an exact match around your keyword and don't want a synonym or a word that has the same stem but is not an exact match. If you only want an exact keyword match, you must force Google to do this by placing the " before and after the keyword. One of my surnames is Powers, and I was surprised when Google started returning results of Powers, Power, and powered. This is because Google uses stemming in its searches which means it will search for your keywords but also for words that are based on the keyword stem. Another one of my surnames is Meyer, and Google will return surname variations of Mayer, Meier, Mayers, and Myers. Sometimes stemming can be helpful as it will give singular and plural results in a single query. But when you only want an exact match for the words with no substitution, add double quotes around the keyword. "powers" "meyer" Using quotes is certainly not necessary for all surnames or keywords. Try your search first without them and use quotes only if you are getting unwanted results. Use a minus sign [ - ] before words that you do NOT want to appear in your search results. Try to eliminate false results by telling Google NOT to give results when a particular unwanted word appears in your search results. "powers" -austin This search will not return any web pages that include the word austin This helps to eliminates irrelevant results, in this case all mention of the movie Austin Powers. I am sure you all have names in your family tree like Powers. It has many meanings besides being a surname which can give some pretty extraneous results. How do you know which keywords to minus? First do your search and examine the results for things that have nothing to do with your query. If I search for powers, I get
So I would change my search to +Powers -persuasion –emergency –attorney Note: There are spaces between keywords, but not between the operators. What if my surname is also a common word?If you are searching for a surname that is also a noun, such as Church, Street, Day, Park or Fox, you probably have found that most of your searches bring up unwanted web pages about churches, streets, days, parks, and foxes that have nothing to do with the surname. To find genealogy pages with these common noun surnames:
No Ifs, Ands OR ButsThere is no need to use the operand [ and ] between keywords since Google already makes this assumption. But the operand [ OR ] can be a very useful Google tool . [ OR ] must all uppercase letters or Google will ignore it.
Don't Know the Exact Year?With Google, you can search for a range of years. If you are not sure of the year, but you have an approximate idea, do a number range search. You can also use a number range using birth and death years so that results will only fall during the lifetime of the individual. Some examples are:
The results will give any occurrence of your keywords that matches one of the years within the range. Too Much of A Good ThingBy default, Google only returns pages that include all of your search terms or their synonyms. When too much information in included in a search, the chances for relevant results may be reduced if all the query words don't appear on a web page. If at first you don't get good results, your search may be too narrow:
Spelling Counts.If Google thinks you have spelled a word incorrectly, it will instead give you search results for word it thinks you want. Many times this is helpful.
Watch those Abbreviations.Put your Name in Quotes.If you type [ John Smith ] in Google you may receive search results with every occurrence of John and every occurrence of Smith but not necessarily John Smith together. For example if John Guggenheim and Hiram Smith are on the same page, that will count as a hit for the search phrase [ John Smith ] because both John and Smith were found (but not necessarily together). Try this trick to force exact and more accurate search results:
Be careful with the use of quotes as you may miss valid matches if the name is listed on the web page as [ Smith, John ] or [ John and Mary Smith ]. If you search with the name in quotes, Google will not return web pages with the surname written in an alternate manner in its search results. Upper or Lower Case?Google searches are not case sensitive. Searching for Smith, SMITH, smith, and SmItH will all give the same Google search results. Singular or Plural?Google now uses stemming technology. Thus, when appropriate, it will search not only for your search terms, but also for words that are similar to some or all of those terms. If you search for [ Philadelphia churches ], Google will also search for [ Philadelphia church ], and other related variations of your terms. If you search for any variants of your terms that were searched for will be highlighted in the snippet of text accompanying each result. Now that Google uses algorithms which will give search results for web pages with variations of the base word, you will get the same search results whether you enter the singular or plural version of a word. Stemming may cause a Google search to find matches for surnames with the same stem. If you find you are getting results for surnames variations and you only want a match for the exact spelling of the surname, use double quotes around the name [ " ].
Google Adds, Subtracts & ConvertsGoogle's Calculator can perform anything from simple arithmetic to extremely complex mathematical functions, but genealogists will probably be most interested in subtraction (to determine ages) and conversions. If you know someone's age from the 1930 census, use Google's calculator to determine an approximate year of birth. Enter [ 1930 - 75 ] Or when reading great-grandpa's will who left a farm of 119 rods by 27 rods, you can use Google's calculator to convert rods to yards or miles so you can visualize just how big (or small) the farm really was. Enter [ 119 rods in yards ]. Sample calculator entries: 1930 - 75 119 rods in yards 119 rods in miles 100 miles in kilometers 3 furlongs in miles 2 ml in teaspoons SynonymThe tilde ~ is Google's newest operator. Now you can search not only for a particular keyword, but also for its synonyms (words having the same or nearly the same meaning as another word). Indicate a search for both by placing the tilde sign ("~") immediately in front of the keyword. While this operator is still functional, Google has started doing synonym searches automatically, and so the tilde has become unnecessary. But if you want to search for web pages that contain the word genealogy, family history, family tree, or ancestry, search for ~genealogy because not every genealogy web page actually uses the word genealogy. Cache a Missing Page.Google keeps the text of the many documents it crawls available in a backed-up format known as "cache." A cached version of a web page can be retrieved if the original page is temporarily unavailable, moved or permanently removed from the internet. The cached page appears as it looked when the Google last crawled it. To retrieve a cached page, click on the gray arrows to open the "instant preview" and click on the word cached . Sprechen Sie Deutsches? Parlez-vous français?If not, and you find a web page in a language that you cannot read, Google will do the translation for you. Click on the link for more at the top of every Google page. From there, click on even more, then, click on Translate. Or you can go directly to Google Translate. You can enter an URL or text to translate. Although the Google translator isn't very good at idioms and translates rather literally, it is usually good enough to give a general gist of a web page contents. Languages that Google will translate are German, Spanish, French, Italian, or Portuguese. Google Address LocatorGoogle search results now give current street maps with street addresses. Find a street map by entering address number, street, city, and state into the Google search box. Use this to map an address found on an old census. A Picture is Worth a Thousand WordsAfter searching for text about your ancestor on the web, try searching for his photograph by using Google's image search. Click on the [ Images ] hyperlink on any Google page with your ancestor's name in the search box and you will get a results page of image thumbnails. Before you begin, you can set your Google preferences to filter explicit sexual images from appearing in search results. Try searching for:
Click on the thumbnail for a larger view of the photograph and the URL where the photo can be found. Be sure to visit the web page from which the image originated to find more information. Google GroupsGoogle Groups are the archives of newsgroups where you can search for old surname queries. Click on the [ Groups ] hyperlink on any Google page with your ancestor's name in the search box. Since Google Groups archive ALL newsgroup archives and not just genealogy, add the word genealogy to the search box after your ancestor's name to limit your searches to genealogy newsgroups. More Genealogy Search Help © Copyright 1997 - 2013 -- All Rights Reserved. This article may not be copied, published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed without prior written permission from the author. |
|
|
Contact Us
|
Link to Us
|
Privacy Policy
|
Site Map
© 1997 - 2013 SearchforAncestors.Com All rights reserved. |