How can I search the entire web from Google Custom Search?

Question

Can I search in the web with Google Custom Search? Because in http://www.google.com/cse, I must enter a site url in "Sites to search"; And I don't have any url! because the Internet doesn't have any URL! (I think!)

Can you help me?

Solution 1

I believe you have to enter a url because google wants to know what website(s) the search form is going to be on. But after that, when your custom search is set up, you can go into its settings and make different changes. The best you can do for searching the entire web is to click this option in the "Basics" section of your Custom Search Engine:

"Search the entire web but emphasize included sites."

Hope that helps.

Solution 2

From Google's help page here: Convert a search engine to search the entire web:

On the Custom Search home page, click the search engine you want. -Click Setup, and then click the Basics tab. -Select Search the entire web but emphasize included sites. -In the Sites to search section, delete the site you entered during the initial setup process.

https://support.google.com/customsearch/bin/answer.py?hl=en&answer=2631040&topic=2601037&ctx=topic

Solution 3

when you are about to create a CSE, just enter some arbitrary URL for Sites to Search and when You were done, then you can select your CSE in control panel to modify it.
Like this example you can remove any previously entered URL and click search entire web but emphasize included sites option

Comments

[Pons]

Here is the answer: > google.com/support/forum/p/customsearch/… But there is still a problem: the total number of results is different from the one returned by google. It seems that CSE excludes many urls (for example the ones from forum).

[LonelyWebCrawler]

Here's an official document from Google explaining it: support.google.com/customsearch/bin/…

[Moo-Juice]

@Cody Gray, yeah "crawled" is far more fitting and correct and was indeed the word that escaped me :)

[lesolorzanov]

This information can also be found here support.google.com/customsearch/answer/2631040?hl=en :)