By this point in the internet era, everyone should know how to find information on the Web with a search engine like Google or Bing. Easy, right? Just type what you are looking for in the little box.
There are even easier ways. Google and Bing have built right into their search boxes tools like calculators, currency converters and dictionaries. They developed a host of tricks you can use to slice through clutter to reach the information you need.
Travel tools
A fast way to find driving directions with Google is to type your query directly in the search box, using the following format: from 1380 Mass Ave, Cambridge, Mass., to 815 Boylston St., Boston. The result is a map along with driving distance, trip time and a link to directions.
If you are planning air travel, you can track fares and be directed to sites for ticket purchases. In the Google search box, type airport codes in the following way: BOS to ABQ. An initial listing of flights appears, along with drop-down calendars to select departure and return dates.
If you click on the "Flights from Boston to Albuquerque" link, you arrive at a more extensive tool for finding flight information, including a lowest fares calculator, available by clicking the small graph-shaped button, or an interactive map, by clicking the balloon button, where you can choose among different departure or destination cities.
Bing's tool for air travel can be found using the same format of entering airport codes in the search box, and when you drill down further you have choices of buying tickets through sources like Travelocity, Priceline and Expedia.
Converting currencies is also available by using the following format in either search engine: 100 U.S. dollars in Indian rupees.
Social Networks
Both Google and Microsoft have been trying to figure out how best to interact with the trove of information locked away in social networking sites like Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.
Microsoft has entered into partnerships with Facebook and others allowing Bing users to connect with people who may know something about their search query. You can log into a Facebook account from the Bing home page, and while you search in Bing, a sidebar appears along the right side of the results page that may display Facebook friends who have some relationship to your search. If your query is "Mexican restaurants in San Antonio," and you hover over the image of a friend, you may see a Facebook comment or photo of their favourite place for good mole.
Specialised searches
Much has changed since the early days of search engines, and given the vastness of data now available online, knowing a few simple yet powerful shortcuts can pinpoint information more relevant to your search.
You can dig through the Web for specific kinds of files, for example PowerPoint files related to the Affordable Care Act. In Google use the format filetype:ppt the affordable care act. (The ppt part of the query is the extension for PowerPoint files.) Other popular extensions are docx, xlsx and pdf, for Word, Excel and PDF files. Bing flips the search format - type the affordable care act filetype:ppt.
Another very useful way to dig for information is to use the prefix site: to search within a site. For example, type site:washingtonpost.com Mitt Romney to get links to articles and other references to Mitt Romney in The Washington Post. Bing reverses the format - type Mitt Romney site:washingtonpost.com.
Finding facts
If you need a calculator, both Google and Bing can calculate some pretty fancy math queries by entering them in the search box, but Google goes further. Type 4 (AST) 24 in Google and the answer appears as you finish typing, and below that emerges an in-browser calculator with scientific functions. You can also turn Google's search box into a trigonometric graphing calculator; type, for example, cos(x) + cos(y) and a rotating three-dimensional graph is displayed. From there you can size the graph or grab it to view it from different angles.
Converting measurements is easy using the following format in either search engine: pints in a gallon; centimetres in a foot.
Stock prices are available in either Google or Bing by entering a stock symbol - followed by "stock" if there is any ambiguity. For example aapl stock or sbux stock, pulls up prices of Apple or Starbucks. In Google, using a company name works: Whole Foods stock.
Dictionaries are available as well by using the following format: define perspicacity. Weather forecasts are quickly at hand by entering a ZIP code or city name, in either Google or Bing, as in weather Denver.
But, if you are looking for someone to take out to a movie and impress with all your newfound knowledge, there is no search algorithm just yet. For that, you are still on your own.