asterisks may link to anything (!*) – hover/click on links for destinations
parenthetical DDG bang commands (!?) link to results of searches for phrases they follow
that’s all you need to know – read the rest of this post only if you’d like to know more
may all be well* … and do no harm*
Any DuckDuckGo bang command (!?)*
in this post is a link. That is, it has a link embedded in it.
There also may be a link embedded in an asterisk – as in the second, third, fourth, and last examples below.
An asterisk may take you anywhere. Hover on it to see where. If nowhere, look for a footnote.
When in parentheses, bang commands link to results of a search for what they follow. When not, they link to results of a search for what they precede. Here are some examples:
Each bang command above links to the results of a site search. Hover on the link to see what site.
An exclamation point and an asterisk together make up a faux bang command, one that links to the results of searching a site that may have no custom bang command.
Ellipsis characters used in a search term to signify omitted text may be replaced by that text.
May all be well.*
George
When in parentheses, bang commands link to results of a search for what they follow. When not, they link to results of a search for what they precede. Here are some examples:
!yt Vancouver Unitarians / a bang command for YouTube
!ucv location / a bang command for Vancouver Unitarians (!g) – !ucv bang command is now history*
Unitarians care less about belief, more about how to live.* / link is to an archived page
paradox: we need to know more than stories can tell, yet … (!?)* / ellipsis may mean a longer search term
“he taught a way of life” / Salzberg, Goenka, Buddha (!?)
power (!* !*) / two searches – each using a faux bang command – with results from each site
!* dismantling religion / UU losing freedom from dogma and hierarchy (!*)
logical fallacies prevalent in UU spaces: ad hominem attacks, slippery slope … / Cycleback (!g)*
Each bang command above links to the results of a site search. Hover on the link to see what site.
An exclamation point and an asterisk together make up a faux bang command, one that links to the results of searching a site that may have no custom bang command.
Ellipsis characters used in a search term to signify omitted text may be replaced by that text.
May all be well.*
George
2020-04-29T09:55−08* / April 29, 2020 – see bit.ly/dateposted
*a link – bang and faux bang commands (!*) in parentheses link to results of searches, such as light a candle (!?)*
you may want to use the simpler line below as a footnote to any of your writing where it applies
*a link – see note
on 2025-01-15 added the line on paradox to the examples in the post
elsewhere the comment following the slash in that line is replaced with “all we know is stories“ (!g)*
on 2025-02-09 added need-to-know block quote as intro to the post
on 2025-02-22 added the line on logical fallacies to the examples in the post and further explained ellipses
*a link – bang and faux bang commands (!*) in parentheses link to results of searches, such as light a candle (!?)*
you may want to use the simpler line below as a footnote to any of your writing where it applies
*a link – see note
on 2025-01-15 added the line on paradox to the examples in the post
elsewhere the comment following the slash in that line is replaced with “all we know is stories“ (!g)*
on 2025-02-09 added need-to-know block quote as intro to the post
on 2025-02-22 added the line on logical fallacies to the examples in the post and further explained ellipses