The readings and responses listed here should take you approximately 25 minutes.
To start this assignment, click the button in the upper right-hand corner that says Fork. This is now your copy of this document. Click the Edit button when you're ready to start adding your answers. To save your work, click the green button in the bottom right-hand corner. You can always come back and re-edit your gist.
1. Do Experienced Programmers Use Google Frequently? by Umer Mansoor (10 min)
I was (pleasantly) surprised to hear that programmers regularly use Google. Many courses in academia push for memorization which isn't realistic or helpful, so hearing that Google is an essential for a programmer's toolkit was a huge relief. This point was especially clear when Mansoor mentioned that he used Google 23 times for 255 lines of code; that's almost 10% of his project! Honestly, this article made me feel a lot better about going into a new field.
2. 20 Google Search Tips to Use Google More Efficiently by Joseph Hindy (15 min)
This article shined the light on how little I knew about Google searches. -Tip 2: Using quotes to find your exact phrase - This one I felt like I should've known on my own. Ex. "Dodge Ram Charger" because there's also a ram and a charger, but they are different from the Dodge Ram Charger -Tip 3: Subtracting the word/topic you don't need. Ex. Wine kegs for sale - Beer (Kegged wine exists but is a little hard to find. Many wine shops also sell kegs of beer, so most results will probably be beer kegs from wine shops) -Tip 4: Find information or articles from a specific site using a colon. Ex. 2020 election results:nytimes.com -Tip 9: Searching 2 or more words/phrases using OR Ex. "Silver 4-door Jeep Wrangler for sale" OR "Black 2-door Jeep Wrangler for sale" -Tip 13: Use language that that the site or field would use so that you will get more (and more accurate) results. Ex. "pet grooming" instead of "I need to clean my dirty dog" -Tip 14: Don't use unnecessary words - Be specific. Ex. "Apartment for rent in Denver, CO" rather than "I need to find a 2 bedroom apartment for under $1500 in Denver, CO" -Tip 17: Be descriptive so you can find a more specific or accurate answer. Ex. "Dark red, floor-length, ballroom gown with floral lace"
If you have any questions, comments, or confusions from any of the readings that you would like an instructor to address, list them below:
- When I heard we were going to talk about Google searching, I was a little confused to be honest. But wow did I realize that there are so many tricks that I had no idea existed! This was wildly helpful and definitely made me feel a little more secure going into a brand new field! I don't have any questions so far.