A Desktop Shortcut To Hibernation

The Shutdown.exe command can shut down or restart your computer, optionally forcing it to shut down even if some programs attempt to prevent it. But it does not include an option to to hibernate. To create a shortcut, right-click on an empty space on the Desktop and select 'New->Shortcut'. In the 'Type the location of the item'box copy this text:

rundll32.exe PowrProf.dll SetSuspendState


Click on the Next button. In the 'Type a name for this shortcut' box type 'Hibernate' then click on the Finish button. If the shortcut does not work, then you will probably need to configure your computer to enable hibernation. click on the Start button and select 'Settings'. click on 'Control Panel' then double-click on the 'Power Options' icon. click on the 'Hibernate' tab and make sure the 'Enable Hibnernate' checkbox is checked. 

Add 'Open New Window' in right-click

You can add the 'Open New Folder' option, when browsing from folder to folder, to the right-click menu by going to the Regsitry and looking for this string:

HKEY_CLASSES_ROOT\Directory\Default Icon\Shell\Shellex

Right-click on the 'Shell' string and select 'New->String Key' and name it 'opennew'. Right-click on the new string and change the value to read 'Open New & Window'. Right click on the 'opennew' string and select 'New->String Key' and name it 'Command'. Right-click on it and change the value to read %1.

Assign A Drive Letter To A Network Computer Or Folder

Assign A Drive Letter To A Network Computer Or Folder

1. Open My Computer. 
2. On the Tools menu, click Map Network Drive. 
3. In Drive, select a drive letter. 
4. In Folder, type the server and share name of the computer or folder you want. 


Example:
\servernamesharename.
-or-
Click Browse to find the computer or folder.

Side Notes:
- To open My Computer, double-click the My Computer icon on the desktop.
- To reconnect to the mapped drive every time you log on, select the Reconnect at logon check box.
- Mapped drives are available only when the host computer is available.
- Network drives are assigned letters from Z to A, and local drives (your hard drive and removable storage devices) are assigned letters from A to Z.
- You can assign a computer or shared folder to a different drive letter by disconnecting from the drive and then reassigning it to a new drive letter.

Add My Pictures To Windows XP's Send To Menu

Add My Pictures folder to the Send To contextual menu in Windows XP. 

1. Go into My Computer.
2. Double-click your C: drive.
3. Click Documents and Settings for Users.
4. Go into your user folder.

5. If you haven't already, reveal your hidden folders.
6. Click Tools and choose Options.
7. Go to the View tab and select "Show hidden files and folders."
8. Click Apply.
9. Click OK.

You'll see a hidden folder called Send To. Open it.

Drag and drop the My Pictures shortcut on your desktop into the folder.

If you don't already have a shortcut to My Pictures, right-click its entry and choose Create Shortcut.

Adding Fonts To the Context Menu

Many people like to do their editing using the Context menus that appear when you right-click on an item. (In Word terminology, Context Menus are also referred to as Shortcut menus.) If you find yourself changing the fonts of your text quite a bit, you can add your favorite typefaces to the Context menu that pops up when you right-click on text. This can save you a bit of mouse movement or a trip through the Font dialog box.

To add your fonts to the text Context menu, follow these steps:


Choose Customize from the Tools menu. Word displays the Customize dialog box. 
Make sure the Toolbars tab is selected. (Click here to see a related figure.) 
Scroll through the list of toolbars, and select the Shortcut Menus item. A floating Shortcut Menus toolbar appears. 

The toolbar has three items on it. These items represent the three categories of Shortcut menus used by Word.

Click on Text, then choose Text from the drop-down list. This displays the actual Shortcut menu that appears when you right-click on text within your document.
Within the Customize dialog box, click on the Commands tab. (Click here to see a related figure.)

Using the Categories list, choose Fonts.

Using the Commands list, drag font names to the position where you want them to appear on the Shortcut menu.

Repeat step 8 for each font you want on the Shortcut menu.

Close the Shortcut Menus toolbar.

Click Close in the Customize dialog box when you are done. 

Create Your Own Desktop Theme In Windows XP

When you modify any element of a theme, It is recommended that you always save your changes with a new theme name. If you select a different theme before you save your changes, the changes that you made to the theme are lost. 

To create your own desktop theme, follow these steps: 
1. Click Start, Click Control Panel, click Appearance and Themes, and then click Display. Or, right-click an empty area of the desktop, and then click Properties.
2. Click the Themes tab, and then, in the Theme list, click the theme that you want to modify.
3. Make your intended changes to the elements of the theme that you want to modify. 

The following list shows individual desktop theme elements and their locations on the Display Properties dialog box tab or in Control Panel:


- To change the background design, the color, or the position of the background design on your screen, click the Desktop tab in the Display Properties dialog box.


- To change the icons on your desktop, click the Desktop tab in the Display Properties dialog box, and then click Customize Desktop.


- To change the screen saver, click the Screen Saver tab in the Display Properties dialog box.


- To change the color scheme, the window and button styles, or the font size, click the Appearance tab in the Display Properties dialog box.


- To change the color, the size, and the font settings of individual window elements, click the Appearance tab in the Display Properties dialog box, and then click Advanced.


- To change your mouse pointer scheme or the appearance of individual pointers, click the Pointers tab in the Mouse Properties dialog box. (Click Start, click Control Panel, click Printers and Other Hardware, and then click Mouse.)


- To change a sound scheme or to apply a sound to individual program events, click the Sounds tab in the Sounds and Audio Devices Properties dialog box. (Click Start, click Control Panel, click Sounds, Speech, and Audio Devices, and then click Sounds and Audio Devices.)

4. When you finish making the changes that you want, click the Themes tab in the Display Properties dialog box, and then click Apply.

The changes that you make to the theme are saved as Previous theme name (Modified), where "Previous theme name" is the name of the previous theme. This name is displayed in the Theme list, and it is the default name of the theme when you modify it but before you save it with a new name.


5. Click Save As.
6. In the Save As dialog box, type a name for your new theme, and then click Save.
7. Click OK.

Your new theme is displayed in the Theme list and is applied to your desktop.

New themes are saved in the My Documents folder with the .theme file name extension. For example, you might name your file InternetFixes.theme. To open the My Documents folder, click Start, and then click My Documents. 

Create your own Sleep button in Windows XP

Is the Sleep button on your Windows XP machine in an inconvenient location for regular use? If so, follow these simple steps to create your own.

Many computers or keyboards have a Sleep button, which when pressed puts the computer into either Stand By or Hibernate mode depending on how Windows XP's Power Options are configured. However, the Sleep button might not be in convenient location for regular use. For example, it might be on the front of a mid-tower case that's under your desk.

You could activate Stand By or Hibernate mode from the Shut Down Windows dialog box. An alternative to this method is to create your own Sleep button by creating a shortcut on your desktop. Here's how.

1. Right-click on the desktop.

2. Select New | Shortcut.

3. Type rundll32.exe powrprof.dll,SetSuspendState in the text box.

4. Click Next.

5. Type Sleep in the text box and click Finish.

Now when you click the Sleep icon, Windows XP will put the computer into either Stand By or Hibernate mode depending on how the When I Press The Sleep Button On My Computer setting is configured on the Advanced tab of the Power Options Properties dialog box

Kill Vista's explorer.exe in 3 clicks

The usual way of terminating the explorer process is through the Task manager. Rt-Click taskbar > Task manager > Process Tab > Right Click explorer.exe > End Process.

But Vista actually offers you a faster way to do it ... in 3 clicks !


Click Start button > Hold down Ctrl+Shift & Right Click on empty area in the Start Menu > Click "Exit Explorer".

To re-start it, you will have to do so as usual through the Task Manager. Click Ctrl+Alt+Delete and select Star Task Manager or press Ctrl+Shift+Esc. Then launch explorer.exe manually.

Disabling the Boot Logo

You can remove the boot logo that appears when you start Windows XP. This little tweak probably shaves only a few seconds off your boot time but seconds count if you are serious about trying to get Windows XP up and running as quickly as possible. The only negative is that if you remove the boot logo, you will also not see any boot messages, such as check disk.
To remove the boot logo, follow these steps:
1. Select Start/Run, type msconfig, and click OK.
2. In the System Configuration Utility, click the BOOT.INI tab.
3. On the BOOT.INI tab, click the NOGUIBOOT check box option. Click OK.

Remove The Chiness Virus 100% work

1st step
copy this code
battrib/s -s -h -r Autorun.inf
attrib/s -s -h -r Ravmon.exe

del/s Autorun.inf
del/s Ravmon.exe

and paste in da nopade
save as da .bat file

2nd step
copy da file that u have made and paste in all drives
and run da file one by one in drive
and restart da computer
it's work.100%

'show hidden files and folders' option not working

press windows+R >> type "regedit"(without quotes) & press enter >> then go to>>

HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\SOFTWARE\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Explorer\Advanced\Folder\Hidden\SHOWALL\

Now u can see two keys CheckedValue and DefaultValue

Double Click on CheckedValue and set the value 1 from 0
Double Click on DefaultValue and set the value 2 from 1

Lost/Forgot your Windows Password

~~Lost/Forgot your Windows Password
Can’t Log On to Windows XP? Break Windows passwordIf that’s your only problem, then you probably have nothing to worry about. As long as you have your Windows XP CD, you can get back into your system using a simple but effective method made possible by a little known access hole in Windows XP.You can easily change or wipe out your Administrator password for free during a Windows XP Repair. Here’s how with a step-by-step description of the initial Repair process included for newbie’s.

1. Place your Windows XP CD in your cd-rom and start your computer (it’s assumed here that your XP CD is bootable as it should be - and that you have your bios set to boot from CD)


2. Keep your eye on the screen messages for booting to your cd Typically, it will be “Press any key to boot from cd”

3. Once you get in, the first screen will indicate that Setup is inspecting your system and loading files. When you get to the Welcome to Setup screen, press ENTER to Setup Windows now

4. The Licensing Agreement comes next - Press F8 to accept it.

5. The next screen is the Setup screen which gives you the option to do a Repair. It should read something like “If one of the following Windows XP installations is damaged, Setup can try to repair it”
Use the up and down arrow keys to select your XP installation (if you only have one, it should already be selected) and press R to begin the Repair process.

6. Let the Repair run. Setup will now check your disks and then start copying files which can take several minutes.

7. Shortly after the Copying Files stage, you will be required to reboot. (this will happen automatically and you will see a progress bar stating “Your computer will reboot in 15 seconds”

8. During the reboot, do not make the mistake of “pressing any key” to boot from the CD again! Setup will resume automatically with the standard billboard screens and you will notice Installing Windows is highlighted.

9. Keep your eye on the lower left hand side of the screen and when you see the Installing Devices progress bar, press SHIFT + F10. This is the security hole! A command console will now open up giving you the potential for wide access to your system.

10. At the prompt, type NUSRMGR.CPL and press Enter. Voila! You have just gained graphical access to your User Accounts in the Control Panel.

11. Now simply pick the account you need to change and remove or change your password as you prefer. If you want to log on without having to enter your new password, you can type control userpasswords2 at the prompt and choose to log on without being asked for password. After you’ve made your changes close the windows, exit the command box and continue on with the Repair (have your Product key handy).

12. Once the Repair is done, you will be able to log on with your new password (or without a password if you chose not to use one or if you chose not to be asked for a password). Your programs and personalized settings should remain intact.

13. I tested the above on Windows XP Pro with and without SP1 and also used this method in a real situation where someone could not remember their password and it worked like a charm to fix the problem. This security hole allows access to more than just user accounts.

SOLUTION:-Orkut / youtubebanned or mozila not open

SOLUTION:-Orkut / youtubebanned or mozila not open
If you find this message “I DNT HATE MOZILLA BUT USE IE OR ELSE…”

when you launch Firefox or this” ORKUT IS BANNED, Orkut is banned you fool`, The administrators didn’t write this program guess who did?? ”

when you try to launch Orkut Or “youtube IS BANNED,youtube is banned you fool`, The administrators didn’t write this program guess who did??`r`r MUHAHAHA!!,30″,
Then you are system is infected with w32.USBworm.
Don’t PANIC, this worm is a decent worm, which does not destroy your files or damage your computer.

This virus spreads through USB drives. It will not let you install Firefox and if it’s already installed in your PC, it won’t let you use Firefox!
The virus is known as heap41a W32.USBWorm.

SOLUTION


its quite easy

just ctrl+alt+del

then go to process tab

look for svchost.exe under image name. end process for user name by which u logged in
example svchost under administrator
end process it

then in start=>RUN=> type c:\heap41a
there u fine one file in green color named SVCHOST

delete the file [svchost] in that folder and you good to go

U should have administrator rights to delete the file. remove permanantly.

21 TipsnTricks For UR SYSTEM

21 TipsnTricks For UR SYSTEM
1] Your Pc Must have 256MB RAM , 512 MB Cache , Intel Pentium 4 Processor, 40 GB HDD. These are the minimum requirements.

2] If you see a 'virtual memory low' message then increase its virtual memory. To increase virtual memory,
Go to My Computer->Properties->Advanced->Performance Settings->Advanced->Virtual Memory->Change->Select the appropriate drive->Custom size->set appropriate level(our it is 600(min.) & 700(max.)->Ok.


3] Increase 'Visual Performance'. Go to My Computer->Properties->Advanced->Performance Settings->Visual Settings->Custom->Select only the following options.
a)Slide taskbar buttons.
b)Smooth edges of screen fonts.
c)Smooth-scroll list boxes.
d)Use a background image for each folder type.
e)Use visual style on windows and buttons.

4] Don't keep unwanted/extra fonts. To remove extra fonts, Go to Start->Settings->Control Panel->Fonts.

5] Your Desktop Wallpaper & Screensaver consume a large amount of disk space. Select the 'None' option for both wallpapers & Screensavers.

6] Avoid keeping DEMO Games.

7] Uninstall the unwanted Softwares.

8] Use Registry Cleaner to keep your registry clean(without errors).

9] Try to keep Music and pictures files in the folder specified by windows itself.

10]Use Hybernating Option for Quick windows start. To active Hybernating follow the following steps.
Desktop->Properties->Screensaver->Power->Hybernating->Enable Hybernating->Ok.

11] Keep your Dektop clean with unwanted icons.

12] Use Intel Application Accelerator to speed up your disk access,

13] Memory management (at least 512MB RAM Required). This allow XP to keep data in Memory instead of paging section of RAM.
Go to->Start->Run->regedit->HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE->SYSTEM->CurrentControlSet->Control->Session Manager->Memory Management->Double click it->DisablePageingExecutive->Double Clik it->Set value to 1.

14] Disable Yahoo Messenger, Google Talk, and other unwanted programs from startup. (You can use registry editior to do this.). Because they do not appear in normal Startup Option.

15] Disable indexing files service (only if you do not use search option regularly). To do this follow the following steps.
Go to My Computer->Select the drive for which you want to disable the indexing service->Properties->Unselect 'Allow Indexing Service'->Ok.

16] For Windows XP, You must use NTFS partition. FAT partition is less supportive for Windows XP.

17] In BIOS, Select first booting device as your HDD.

18] Setting Priority High for a particular program.
Open Task Manager->Processes->Select the desired Program->Right Click->Set Priority->High->Ok.
This Priority set if for current session. Once you restart your system then its priority will again be Normal.

19] Keep deleting your Temporary Internet Files in regular intervals.
Go to Windows Drive (c: or d:)->Select the User->Local Settings->Temporary Internet Files

20] Empty your browser's cache in regular intervals.

21] Avoid keeping Movies in your PC.

Windows XP Shortcuts

ALT+- (ALT+hyphen) Displays the Multiple Document Interface (MDI) child window's System menu
ALT+ENTER View properties for the selected item
ALT+ESC Cycle through items in the order they were opened
ALT+F4 Close the active item, or quit the active program
ALT+SPACEBAR Display the System menu for the active window
ALT+TAB Switch between open items
ALT+Underlined letter Display the corresponding menu
BACKSPACE View the folder one level up in My Computer or Windows Explorer
CTRL+A Select all
CTRL+B Bold
CTRL+C Copy
CTRL+I Italics
CTRL+O Open an item
CTRL+U Underline
CTRL+V Paste
CTRL+X Cut
CTRL+Z Undo
CTRL+F4 Close the active document
CTRL while dragging Copy selected item

CTRL+SHIFT while dragging Create shortcut to selected iteM
CTRL+RIGHT ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next word
CTRL+LEFT ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous word
CTRL+DOWN ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the next paragraph
CTRL+UP ARROW Move the insertion point to the beginning of the previous paragraph
SHIFT+DELETE Delete selected item permanently without placing the item in the Recycle Bin
ESC Cancel the current task
F1 Displays Help
F2 Rename selected item
F3 Search for a file or folder
F4 Display the Address bar list in My Computer or Windows Explorer
F5 Refresh the active window
F6 Cycle through screen elements in a window or on the desktop
F10 Activate the menu bar in the active program
SHIFT+F10 Display the shortcut menu for the selected item
CTRL+ESC Display the Start menu
SHIFT+CTRL+ESC Launches Task Manager
SHIFT when you insert a CD Prevent the CD from automatically playing
WIN Display or hide the Start menu
WIN+BREAK Display the System Properties dialog box
WIN+D Minimizes all Windows and shows the Desktop
WIN+E Open Windows Explorer
WIN+F Search for a file or folder
WIN+F+CTRL Search for computers
WIN+L Locks the desktop
WIN+M Minimize or restore all windows
WIN+R Open the Run dialog box
WIN+TAB Switch between open items

------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Windows Explorer Shortcuts
-------------------------------------------------------------
ALT+SPACEBAR - Display the current window’s system menu
SHIFT+F10 - Display the item's context menu
CTRL+ESC - Display the Start menu
ALT+TAB - Switch to the window you last used
ALT+F4 - Close the current window or quit
CTRL+A - Select all items
CTRL+X - Cut selected item(s)
CTRL+C - Copy selected item(s)
CTRL+V - Paste item(s)
CTRL+Z - Undo last action
CTRL+(+) - Automatically resize the columns in the right hand pane
TAB - Move forward through options
ALT+RIGHT ARROW - Move forward to a previous view
ALT+LEFT ARROW - Move backward to a previous view
SHIFT+DELETE - Delete an item immediately
BACKSPACE - View the folder one level up
ALT+ENTER - View an item’s properties
F10 - Activate the menu bar in programs
F6 - Switch between left and right panes
F5 - Refresh window contents
F3 - Display Find application
F2 - Rename selected item
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Internet Explorer Shortcuts
--------------------------------------------------------------
CTRL+A - Select all items on the current page
CTRL+D - Add the current page to your Favorites
CTRL+E - Open the Search bar
CTRL+F - Find on this page
CTRL+H - Open the History bar
CTRL+I - Open the Favorites bar
CTRL+N - Open a new window
CTRL+O - Go to a new location
CTRL+P - Print the current page or active frame
CTRL+S - Save the current page
CTRL+W - Close current browser window
CTRL+ENTER - Adds the http://www. (url) .com
SHIFT+CLICK - Open link in new window
BACKSPACE - Go to the previous page
ALT+HOME - Go to your Home page
HOME - Move to the beginning of a document
TAB - Move forward through items on a page
END - Move to the end of a document
ESC - Stop downloading a page
F11 - Toggle full-screen view
F5 - Refresh the current page
F4 - Display list of typed addresses
F6 - Change Address bar and page focus
ALT+RIGHT ARROW - Go to the next page
SHIFT+CTRL+TAB - Move back between frames
SHIFT+F10 - Display a shortcut menu for a link
SHIFT+TAB - Move back through the items on a page
CTRL+TAB - Move forward between frames
CTRL+C - Copy selected items to the clipboard
CTRL+V - Insert contents of the clipboard
ENTER - Activate a selected link
HOME - Move to the beginning of a document
END - Move to the end of a document
F1 - Display Internet Explorer Help

20 Great Google Secrets

20 Great Google Secrets



http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,1306756,00.asp

excl.gif No Active Links, Read the Rules - Edit by Ninja excl.gif



Google is clearly the best general-purpose search engine on the Web (see

www.pcmag.com/searchengines

But most people don't use it to its best advantage. Do you just plug in a keyword or two and hope for the best? That may be the quickest way to search, but with more than 3 billion pages in Google's index, it's still a struggle to pare results to a manageable number.


But Google is an remarkably powerful tool that can ease and enhance your Internet exploration. Google's search options go beyond simple keywords, the Web, and even its own programmers. Let's look at some of Google's lesser-known options.

Syntax Search Tricks

Using a special syntax is a way to tell Google that you want to restrict your searches to certain elements or characteristics of Web pages. Google has a fairly complete list of its syntax elements at

www.google.com/help/operators.html

. Here are some advanced operators that can help narrow down your search results.

Intitle: at the beginning of a query word or phrase (intitle:"Three Blind Mice") restricts your search results to just the titles of Web pages.

Intext: does the opposite of intitle:, searching only the body text, ignoring titles, links, and so forth. Intext: is perfect when what you're searching for might commonly appear in URLs. If you're looking for the term HTML, for example, and you don't want to get results such as

www.mysite.com/index.html

, you can enter intext:html.

Link: lets you see which pages are linking to your Web page or to another page you're interested in. For example, try typing in

link:http://www.pcmag.com


Try using site: (which restricts results to top-level domains) with intitle: to find certain types of pages. For example, get scholarly pages about Mark Twain by searching for intitle:"Mark Twain"site:edu. Experiment with mixing various elements; you'll develop several strategies for finding the stuff you want more effectively. The site: command is very helpful as an alternative to the mediocre search engines built into many sites.

Swiss Army Google

Google has a number of services that can help you accomplish tasks you may never have thought to use Google for. For example, the new calculator feature

(www.google.com/help/features.html#calculator)

lets you do both math and a variety of conversions from the search box. For extra fun, try the query "Answer to life the universe and everything."

Let Google help you figure out whether you've got the right spelling—and the right word—for your search. Enter a misspelled word or phrase into the query box (try "thre blund mise") and Google may suggest a proper spelling. This doesn't always succeed; it works best when the word you're searching for can be found in a dictionary. Once you search for a properly spelled word, look at the results page, which repeats your query. (If you're searching for "three blind mice," underneath the search window will appear a statement such as Searched the web for "three blind mice.") You'll discover that you can click on each word in your search phrase and get a definition from a dictionary.

Suppose you want to contact someone and don't have his phone number handy. Google can help you with that, too. Just enter a name, city, and state. (The city is optional, but you must enter a state.) If a phone number matches the listing, you'll see it at the top of the search results along with a map link to the address. If you'd rather restrict your results, use rphonebook: for residential listings or bphonebook: for business listings. If you'd rather use a search form for business phone listings, try Yellow Search

(www.buzztoolbox.com/google/yellowsearch.shtml).




Extended Googling

Google offers several services that give you a head start in focusing your search. Google Groups

(http://groups.google.com)

indexes literally millions of messages from decades of discussion on Usenet. Google even helps you with your shopping via two tools: Froogle
CODE
(http://froogle.google.com),

which indexes products from online stores, and Google Catalogs
CODE
(http://catalogs.google.com),

which features products from more 6,000 paper catalogs in a searchable index. And this only scratches the surface. You can get a complete list of Google's tools and services at

www.google.com/options/index.html

You're probably used to using Google in your browser. But have you ever thought of using Google outside your browser?

Google Alert

(www.googlealert.com)

monitors your search terms and e-mails you information about new additions to Google's Web index. (Google Alert is not affiliated with Google; it uses Google's Web services API to perform its searches.) If you're more interested in news stories than general Web content, check out the beta version of Google News Alerts

(www.google.com/newsalerts).

This service (which is affiliated with Google) will monitor up to 50 news queries per e-mail address and send you information about news stories that match your query. (Hint: Use the intitle: and source: syntax elements with Google News to limit the number of alerts you get.)

Google on the telephone? Yup. This service is brought to you by the folks at Google Labs

(http://labs.google.com),

a place for experimental Google ideas and features (which may come and go, so what's there at this writing might not be there when you decide to check it out). With Google Voice Search

(http://labs1.google.com/gvs.html),

you dial the Voice Search phone number, speak your keywords, and then click on the indicated link. Every time you say a new search term, the results page will refresh with your new query (you must have JavaScript enabled for this to work). Remember, this service is still in an experimental phase, so don't expect 100 percent success.

In 2002, Google released the Google API (application programming interface), a way for programmers to access Google's search engine results without violating the Google Terms of Service. A lot of people have created useful (and occasionally not-so-useful but interesting) applications not available from Google itself, such as Google Alert. For many applications, you'll need an API key, which is available free from
CODE
www.google.com/apis

. See the figures for two more examples, and visit

www.pcmag.com/solutions

for more.

Thanks to its many different search properties, Google goes far beyond a regular search engine. Give the tricks in this article a try. You'll be amazed at how many different ways Google can improve your Internet searching.


Online Extra: More Google Tips


Here are a few more clever ways to tweak your Google searches.

Search Within a Timeframe

Daterange: (start date–end date). You can restrict your searches to pages that were indexed within a certain time period. Daterange: searches by when Google indexed a page, not when the page itself was created. This operator can help you ensure that results will have fresh content (by using recent dates), or you can use it to avoid a topic's current-news blizzard and concentrate only on older results. Daterange: is actually more useful if you go elsewhere to take advantage of it, because daterange: requires Julian dates, not standard Gregorian dates. You can find converters on the Web (such as

CODE
http://aa.usno.navy.mil/data/docs/JulianDate.html

excl.gif No Active Links, Read the Rules - Edit by Ninja excl.gif


), but an easier way is to do a Google daterange: search by filling in a form at

www.researchbuzz.com/toolbox/goofresh.shtml or www.faganfinder.com/engines/google.shtml

. If one special syntax element is good, two must be better, right? Sometimes. Though some operators can't be mixed (you can't use the link: operator with anything else) many can be, quickly narrowing your results to a less overwhelming number.

More Google API Applications

Staggernation.com offers three tools based on the Google API. The Google API Web Search by Host (GAWSH) lists the Web hosts of the results for a given query

(www.staggernation.com/gawsh/).

When you click on the triangle next to each host, you get a list of results for that host. The Google API Relation Browsing Outliner (GARBO) is a little more complicated: You enter a URL and choose whether you want pages that related to the URL or linked to the URL

(www.staggernation.com/garbo/).

Click on the triangle next to an URL to get a list of pages linked or related to that particular URL. CapeMail is an e-mail search application that allows you to send an e-mail to google@capeclear.com with the text of your query in the subject line and get the first ten results for that query back. Maybe it's not something you'd do every day, but if your cell phone does e-mail and doesn't do Web browsing, this is a very handy address to know.