Google Chrome: A beginner’s guide

The Knowhow

How to download Chrome

If your computer uses Windows software, your default browser (the one which comes pre-installed on your computer) will be Internet Explorer. To download Chrome, open up Internet Explorer by double-clicking on the desktop icon.

Once Internet Explorer has launched, go straight to the Google homepage and search for Google Chrome using the search terms 'Download Google Chrome'.

From the list page results, select the first result (highlighted in red below) which appears at the top of the list.

You will be taken to the Google Chrome download page; click on the link to download the application:

Click OK to any pop-up prompts which appear (asking you if you would like to download Google Chrome). Please note: You may have to restart your computer to finish installing the new software.

Once you've been notified that the software has installed, go straight to the Google Chrome icon (see below) on your desktop and double-click on it to launch your new browser window.

Visiting a webpage

First things first; open up Google Chrome. To visit a webpage you have two options. You can either:

• Enter the website's URL (its web address) into the URL box provided in Chrome, or;
• Search for a website using relevant search terms

Enter the website's URL

Once Chrome has opened, find the URL search bar in the browser window:

If you know the exact address of the website that you're trying to visit (for example http://www.thomascook.com) then you can type this straight into the space provided. Chrome will often bring up a list of suggested websites as you type (marked in the red box below) to help you find what you want:

Press Enter and you will be redirected straight to the website address.

Search using relevant search terms

If you aren't sure of the exact address for the website you need, you can search for it using Google.

To do this, go to the Google homepage; this usually opens up as the default homepage in Google Chrome, but if it doesn't, then type: http://www.google.co.uk into the Chrome search bar and hit Enter.

A new page will appear, with a new search bar on it. This is the most commonly-used search tool on the internet - the Google search engine. Now try typing the name of the business or any related keywords into the Google search bar. If you're trying to find the Thomas Cook website, you would type 'Thomas Cook' into the Google search engine, followed by Enter.

A page of suggested websites will appear; these have been found by Google and are the most likely websites to match your original search terms. Usually, one of the first results is the correct one - click on the result's title to proceed to your website.

Saving a website to your favourites list

If you've found your website (e.g. The Guardian) and want to use it again, you can save it to your list of favourite websites so that you don't need to type in the address every time you visit the page. To add a website to your list of favourites, go to the website as described above (f you're already on the website stay there and skip to the next step below).

Once you've arrived, click on the icon shaped like a star (in the top right-hand corner of your screen):

A small box will appear asking if you would like to bookmark the item in question, what you want to name it and where in your bookmarks you would like it to appear.

Select Done to finish - your favourite website has now been added.

To return to the website the next time you want to visit it, go back to the top-right-hand corner of Chrome, and this time, click on the icon shaped like a spanner:

When you click on the spanner icon, a list of options will appear; hover over the Bookmarks option with your cursor to proceed. Your favourites list will appear and you'll see your favourite website is now on the list (see below):

Click on the website in your favourites list to revisit it.

Managing your bookmarks

To manage a list of bookmarked items - click on the spanner icon in the top right-hand corner of the Google Chrome browser window. Hover over the Bookmarks option and click on Bookmark Manager (a new window will open, as shown below):

To organise your bookmarks - right-click on the item you wish to manage and select the nest step (e.g. Delete, Open in new tab, Open in new window, or Add folder). To add a new folder; click on Add folder (in the example below, the new folder added is called 'News Items')

You add bookmarked items to the new folder by dragging and dropping them into the folder itself. You can also organise your bookmarks by clicking Organise on the bookmark manager tab. This tool allows you to organise your bookmarked items according to title name

Backing up bookmarks

As shown above, a backup can be created for all your bookmarks. When in the Bookmark Manager, click on Organise and then Export bookmarks to HTML file... A new window will appear asking you to save the file; place it somewhere you'll remember and rename the file if needed. When done, click Save.

Change your homepage

Chrome is a Google software product, so the default homepage is usually www.google.com. To change this setting, return to the Spanner icon and from there, choose Options:

The Options menu will appear; select the Open the homepage option, then enter your chosen homepage URL into the box provided (Open this page). In the example below, the homepage has been changed to http://www.google.co.uk:

Close the Options tab to finish; your homepage should now have been updated.

How to change the font size, colour or style displayed on a webpage

Open Google Chrome and click on the spanner icon in the top right-hand corner; choose Options. Click on the Under the Bonnet tab on the left and then Customise fonts...

Select the font styles you would like from the drop-down boxes. Note: When using Chrome, your chosen font styles won't be shown on websites that have pre-defined font styles.

Deleting browsing history

Your browser history is a record your computer keeps of website you've visited - this is useful if you regularly return to the same web pages and wish to make a note of them. The longer and more detailed your browser history gets, the more your browser - and your internet connection - slows down. Follow the steps below to delete your browsing history:

Open Google Chrome and click on the spanner icon in the top right-hand corner of the browser window. From the menu, select Tools and from there, History (see image below; highlighted in red).

A new tab will appear on your browser, listing your browser history (see below):

In the top right-hand corner of the browsing history tab, click on the option marked Edit Items. The browsing history tab will change, allowing you to select which pages you wish to remove from the browsing history (see below). Place a tick next to the pages you wish to delete:

Once you've ticked the pages you wish to remove, check the Remove Selected Items button or to clear all browsing history, choose Clear all browsing data...

A new pop-up will appear:

Select the type of browsing data you want to remove and return to the browsing data tab to finish.

Deleting cookies

When you browse a site, tiny files called cookies are stored in a folder on your computer. These files are used to personalise your visit for next time e.g. the page will load quicker or your login details will be remembered. Once you start visiting lots of websites, these cookies start taking up space on your computer, so it's a good idea to do a cleanup once in awhile. To delete cookies:

Open Google Chrome, click on the spanner icon in the right-hand corner and then click Options. On the left-side, click on the tab Under the Bonnet and then on Clear browsing data...

A pop-up window will appear. In the drop-down box next to 'Obliterate the following items from', choose how far back you would like to delete from - making sure there's only a tick in Delete cookies and other site and plug-in data. Now click Clear browsing data to remove.

For more advanced settings:

Open Google Chrome and click on the spanner icon in the top right-hand corner. From the menu choose Options. A new tab will open; click on the Under the Bonnet tab and then on Content settings...

A new screen will be shown - In the cookies section click All cookies and site data... All the sites you've visited will be shown here. You can either delete individual cookies or remove all.

Individual: Select the cookie you would like to delete and press Delete on the keyboard or click on the x in the corner (as shown below):

To remove all cookies, click on the Remove All button at the top of the page.

Where downloads are saved

• Open Google Chrome and click on the spanner icon in the top right corner
• A drop-down will appear; click Options
• On the left side, click on the Under the Bonnet tab
• In the Downloads section it will say 'Download location', with the file path shown next to it. This is where you're downloads are currently being saved. To change where future downloads go, click Change and choose the folder you want them to go to

When downloading something, a progress bar will appear at the bottom of the browser. When it's finished, you can double-click on the file to open it. If you click on the spanner icon in the top right corner and click Downloads you'll be able to see all your recent downloads. To know where they've been saved, click on Show in folder.

If you still can't find a file you've downloaded:

Click on Start > Search > For Files or Folders... A pop-up will appear; on the left side, click on All files and folders.

Type in the name of the file and make sure the 'look in' section has the name of the main drive you use (usually C:) - click Search. The C: drive will now be scanned and once complete any results will be shown on the right side of the pop-up window.

Google Chrome Webstore

This online store offers a whole host of free software applications and add-ons for you to download and use within Google Chrome.

To search and download an application, visit the Webstore Catalogue. You can search for a particular add-on (by typing the name into the search box) or you can browse through the different categories provided on the homepage.

Found the add-on you need? Follow the steps below to learn how to download and install it. We've used the 'Google News' add-on as an example.

Hover over the icon and click on the add-on's title to select it, as shown below:

A screen will appear, giving more details; click on the Add to Chrome button if you would like to download it. A new pop-up will appear asking if you want to install it, click Install.

The download should only take a few moments; once it's finished, go back to the Webstore and click on the Launch App button.

The add-on will launch automatically in a new tab. Once you've finished using the add-on, simply close the browser tab. To access the application at another time, open a new tab in Google Chrome and select it from the menu provided.