Those of us who spend all day doing optimization for Google will often grow to resent the search giant. Not only are we inclined to recent pretty much anything that we work closely with, but sudden algorithm changes that make our life difficult, and changes to the policies can do little to ingratiate the company to us. Unfortunately search optimisers are at Google’s beck and call. They say ‘jump’ and we say ‘how high’. If you want to success online, then that’s sadly just the way it has to be.

As such then, it’s easy to forget that as companies go, Google is actually quite light-hearted and youthful. Their Googleplex headquarters are dog-friendly and come complete with their very own dinosaur. Their motto is ‘don’t be evil’ and they enjoy regular April Fool’s day pranks that demonstrate a cheeky and playful side. While it’s hard to love a company that dictates your success, they’re actually not all that bad.

And this playful side comes through in the way the search engine itself functions too. There are a ton of Easter eggs, jokes and extra features built into the engine and playing around with these can be a great way to get some love back for the big G. Here are some of the most fun/handy alternate uses for Gogole search.

‘Do a Barrel Roll’

Type ‘do a barrel roll’ into Google, and the search engine will respond by rotating 360 degrees. It’s a little dizzying, but a fun little response to the popular meme.

Tilt

Less dramatic, but actually more nauseating, is the ’tilt’ function. Type ’tilt’ or ‘askew’ into Google and hit search, and the whole page will rotate just slightly about 5 degrees to the right. This is quite sickening after a while but it’s certainly funky.

Find Chuck Norris

This feature isn’t around anymore, but a while back searching for Chuck Norris would return the message: Google won’t search for Chuck Norris because it knows you don’t find Chuck Norris, he finds you. Your search – Chuck Norris – did not match any documents. Any company that respects and fears Chuck is to be congratulated…

Calculator

Forgotten how to work out percentage? Well don’t fret it – just type 28% of 99 (or whatever you’re looking for) into the search bar and Google will respond with the answer (27.72) displaying on a large calculator where you can enter any other sums you might need calculating.

Definitions

Meanwhile Google can also work as a dictionary. Just type ‘define’ followed by the word you want explained.

Recursion

Recursion means ‘self imitating’ repetition (such as the nested reflections you get if you point two mirrors at each other). Google thus responds to such searches with the message ‘Did you mean Recursion?’. Paradoxical…

Anagram

Similarly, search for ‘anagram’ and Google will respond by asking if you meant ‘Nag a ram’. Very ufnyn…

Mordor

Head over to Google maps and look for walking directions to Mordor from the Shire. Google will answer that ‘One does not simply walk into Mordor’.