How to Use Google to Find the Cheapest Gas Prices in Your Area

August 6, 2008 · Filed Under Customizing Google, Search Tips · Comment 

To find cheap gas using Google, we will use a feature called subscribed links.  You can access Google Subscribed Links by clicking on Preferences on the main Google Homepage, outlined in pink below:

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How to Use Google to Find Movie Showtimes, Find Theaters, and Reserve Your Tickets

June 25, 2008 · Filed Under Customizing Google, Search Tips · Comment 

Many internet users already know how to go to their movie theater’s website and see what movies they are currently showing and what the showtimes are.  However, there is an easier way!  Google has an index of pretty much every theater in the United States together with what movies they are currently showing and at what times.

One way to access this database is to type in the name of a movie that you want to see, then type in your location.  For example, you can type in the name of the movie, and just the name of your city if you live in a large city.  If your city is a little bit smaller, you may want to add a comma after the city name and type in the state.

Entering the Title of a Movie into Google and the City Name

You can also just type in the name of the movie and the ZIP code for your city.  Google automatically finds theaters that are within a reasonable distance so that you can see the available alternatives.

Entering a Movie Title and Zip Code into Google

Another method is to type in the name of the movie followed by your state.  This only works for some of the smaller and less-populated states.  As you can see below, it works for the smallest state by land area, Rhode Island.

Entering a Movie Title and State in Google

Find All the Theaters Playing a Certain Movie

If you do a search for The Incredible Hulk, Seattle and then click on the name of the movie, you will be directed to a page similar to the one below:

Finding Movie Showtimes in a City with Google

From this screen, you can see all of the theaters that are playing The Incredible Hulk in the Seattle area.

How to Reserve Your Seat Without Standing In Line

You may notice that some of the showtimes are clickable (the ones that are blue and underlined).  When you click on one of these links, it will transfer you to a website that allows you to purchase your movie tickets online.

This allows you to save your time by not having to go to the theater beforehand to get your tickets if you know the movie will be sold out.

Not Sure What Movie to See?

If all you know is that you want to spend approximately two hours of your time in a dark room full of strangers watching something on a screen, then simply type in movies [insert your city name, or ZIP code here].  You can see an example of this below.

For example, if I type in movies, traverse city, mi Google will show me a list of all of the movies that are playing in all of the theaters in Traverse City, MI.

Searching for Movies with Google in Traverse City, Michigan

You may notice that the title of the results, Showtimes for Traverse City, MI, is a clickable link.  If you click on it, Google will show you all of the movies that are playing in Traverse City at any movie theater.

Finding Other Movie Showtimes in a City

From this screen, Google makes it easy to hone in on any movie that sounds interesting.  In the upper right hand corner, Google allows you to sort the listings by the following attributes:

  • Theater Distance
  • Movie Popularity
  • Movie Rating
  • Movie Title

Once you’ve done that, you can then click on the reviews to the left of the movie title to read what others think of the movie.  Be careful though, they may contain spoilers that could potentially ruin the movie for you.

Google also tells you the running time of the movie, the rating, the genre, and allows you to view the movie trailer online.  In addition, Google provides a link to the IMDb, which stands for the Internet Movie Database.

Getting to the Theater

After the title of the movie theater, Google displays the address.  If you’re not sure where the address is located, Google provides a handy Map link that will allow you to view a map of where the theater is located.  Optionally, you can enter your address and Google will give you driving directions.

Enjoy your movie!

How to Display More Than 10 Search Results at a Time in Google

June 17, 2008 · Filed Under Customizing Google, Search Tips · Comment 

Have you ever found yourself searching for a certain website that you know you’ve been to before, but you can’t seem to find it? If you’re like me, you keep clicking the Next link at the bottom of each page of search results, hoping in vain that the page you are looking for will show up in the next page of ten search results.

There’s an Easier Way!

Google has a setting hidden in its Preferences page that allows you to choose to display more than ten search results at a time. In order to do this, simply head on over to the Google Homepage and click on the Preferences link as shown in the screen shot below.

Google Preferences

Next, you will want to scroll down almost to the bottom of the preferences page and find the section entitled Number of Results that is boxed in red below.

Changing The Number of Search Results Google Displays

Now, you want to click on the drop-down box where it says Display 10 results per page. You can select 10, 20, 30, 50, all the way up to 100 search results to be displayed at a time. Note that if you have a slower internet connection, you may not want to do 100, but if you have DSL or faster, you can set it to 100 without a noticeable delay in the search results page’s loading time.

Choosing the Number of Search Results for Google to Display

We’re almost done, all we have to do now is click on the button that says Save Preferences. Google will then save these preferences as a cookie in your browser’s cache.

Google Your Preferences Have Been Saved

Now, try performing a search! On the results page, you should read Results 1-100 of about… in the blue bar at the top of the results page. You must have cookies enabled on your browser for this functionality, and all of the other options in Google Preferences, to work.

Google Displaying not 10, but 100 Search Results!

That’s all there is to it! Now, every time you perform a search, Google will display the amount of search results that you requested it to display on the Preferences page. If you have any questions or if it’s not working out right for you, just leave a comment below!

How to Search Google In Elmer Fudd Speak & Other Fun Languages!

June 13, 2008 · Filed Under Customizing Google, Fun With Google · 4 Comments 

If you’ve ever noticed Google’s interesting and frequent logo changes, you’ll know that the people behind Google’s amazing power have a fun personality.

That could be why they provide you with the ability to search in many languages that are not currently nationally recognized. Here’s a list of all the fun languages that Google allows you use while you perform your searches:

Elmer Fudd – Awe you feewing wucky?

Elmer Fudd Version of Google

Click Here to Search Fudd Style!

All of you Elmer Fudd fanatics can now use Google when you are feewing withdrawal fwom this cwazy man.

Klingon Warrior – The Star Trek Search

Klingon Warrior Search

Click Here to Search With the Klingons!

All of the Star-Trek junkies out there can relive their happy moments that they spent addicted to watching the Klingon Warriors in battle. After all, how could you forget about Kahless the Unforgettable?

Hacker Search – 345Y 70 Und3r574nd?

Hacker Language

Click Here to Search In Hacker Language!

So you want to search in the language of hackers, huh? Well, it’s tricky to read at first, but you can quickly get the hang of it. To read about all of its variants, check out this Wikipedia article.

On a side note, the Hacker search can also be accessed from www.600673.com, which is a code-name for Google.

Pig Latin Search – Ememberray Igpay Atinlay?

Google Search In Pig Latin

Click Here to Search In Pig Latin!

Relive the elementary school memories when you wanted to encode your messages in a language that the teacher wouldn’t understand! If you still don’t understand Pig Latin, it’s not too hard to learn. Here’s a primer from wikiHow on how to speak Pig Latin.

Bork, Bork, Bork! – Is It a Swedish Accent?

Bork Bork Bork Search

Click Here to Search Bork, Bork, Bork Style!

This one sounds to me like a nice Swedish accent. Whenever I read it, I keep thinking of Ingvar Kamprad, the founder of IKEA.

How to Use Google in Other “Real” Languages

Although I did provide easy-to-use links for each of these searches, Google actually offers another way to access them. You can do it in two simple steps. Simply go to the Google homepage and click on the Preferences link just to the right of the search box.

How To Change Languages

You should get to the preferences page as shown below. Now, you want to click the drop-down box in the Interface Language table. Once you’ve selected your language, just click on the Save Preferences button at the top or the bottom of the page, and Google will automatically redirect you to the Google homepage in your language of choice.

Changing the Language

From this large drop-down box, you can access the five fun languages I described above, as well as may other legitimate languages in which Google has been fully translated.

If you ever get stuck in some crazy language like Dutch, heaven forbid, all you have to do is look in the bottom right-hand corner of the Google homepage for the Google.com in English link that I have circled in red in the screen shot below. Clicking that link will get rid of the madness you inflicted upon yourself and take you to an easy-to-read English Language Google.com.

Getting from a Foreign Language Back To English

Have fun trying out new languages! If you run into any problems or have any questions you’re more than welcome to post a comment below for help!