The quick method for searching for information is to type in a word or two in the address bar in Internet Explorer, cross our fingers, then press Enter on the keyboard or click on the Go button. Once you've installed the MSN search toolbar (if you're running Windows XP) or use the MSN search page, there are many, many more options available.

Here's a simple example for you to try. Open the MSN search page (search.msn.com) type pizza into the search box. Now click on the Search Builder button. Up pops a box into which you can enter more details about your locoation, among other things. Click on Country/Region and choose Australia from the list. Close the Search Builder dialogue and you'll see that the text you've entered to search for becomes pizza loc:AU. Now click the Near Me button and your search will be confined to sites located in Australia.

The loc keyword added to your search text in the example above is one of a range of operators you can use to refine your search. They're listed on the Web Search Help - Using Search Builder page.

You should always start your searches with a general type of phrase. So to begin a search for pizza recipes, use pizza recipe. Then you can narrow down your search to be more specific, such as pizza recipes that are vegetarian. A further refinement might be to then search for vegetarian pizzas using Australian grown ingredients.

Whether or not you've got the search toolbar installed, make use of the drop arrow on the Search button to find news items, images, movies, music or look up a word. You can even do some maths (see Maths Answers in MSN Search Help).

Here's a small tip for those who have the MSN search toolbar installed on their XP machines. Sign in to MSN Messenger when you go online. Then Click the My Space button - this will load Internet Explorer and your blog page. Now open a new tab (click on the blue plus sign) and click on the Hotmail button on the toolbar. Because you've signed in to Messenger, your Hotmail inbox will immediately load.

The new Windows update service now includes automatic download and installation of not only Windows updates but also Microsoft Office updates and other Microsoft products. If you're running MS Office, the new service will save you the trouble of periodically visiting the Office updates page to ensure you're running the latest versions of Word, Excel and so on.