File-Finding in Google Docs: Advanced Search Operators

If you’ve made the move to cloud computing by having more of your documents online with an app such as Google Docs, your folders could be filling up fairly fast with files transferred from websites, uploaded by you, or created within Docs. After a while, finding that certain file can be a pain, especially if you cannot recall the full file name, or what folder it was put in.

An easy way to expand your search efficiency is to use the search options provided (click on the “Show search options” link to the right of the search field in Google Docs). The fields that appear provide many additional search functions to help you find the right doc. To get even further search utility, you can directly get a these functions and more by using advanced search operators.

As it has done with some of its other apps (e.g. Gmail, Google Search), Google has put advanced search operators in its “Search Docs” function for Google Docs. Here are what I think some of the most useful are:

Some advanced search operators for Google Docs

1. Type of document – type:{spreadsheet,presentation,document}
2. Phrase (use quotes) – e.g. “drive the car”
3. Exclusion of an item (use the minus sign) – e.g. white socks -baseball
4. Time of item editing – before:YYYY-MM-DD, after:YYYY-MM-DD
5. Ownership of items – owner:INSERTNAMEHEREe@gmail.com
6. Hidden or starred items – is:starred, is:hidden
7. Items shared with others or shared with you – from:INSERTNAMEHEREe@gmail.com, to:INSERTNAMEHEREe@gmail.com
8. By subject (or word in subject) – subject:INSERTSUBJECTHERE
9. By title (or word in title) – title: INSERTITLEHERE
10. Either-or function – e.g. bison OR buffalo

These operators are entered into the search box on your Google Docs page. You can sometimes string these functions together. For example, if you wanted to find a file you have that was made last year, shared with your boss, and was about sports, you could enter: before:2010-01-01 to:BOSS@gmail.com subject:sports.

Are you a regular user of advanced search operators with Google apps? Are there any for Docs missed here? Let us know in the comments section.