Basic searching usually does the trick, but sometimes a little more power is helpful.  Google offers several helpful examples highlighting the advanced features of Google Web Search:

• Phrase search: put double quotes around the search phrase.  This tells Google to search for those words in that order, no changes.
• Search within a specific website: [ diamondbacks site:mlb.com ] will return pages about the diamondbacks only from mlb.com. Classes of sites can also be specified: [ mba site:.edu ].
• Exclude terms: attach a minus sign immediately before a word to avoid pages containing that word in the search results: [ arizona diamondbacks -snakes ]
• Fill in the blanks: use an asterisk to replace whole words when searching for unknown terms.  [ Diamondbacks * world series winners ]
• Search exactly as is: use the plus sign immediately before a word (no spaces) to have Google match the word exactly as typed.  Putting double quotes around a single word is another way to use this feature.
• OR operator: to specifically allow either one of multiple words, use the OR operator (or the pipe |) to separate the terms. [ Diamondbacks 2001 OR 2002 ]

Coming next time: exceptions to these rules.

[Background information provided by Google Web Search Help]