It’s weird that Google (a search engine in the first place) has created its own social network without giving users the ability to search for other users’ real-time updates. There’s an option to search for users – which works much like Facebook’s people search – start typing and people will be suggested instantly. It works primarily by matching words you are typing with users’ names and emails. But how about searching for what people are talking about on Google Plus?

Would you like to know what random users are saying about the movie you are considering? Or a book you are looking for? Would you like to find friends based on what they are saying on Google Plus?  Here’s how to do it.

Use Google Advanced Operator

While there’s no better and straightforward way to restrict Google search results to only updates posted on Google Plus, there is a combination of advanced operators to make it work:

• site:plus.google.com – to limit search results to the Google Plus subdomain
• inurl:posts/* – to limit search results to users’ updates (and to prevent it from searching for user bios, usernames, etc).

Now just add your search term:

You can now play with the handy Google Sidebar options to filter results by date. For example, you can search only for Google Plus updates posted in the past 24 hours:

Obviously, this search supports all useful advanced Google operators. Please read about using Google operators you can play with in our previously published posts:

• Master the Google Operands – Search Like a God & Save Time
• 6 Ways To Reduce Irrelevant Results On Google Search
• 3 Google Tricks When You Don’t Know What to Search For
• 6 Ways To Search ‘By Date’ On Google

Add Google Plus Update Search To Your Browser

If you plan to use Google Plus update search regularly, consider adding it to your browser.

Google Chrome

There are a number of new extensions that add Google Plus search to the Chrome browser. Here are two possible options to try:

• Helper for Google+ (we have mentioned this extension in our post on cross-promoting Google Plus shares on Twitter and Facebook) – this installs Google+ custom search in the Chrome address bar.

To use the search, type “Plus” in the address bar, then click the “Tab” key and finally type the search term:

• Search Extension for Google Plus: This extension works from the toolbar icon. Click the icon and start typing in the search box.

You can then filter the search results to show:

• All results.
• Only users’ posts.
• Only profiles.
• Only posts from Buzz.
• Only posts from Google Reader.

I wish there was a way to configure the interface of search results as I found browsing through one-color list of links somewhat difficult. There’s also no way to sort the results by date.

Firefox

Google Plus Search is a search plugin (which means it gets installed into your browser search box) that connects you to Google custom search. It is configured to search through Google+ users’ updates:

Here’s also a detailed instruction on setting up Google+ search shortcuts in Firefox.

Have you tried playing with Google+ update search? Please share your thoughts in the comments!