NextPath

We all know that Google runs a hot search engine, free, quick and easy to use … not to mention it has spell-checker (Go ahead give it a try, type in a misspelled word and see the correct spelling options it provides).

But did you know that Google also offers a whole library of free tools that can be helpful to students? It’s time to see beyond the Google toolbar …

Gmail

Signing up for a free Gmail account is a great way to start accessing all of Google’s free tools because the one thing that you need to obtain most tools is a valid e-mail account. On top of that you’d be accessing what Google calls “a new kind of webmail built on the idea that e-mail can be more intuitive, efficient and useful.”

Gmail allows for a quick e-mail search, to find the exact e-mail you are looking for whether it’s in your inbox or outbox. That means if you need to quickly access an e-mail from your sociology professor concerning a late assignment or grade, you can do it at the drop of a hat. Also, Gmail offers more than 2841.533481 megabytes of free storage so you’ll never need to delete another message. You can keep just about every e-mail you receive from your freshman composition class right on through to your 400-level creative writing class. Just tag each e-mail with whatever tag you choose and you’ll be able to track your progress over the years.

Also, you can chat right inside Gmail in just one click (you can even save these chats right in your e-mail account).

Google Notebook

Although the Google Notebook is an innovative idea it can be a mixed blessing. If you’re a lateral thinking information junkie and you can make sense of the complex and oftentimes confusing organizational structure of the tool, you’re set. However, if you’re looking for a simple, intuitive and easy application to use, this may not be your best option.

Like all Google tools, Google Notebook is an online application and can be accessed from any computer. You can use the notebook to clip and store useful information including: text, images, and links from Web pages without ever leaving your browser window.

The genius of it is that you can organize huge amounts of information in a hierarchical structure, for instance, creating multiple notebooks and organizing them into sections. It’s perfect for your class notes, say creating notebooks by class subject, then separating them by month. With drag-and-drop ability, it’s easy to keep your stuff organized. However, navigation within notebooks and their sections can be clunky and difficult.

One cool feature is that you can share your notebooks with friends. So, if someone misses class one day, all you have to do is publish that notebook and your buddy can get that day’s notes online.

Docs and Spreadsheets

Yet another way to share notes and work on group projects, not to mention accessing a college paper from any computer at anytime. Google Docs and Spreadsheets is another Web-based application that offers both a comprehensive word processing program and spreadsheet program. Because it can be accessed from any computer that has Web access it’s very easy to keep documents current and for multiple people to update information.

With functionality similar to a blog, you or your group partners can embed images into your documents, view your documents revision history and publish them online. Additionally, it’s incredibly easy to e-mail documents straight from the application, so if you are working on a version of a paper on say the “Economic Impact of The World bank on Third World Agriculture” and need to ask a buddy a question or send your buddy a portion of your work, you can do that. Not to mention that the application’s online editor can format documents and check spelling. You can also upload previously written Word docs, OpenOffice, RTF, HTML or text.

Google Docs and Spreadsheets is an absolutely great way to coordinate assignments or collaborate with other universities on information sharing ideas—all in real time.

Google Alerts

If you need to write a paper on the latest developments in environment design for your engineering or architecture class, or even just want to be up on the latest technological gadgets, you can sign up to receive free Google Alerts.

All you have to do is enter in the keywords for which you want to be alerted (i.e. Organic Fabrics or Green Design), and whenever a new article is published on the Web - from a personal blog to a major news publication - that includes those phrases, Google will send you an alert in the form of an e-mail with a link to the article. You can have the alert sent to your Gmail account or to whichever email account you wish.

Groups

Create online study groups on any subject using Google Groups. All you have to do is create a free account, set up your group and then invite the people you want to participate. Your group can exchange and discuss ideas online or over e-mail, create rich custom pages, and customize your look and graphics. Again, this is a great way to stay in contact with other students especially for classes where you work collaboratively.

Google Calendar

So, now that you have your class schedule, syllabi for each class with project deadlines and test dates as well as all your study groups set up, you might need to use the Google Calendar to keep all of this information straight. The calendar also has a share function so you can allow your friends or even parents know what you are doing and when.

What’s even better is that you can also see your friends’ and family’s schedules right next to your own. Not to mention that the calendar allows you to create and send invitations, send reminders and keep track of RSVPs right inside Google Calendar, set up automatic event reminders, including mobile phone notifications, and instantly bring up anything on your calendar with the built-in search tool.

Google Desktop

Although you certainly don’t need to use the Google Desktop Desktop in order to organize or access all of your Google applications, it is a nice application to use. On top of that, the desktop makes it easily search the Web, as well as view news and photos anywhere on your desktop, which is helpful for research and project creation.

Google Desktop is fully customizable and allows you to create and share new gadgets and widgets with other Google Desktop users, especially new tools that you think could be helpful to other students.

Search Engines from Google:

As we all know, Google built its name on its incredible search engine and offers a number of additional search engines to help streamline the research process and provide access to current and reference information from around the world. So, whether you are a Biology, English Literature or Mathematics major, the following search engines can help you:

Blog Search

This search engine specifically searches the Blogosphere for the most popular blogs on any subject you can imagine. Blogs usually offer useful, current and relevant information and always from a personal perspective. Find the blogs you need in a matter of seconds.

Book Search

Chances are, if you are looking for a book that is old enough to be in the public domain, you can find the full-text version by going online in Google’s Library. The search also includes links to stores to buy the books, publisher information and other editions.

Google Image Search

Make your reports and papers pop with awesome images. The Google Image Search engine does just what it promises: It searches the Web for images. Google hails this search engine as “The most comprehensive image search on the web.”

Specialized Search

Search within specific topics for classes and access public databases.

Want Even More? Then check out Google Labs.

Google Labs

Many of the Google Tools mentioned above were conceived in and graduated from Google Labs. This section of Google Tools is a showcase of ideas that are still in their incubation period and aren’t quite ready to be released out into the world yet. Not only can you play with the prototypes of tools such as Google Code Search, Goggle Music Trends and Google Transit (a public transit planner) in Google Labs you can also send your comments about these tools-in-progress directly to the developers at Google who are working to make them ready for “prime-time.”