Skip to main content

Faster and more powerful Internet searching then ever before

Posted August 2002 by Steve Sinchak

This tweak will have you searching the Internet faster and more powerfully then you ever have before.

  1. Get TweakUI Powertoy for WindowsXP

  2. Start -> Programs -> Powertoys for Windows XP -> TweakUI for Windows XP

  3. Click the '+' next to 'Internet Explorer'

  4. Hightlight 'Search'

  5. In the right plane click on the 'Create' button.

  6. For the Prefix, type in 'Google' or if you're REALLY lazy (like me) then just 'g'

  7. for the URL, enter: http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%s&num=100

The 'hl' is language, the 'q' is the query, and the 'num' is the number of results per page. To search for multiple keywords at a time, use the format 'google monkey+cars' or just 'g monkey+cars' depending how you chose to set it up.

If you use another search engine, then you must have never tried Google.

Here are some reasons to help sway you: http://www.google.com/technology/whyuse.html

It has no graphics to load, no popups, no graphical ads, and codes your search terms in bold to prove the pages it lists have all you wanted.

And if that didn't work, try installing a BSD or *nix type OS, and finding solutions to cryptic error messages using any other search engine.

Sooner or later you'll realize Google is tops. Just give it a month's trial and see if you ever leave it ;)

On request for advanced users only. If you don't want to use TweakUi, use this registry file or make the according changes manually.

;--begin copy below----------------------------------------------
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00

[HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Internet Explorer\SearchUrl\g]
@="http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%s&num=100"
" "="+"
"#"="%23"
"&"="%26"
"?"="%3F"
"+"="%2B"
"="="%3D"

;--end copy---------------------------------------------------------

Copy and paste into notepad, save as "search.reg", right click - merge.

Related Posts


If you own a Google Chromecast streaming device, you can easily share a browser tab in Chrome browser or even your entire desktop.  This can be very useful when presenting from your laptop or if you just want to watch something on a big screen that is only on your PC.  The only requirement is you must be on the same network as your Chromecast...

Read More

If you are a fan of minimalist desktop experiences, hiding the desktop icons are an easy way to clean up the Windows interface.  Instead of saving everything to your desktop, use the default profile folders such as downloads and documents.  Actually hiding all the icons on your desktop is a very simple customization hidden in the right-click context menu.  Just right-click on the desktop, select View...

Read More

Google security researchers have published details about a major security flaw found in the SSL protocol that is used to encrypt data transferred between your browser and a web server. SSL is typically used in situations where logon credentials are validated...

Read More

Enabling two-factor authentication is a great way to add an additional level of protection to your Microsoft account.  Even if your password is stolen, your account is still protected because two-factor authetication requires an additional level of verification to log in. Microsoft calls their version of two-factor authentication "two-step verification" and it works by providing you with a random code...

Read More