Google Pocket Guide Author: Tara Calishain, Rael Dornfest, & DJ Adams Pages: 129 Publisher: O'Reilly & Associates ISBN: 0-596-00550-4 Summary: A handy, concise guide to finding what you're looking for online with Google. Review Date: 1 Aug, 2003

The Google Pocket Guide is a helpful little handbook to getting the most out Google. While not as comprehensive (or as fun) as its bigger brother Google Hacks, it still covers most of what an average Google user needs to know to find what they're looking for on the Web.

What's in it?
The guide covers all the different syntax features available from the Google search engine. The book offers many examples throughout of how these syntax options can be combined to get just the right search results, as well as the particular instances when certain types of syntax can't be mixed. The book also covers the other major tools that Google offers, including usenet search, image search, the Google Directory, Google news, Google Catalogs, Froogle, and more. One area that isn't covered is the Google Web Services API. If you're looking for more information about that area, you'll want to look at Google Hacks. An appendix in the Guide nicely summarizes all of the available syntax covered in the book. A full table of contents can be found here.

Who will/won't like it?
The average Web user will likely find the book helpful for getting more out of Google. If you use Google a lot, you'll likely find some tips that will help you get better results than ever. If you're a power user who doesn't mind getting your hands dirty in some code, then you may find Google Hacks more appealing. If you're looking for full coverage of the range of Google's capabilities, then again, Google Hacks will likely be what you need.

So what did I think of it?
Having read Google Hacks, the Pocket Guide was mostly a concise review of what I found there, so I wasn't overly "wowed" by the Pocket Guide. But I do think the pocket guide will likely be what I reach for when I'm trying to remember a particular syntax feature, and that seems to be the most practical reason for having the book.

You can find my review of Google Hacks here.

Overall rating: 7/10