Google Tricks and Tips

Google’s tools reach well beyond the search box. This second-edition guide walks through a broad collection of Google apps and services, with practical, illustrated instructions for everyday tasks—from sharing a map to organizing photos, working with documents and starting a blog.

The chapters are arranged as short tutorials, making it easy to find a particular task and follow along. The guide reflects the Google services and screens of its 2020 publication era, so readers should keep its historical context in mind when following instructions today.

Explore more than search

Google Maps and Google Earth get substantial attention, including directions, map sharing and embedding, and ways to explore location imagery. Other chapters introduce Google Translate and Google Flights, while the Google Photos section covers getting started, albums, image editing, collages and animations.

Make Google’s everyday tools work together

The guide also visits YouTube, Drive, Docs, Sheets, Drawings and Slides. Its step-by-step approach covers tasks such as uploading videos, restoring deleted Drive files and working with templates and forms—useful reference points for readers getting acquainted with Google’s productivity suite.

More services, from Keep to Blogger

Later sections turn to Google Keep, Google Pay and the Play Store, then finish with creating a blog using Blogger. This wide-ranging selection makes the publication a practical tour of Google’s consumer apps and online tools rather than a guide to just one product.

A guided reference for curious users

Readers looking for approachable, task-focused introductions to Google services may appreciate the clear tutorial format and the variety of subjects covered. Keep in mind that some services, features and screen layouts described are specific to the edition’s original publication period.