Google Hacks 2Nd Edition [Electronic resources] نسخه متنی

4.13. Google Groups Search Syntax

By default, Google Groups looks for your query keywords anywhere in
the posting subject or body, group name, or author name. Groups
search uses the same sort of basic Boolean as Google Web Search
["Basic Boolean" in Chapter 1].

Google Groups is an archive of conversations. Thus, when you're searching, you'll be more successful if you try looking for conversational and informal language, not the carefully structured language you'll find on Internet siteswell, some Internet sites, anyway.

And, thanks to some special

syntax, you can do some precise
searching if you know the magic incantations:

insubject :

Searches posting subjects for query words.

insubject:rocketry
group :

Restricts your search to a certain group or set of groups (topic).
The * (asterisk) wildcard modifies a
group: syntax to include everything beneath the
specified group or topic. rec.humor* or
rec.humor.* (effectively the same) will find
results in the group rec.humor , as well as
rec.humor.funny ,
rec.humor.jewish , and so forth.

group:rec.humor*
group:alt*
group:comp.lang.perl.misc
author :

Specifies the author of a newsgroup post. This can be a full or
partial name, even an email address.

author:fred
author:"fred flintstone"
author:flintstone@bedrock.gov

4.13.1. Mixing syntaxes in Google Groups

Google Groups is much more friendly to syntax mixing
["Mixing Syntax" in Chapter 1] than Google Web Search. You can mix any
two or more syntaxes together in a Google Groups Search, as
exemplified by the following typical searches:

intitle:literature group:humanities* author:john
intitle:hardware group:comp.sys.ibm* pda

4.13.1.1 Some common search scenarios

There are several ways you can mine Google Groups for research
information. Remember, though, to view any information that you get
here with a certain amount of skepticism. Usenet is just hundreds of
thousands of people tossing around links; in that respect,
it's just like the Web.

4.13.1.2 Tech support

Ever used Windows and discovered that there's some
program running that you've never heard of?
Uncomfortable, isn't it? If you're
wondering if HIDSERV is something nefarious, Google Groups can tell
you. Just search Google Groups for HIDSERV.
You'll find that plenty of people had the same
question before you did, and it's been answered.

I find that Google Groups is sometimes more useful than
manufacturers' web sites. For example, I was trying
to install a set of flight devices for a frienda joystick,
throttle, and rudder pedals. The web site for the manufacturer
couldn't help me figure out why they
weren't working. I described the problem as best I
could in a Google Groups searchusing the name of the parts and
the manufacturer's brand nameand although it
wasn't easy, I was able to find an answer.

Sometimes your problem isn't as serious but
it's just as annoying; you might be stuck in a
computer game. If the game has been out for more than a few months,
your answer is probably in Google Groups. If you want the answer to
an entire game, try the magic word walkthrough .
So if you're looking for a walkthrough for Quake II,
try the search "quake ii" walkthrough. (You
don't need to restrict your search to newsgroups;
walkthrough is a word strongly associated with gamers.)

4.13.1.3 Finding commentary immediately after an event

With Google Groups, date searching is very precise (unlike date
searching Google's Web index), so
it's an excellent way to get commentary during or
immediately after events.

Barbra Streisand and James Brolin were married on July 1, 1998.
Searching for "Barbra Streisand" "James Brolin"
between June 30, 1998 and July 3, 1998 leads to over 48 results,
including reprinted wire articles, links to news stories, and
commentary from fans. Searching for "barbra
streisand" "james brolin" without a date
specification finds more than 1,800 results.

Usenet is also much older than the Web and is ideal for finding
information about an event that occurred before the Web. Coca-Cola
released New Coke in April 1985. You can find information about the
release on the Web, of course, but finding contemporary commentary
would be more difficult. After some playing around with the dates
(just because it's been released
doesn't mean it's in every store) I
found plenty of commentary about New Coke in Google Groups by
searching for the phrase "new coke" during the
month of May 1985. Information included poll results, taste tests,
and speculation on the new formula. Searching later in the summer
yields information on Coke re-releasing old Coke under the name
"Coca-Cola Classic."