The Google Search module is designed to provide a quick and easy way to display Google search results directly in your site. No need to launch a new browser window to use Google’s search results which may get blocked by the visitors browser. No need to edit your skin or some other advanced setup to replace the search engine used for your site. This module is a snap to set up but powerful enough to offer complete CSS customization of the search results. This module is so easy to use we have included a complete set of instructions in this description.

Google Search Module Installation

Step 1 – Download and install the module.

Step 2 – Navigate to the Admin > Site Settings page.

Step 3 – Select the Advanced Settings tab and verify that the Search Results Page dropdown has a page selected and click the Update button.

Step 4 – Add the Google Search Module to the specified Search Results Page and position it as desired.

Optional: You may now either delete the default Search Results module from the page or remove the View permissions for everyone to avoid having multiple search results displayed on the page.

Note: You may want to leave the Results module that handles showing tagged content. The Google Search Module are designed to work with the Results module, as the default Search Results module.

Google Search Module Configuration

Step 1 – Navigate to the settings for the Google Search Module.

Step 2 – Copy and paste your Google API Key into the corresponding textbox.

Step 3 – To restrict the search results to only your site, ensure that the proper domain name is entered into the Site Restriction textbox.

Note: If you do not already have an API key for your site, click on the provided link and request one from Google. To do so, you will simply need to provide your website address and click the button. You will then be able to copy the key from Google’s page and paste it into your settings.

Optional Google Search Module Styling

In the Appearance section of the Google Search Settings there are several option you can use to customize the appearance of your search results. Here is an example to illustrate the use of these options:

A search result is dived into four sections.

1. Title – The page title.
2. Description – The meta description for the page.
3. Link – The URL to the page.
4. Highlight – If the search term is contained within the title or description sections, the term is “highlighted.” Settings for this section are applied to each instance of the search term.

Each of these sections have a corresponding color and style setting. The Link section provides an additional option to specify a display format.

The color setting provides an easy to use color picker to select the desired color or you may specify a custom hexadecimal color.

If you require additional styling the Advanced Section allows you to specify CSS properties to each section. You may even use a display: none; property to hide an entire section.