Download Using Google in Your Family History Searches

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Google as a Genealogical Tool
Google Search
General Concepts
Case:​ Google does not take note of capitalization, e.g., the search for Ralph Ramsay
will yield the same results as ralph ramsay.
Spelling: ​Google automatically uses the most common spelling of a given word. Be
careful that Google doesn’t change the search term to something you don’t want.
Google Search Wildcards and Operators
Wildcards and Search
Operators
Description
Example
Use “” around a name to
search for an exact match
“Ralph Ramsay”
Use a - to exclude words
from your search
“Ralph ramsay” -facebook
-twitter -ohio
* (asterisk)
Use an * as a substitute for
an unknown word or words
“ralph * ramsay”
and
Use AND to find results that
contain two or more terms
ralph and ramsay and
ramsey
or
Use OR to find either search
term
“ralph ramsay” or “ralph
ramsey”
“” (quotation marks)
-
(minus sign)
X..Y (number range)
~ (tilde)
site:
Use X..Y to search for a
“Ralph ramsay” 1800..1910
range of numbers, e.g., years
Use a ~ to search for
synonyms
“Ralph ramsay” ~mormon
Site: limits a search to a
specific website
site:familysearch.org “ralph
ramsay”
Bradford Ogden
[email protected]
1
Filters
Google has several options that refine your search:
All
Maps
Images
Videos
Maps
Books
Tools
Tools vary based on the filter selected.
All filter:
Publish date:​ Limit results according to when they were published
on the Web.
Verbatim:​ Search for exact words or phrases.
Dictionary:​ Find definitions, synonyms, images, and more for your search
term.
Private:​ If you're signed in to your Google Account, you can see content
that was shared with you on Google+ or Gmail.
Videos:​ Filter by length of video, quality, and source, like youtube.com.
News filter:
All news/Blogs
Recent/Various time frames
Sort by relevance/date
Images filter:
Size:
Color:
Type:
Time:
Usage Rights:
More Tools:
Site Search
Narrows a search to a specific website
Site:familysearch.org “ralph ramsay”
Bradford Ogden
[email protected]
2
Search by Image
Four ways to search by image
Drag and drop
Drag and drop an image from the web or your computer into the search box
Upload an image
On images.google.com, click the camera icon, then select “Upload an image.”
Select the image you want to use to start your search.
Copy and paste the URL for an image
Right-click an image on the web and copy the URL. On images.google.com, click
the camera icon, and “Paste image URL”.
Right-click an image on the web
In Google Chrome, right-click an image on the web to search Google with that
image.
Google Newspaper Archive
Although it is no longer adding content, Google has scanned thousands of newspapers dating
back to as early as the 1700’s. Access the archives by going to news.google.com/newspapers
Google Books
Google has scanned and made searchable somewhere between 25 and 30 million books as
well as millions of magazines. Google includes the scanned books and magazines through its
general search query as well as from https://books.google.com/
Depending on the copyright, Google provides the following:
Full view
Books in the public domain or that Google has been given access to are
available for "full view" and can be downloaded for free.
Preview
For in-print books where permission has been granted, the number of
restrictions and security measures, some based on user-tracking.
Snippet view
A 'snippet view' – two to three lines of text surrounding the queried search
term – is displayed in cases where Google does not have permission of
the copyright owner to display a preview.
No preview
Google also displays search results for books that have not been digitized.
Bradford Ogden
[email protected]
3
Google Translate
Google will translate words, phrases, and even entire web pages.
In the Google search box, type “translate” and the word or phrase you want. If Google
doesn’t recognize the correct language, select the language from the drop down menu.
Other Useful Google Tools
Define
Type “Define” and a word and Google will provide its definition
Google Alerts
Google will send you an update whenever the web is updated on a subject you are
interested in.
https://www.google.com/alerts
Keep
Google Keep is a great alternative to Evernote and OneNote.
https://keep.google.com/
Bibliography
Refine web searches, ​https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/2466433?hl=en
Filter your search results, ​https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/142143?hl=en
The Google Genealogist (new tips and tricks), ​https://www.youtube.com/user/ashbyster
Google Inside Search,
https://www.google.com/intl/es419/insidesearch/features/images/searchbyimage.html
Wikipedia: Google Books
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Google_Books
Bradford Ogden
[email protected]
4