Sunday, February 20, 2011

How to use google as your Calculator or Converter

I often have google open infront of me and when i have to do a bit of calculation i just type the required calculation and google does the math for me. It's better with simple calculations as you don't require the hassle of finding/taking your calculator everytime you need.

To use Google calculator, just go to Google's search engine and type in whatever you'd like to be calculated. For example, you could type:
3+4
and Google will return the result 3+4=7. You can also type in words and get the same results. Type in
three plus four
and Google will return the result three plus four=seven.

Complex Math

Google can even calculate more complex problems such as two to the twentieth power,
2^20
the square root of 287,
sqrt(287)
or the sine of 30 degrees.
sine(30 degrees)
You can even find the number of possible groups in a set. For instance,
24 choose 7
finds the number of possible choices of 7 items from a group of 24 items.

Convert and Measure

Google can calculate and convert many common measurements, so you can find out temparature conversions.

37 degrees kelvin in Fahrenheit

And google gives the result :-

37 kelvin = -393.07 degrees Fahrenheit

 
You can also calculate and convert in one step.You can also convert different currencies in google. Like just type in    10 USD in INR
Google gives the result : 10 U.S. dollars = 451.304269 Indian rupees


Google recognizes most common measurements, including weight, distance, time, mass, energy, and monetary currency.

Math Syntax

Google's calculator is designed to calculate problems without a lot of complicated math formatting, but sometimes it's easier and more accurate to use some math syntax. For instance, if you want to evaluate an equation that looks like a phone number,
1-555-555-1234
Google will probably confuse this with its hidden phonebook. You can force Google to evaluate an expression by using an equal sign.
1-555-555-1234=
This only works for problems that are mathematically possible to resolve. You can't divide by zero with or without an equal sign. You can force parts of an equation to be resolved before other parts by enclosing them in parenthesis.
(3+5)*9
Some other math syntax Google recognizes:
  • + for addition
  • - for subtraction
  • * for multiplication
  • / for division
  • ^ for exponential (x to the power of y)
  • % for modulo (to find the remainder after division)
  • choose X choose Y fines the number of possible subset groups of Y out of the set of X.
  • th root of creates the nth root of a number
  • % of finds percentages X % of Y finds X percent of Y.
  • sqrt finds the square root of the number that follows
  • ln logarithm base e
  • log logarithm base 10
  • lg logarithm base 2
  • ! factorial - This must follow the number you wish to factor.
If you appreciate a more visual interface, you can use Soople's Advanced Calculator, which uses Google's engine to calculate.
Google's calculator isn't completely documented, so it may take some experimenting to find all of the hidden features.
The next time you find yourself wondering how much five liters is in gallons, rather than searching for a Web site for conversion, just use Google's hidden calculator.