Five Quick and Dirty Web Search Tricks To Help You Find What You Are Looking For Online

You need to find something on the Web, and it seems like a relatively simple search; that is, until you're sitting frustrated in front of your computer screen wondering where the last twenty minutes went! Here are five common search scenarios that can point you to what you're looking for, fast. These simple step-by-step procedures will guide you through common searching tasks, all with links to related (and more comprehensive) articles that will further hone your Web search skills.

1. Look Up Quick Information

Find Dictionaries for any Language or Specialized Definitions :Here's how to find dictionaries and glossaries in any language, including specialized definitions and meanings of technical words.

How to Find a Phone Number: You can often find the person or business that owns a phone number by using reverse phone lookup directories and other Web resources.

Look Up An Email Address: You can often find a person's email address if you know just their address, Internet username, social networking handles, or telephone number.

Find Public Records Online: Not all public records are online, but many are. Here's how to search for online public records in the United States, U.S. States, and Canada.

2. Driving Directions and Maps

Need driving directions, maps, or an atlas? Here's how to get step-by-step driving directions from virtually any street address to another, as well as interactive maps for anywhere in the world.

Driving Directions

Maps

3. Internet and Web How-Tos

Ever need to change your home page, figure out how to use a search engine, or shorten an URL? You can do all that and more with the following tutorials.

4. Find Something to Watch

More people than ever before in history are turning to the Internet instead of their television sets to catch their favorite programs. Here is just a sampling of what you can find on the Web to watch for free.

Movies

Videos

5. Get Something Done

What if I told you that you didn't need a fax machine to send a fax, and that for nearly any program you currently have on your computer, there are free alternatives online? Here are just a few great Web options that will help you get something done online.

Free Software