With Google involved in so many activities, including smart phones, e-mail, maps and lots more, it's easy to miss the many improvements it has made to its basic search window over the years. That's the seemingly simple one-line rectangular box we use to enter our search queries.

While we normally just enter a few words to search for a particular website or a source of information, that single line has lots of intelligence built in that can decipher what's been entered beyond just the few words. As a result, you can use the window to get all sorts of information without ever having to navigate to a website. What a labor-saver!

I've compiled a list of some of the more useful shortcuts, some of which I was unaware.

Microsoft's Bing, its innovative new search engine, also performs some of these shortcuts, but it has not had the time to match everything it's taken Google years to do.

Two of the most common queries are the weather and the time. To check the weather, simply type in the world "weather" along with a city or a ZIP code. At the top of the returned list of search results will appear the current weather conditions and a four-day forecast. It's even smart enough to work if you misspell the word and type in "wether."

To get the time anywhere in the world, type in "time" and the name of a city or country, and it displays the correct time along with a clock symbol. Typing in "time USA" displays the time for several cities across the country.

The pattern is very much the same with other categories. On the returned search page along the top is usually an icon and the information.

Sports fans will love this one. Type the name of the team associated with the NBA, NFL, MLB or the NHL, and up comes the box score. When I typed in the "San Diego Padres" while a game was in progress, the box score for the first eight innings along with details of the next scheduled game were displayed.

For travelers there are a few handy things. To see the arrival and departure information of any flight simply type in the name of the airline and flight number. It will even note whether the flight is on time or not.

And when you arrive at that foreign destination, just type in the amount of one currency you want to convert into a second currency, and the answer is displayed along with an on-screen converter that lets you calculate other amounts. Next to it is a graph of the conversion rate over the past four years. For example, try "100 dollars in euros."

Should you want to get a map, simply enter the word "map" after the location, such as "Solana Beach map" and you will see a Google map.

Want to learn about a medication that's prescribed? Simply type in the name and you'll see a graphic of a little capsule with a description of the drug, including what it's used for, as well as links to its side effects, use directions, precautions and dietary instructions.

In the unlikely case you've ingested the wrong pill or chemical, type in "poison center" and up comes a red phone with the number. Or if someone is thinking of suicide, they can type in "suicide prevention" to get the emergency hotline number.

Google does a good job of calculating conversions. For example, type "50 degrees Celsius in Fahrenheit" and get 122 degrees. That works with hundreds of different units in both metric and domestic units.

Google can be used for searching books and their contents, including a huge cover image, reviews, table of contents, and where it can be purchased. Simply enter the book's title and author. In some cases, it's more comprehensive than Amazon because it includes Amazon reviews along with others it finds on the Web.

To check for movies playing near you, type in "movies" plus the ZIP code. Returned are the movie names, running length and ratings. To find a word's definition, add the word "define" in front of a word and up comes definitions from a number of different sources.

You can also use the window to perform math calculations; no need to bring up an online calculator. Simply enter the equation such as 150/23 or (56+67+98)/3 and the answer appears when you hit the return key. It even works with trigonometry and logarithms such as sin(12) or log(6.5).

Another shortcut I just discovered is to enter a tracking number from FedEx, UPS and others and you'll get a link to the appropriate shipper.

There are a number of additional shortcuts, including stock quotes, mortgage rates and earthquake information. Check out google.com/landing/searchtips/#helpcenter.

Of course there are features you may not appreciate such as typing your name or phone number and seeing yourself identified. But that's a warning that this information is out there and available to those that care to check.

Baker is the author of "From Concept to Consumer," holds 30 patents and is an Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year. Phil can be heard on KOGO AM the first Sunday of each month. Send comments to phil.baker@sddt.com. Phil's blog is blog.philipgbaker.com.