ince it first appeared on the Web in 1998, the search site Google has rapidly become the primary method most people use to browse the Internet. Users are attracted to Google by its simple clean layout, vast site index and relevant, fast results.

But don't let its simplicity fool you-Google has many advanced search features and tricks that will help you get the most out of the Internet. Google scans more than four billion Web pages every time a search is entered, so it makes sense to know how to make the best use of all that information.

While Google has documented many of its capabilities on its own help pages, an even greater resource is "Google Hacks," a new book that lists, ranks and explains the top 100 tips and tools to maximize your search efforts. The tips were contributed by expert Google users and developers and will save readers hours of researching time.

"Google Hacks" is published by O'Reilly & Associates, a well-known information source for leading-edge computer technologies. Along with publishing technology-related books, the company organizes conferences and develops Web sites, so you know the information presented in this book will be reliable and useful.

To illustrate how "Google Hacks" can improve the results you get with your searches, start with something simple--Google Hack #6: "Word Order Matters."

If you have experience with keyword-based search engines, you might be surprised to learn that the order in which you enter words can make a difference in the search results you get and how they are ranked.

For instance, a search for "bankcard check industry" lists as its first result a link to U.S. Bankcard Services. By rearranging the words and searching for "check bankcard industry," a link to a white paper on Ingenico's site is shown.

If a particular search string isn't providing you with the results you want, just try entering the words in a different order.

Google Hack #7, "Repetition Matters," elaborates on Hack #6 with the tip that repeating important words in your search string can also change the results.

If you find that the search string you're using doesn't result in enough specific information, try entering one of the important keywords twice. For instance, if you're looking for banks that offer certain services, but end up with nothing but plenty of non-bank-related results, try adding an extra "bank" or two to your search string.

"Google Hacks" also describes additional search string tips to add to your search and narrow your results even further. One of these is the "site:" string, which is used to tell Google to only show results from a particular Web site.

For example, to search Google for all references to the FTC on greensheet.com, search for "FTC site:greensheet.com" and it will provide a list of links, all originating on The Green Sheet's Web site.

This tip is especially useful in cases when you already know what you are looking for and what site it is on, but either the site doesn't have a search engine of its own or it isn't bringing up the result you want.

There are plenty of other tricks up Google's sleeves, ready to be put into action for successful searching. Google can be used as a dictionary (Google Hack #16); every time you search for something on Google, directly below the text entry should be the words "search the Web for," followed by the string you searched. If Google can find any of those words in the dictionary, it will link them directly to a page showing their definitions.

Google can also be used as a phonebook-a useful feature for anyone who frequently needs to call people out of state or spends a lot of time on the road (Google Hack #17).

Do you need to find the name of that Texaco station you stopped at in Santa Cruz, Calif.? Precede your search string with "phonebook:," followed by the name of the business, the city, and finally the state. For this particular search, the string would be "phonebook: texaco santa cruz california."

While the Google phonebook tool isn't as exhaustive as a local phone directory, it can be useful for finding businesses or people who haven't moved recently. Try the search on your own name and city and see what comes up.

"Google Hacks" contains tips for all experience levels, from beginners to experts. Some of the tips might be worth passing along to your Web designer or programming department.

Chapters Five and Six are devoted to the Google API (Application Programming Interface,) which programmers can use to access many of Google's features in their programs.

Prior to the release of the API, many Web programmers would write programs to run a Google search and sift through the results looking for data.

Now with the Google API, programmers get direct access to Google, from CGIs and other programs, to search for specific types of information (pages published in a certain date range for example).

Google's results can also be combined with your own search engine results for a particular subject. The API chapters present many real-life examples programmers can use as templates for their own company-specific applications.

"Google Hacks" is a true resource, offering a plethora of tips for successful researching. Other features detailed in the book include limiting search results by date, changing language options and searching for slang and jargon; there's even a full chapter devoted to getting your site a higher ranking within Google results.

With all of these features and the power that comes with them, "Google Hacks" is definitely a book for anyone who researches on the Internet to keep within reach.

Using translate.google.com, www.greensheet.com/onlineindex.html in German

"Google Hacks" 100 Industrial-Strength Tips & Tools By Tara Calishain and Rael Dornfest With a foreword by the Google Engineering Team O'Reilly & Associates, Sebastopol, Calif., 2003 ISBN: 0-596-00447-8