Google is more than a good tool for finding web sites. These tips are well documented but I hardly know of any people who use them outside of my tech-head colleagues.

The list below are just a handful of very basic tools I use regularly on Google. Feel free to add more in the comments if you have any.

Conversion Units

Typing in any conversion you want performed can be achieved using plain English. Example: convert 20 Celsius to Fahrenheit

...and Google will display the result: 20 degrees Celsius = 68 degrees Fahrenheit

Some other examples are:

• convert 20 kilometres to miles
• convert 20 minutes to hours
• convert 20 grams to ounces

Currency Conversion

Very similar to the conversion units noted above, to convert Australian dollars into American dollars type in: 100 Australian dollars in US dollars

..and you will see the result: 100 Australian dollars = 94.21 U.S. dollars. You can of course substitute for any currency.

Calculator

This is a lot easier than trying to find the calculator in your programs menu. Google accepts calculations of any length. Example: 100+35+50-10+45*3

...and Google will display the result: 100 + 35 + 50 - 10 + (45 * 3) = 310

Dictionary Definitions

Dictionary.com is good, but Google can give you definitions from several standard accepted dictionaries by using define: in combination with any other word. Example: define:obtuse

...and the standard accepted definitions with links to where they were sourced from.

Custom Searches

Let's say you want to search for 'star wars' but you don't want your search results to include the term 'george lucas'. Type in: "star wars" -"george lucas"

...and your search results will contain information about Star Wars with no mention of George Lucas.

International Times

What time is it in Sydney? Type in: what time is it in sydney

...and Google will display the time in Sydney along with an image of a clock that shows the actual time.

5:23pm Sunday (EST) - Time in Sydney, New South Wales

I hope you find these as helpful as I do.