# custom tools for Google searches
**URL:** https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479
**Category:** Support
**Created:** [September 4, 2011, 11:53pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479 "2011-09-04T23:53:40Z")
**Posts on this page:** 9
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@DJSizzlePuff](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/DJSizzlePuff)
#### Post date: [September 4, 2011, 11:53pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479/1 "2011-09-04T23:53:40Z")
this question is similar to another problem i had with a creating a custom tool, in this case I'm trying to setup a couple tools to do Google searches of the selected items.
It works most of the time, however sometimes it will cause strange behaviour and i'm sure it has to do with the text strings containing weird characters.
Here's what I'm trying to do:
Name: Search Google (Artist - Title)
Path: C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox 3.5\firefox.exe
Parameter: [http://www.google.com/search?q=$replace(%artist%](http://www.google.com/search?q=%24replace(%artist%), ,+)+$replace(%title%, ,+)
It's the best I could come up with. However, for example if either field has an ampersand in it, the search will break down. Obviously I could create a rule to replace '&' with '%26' but there are other problems too (a couple that i can't remember right now, but sometimes the tool will cause two different tabs to open in Firefox)
is there no string function that formats in a URL encoded format?
any advice on a good way to do this would be appreciated!
---
### Author:  [@DJSizzlePuff](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/DJSizzlePuff)
#### Post date: [September 5, 2011, 12:17am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479/2 "2011-09-05T00:17:46Z")
on the suggestion of another member, I tried the code they were using for Google image searching:
```
NAME: Artwork - Artist/Album
PATH: C:\Program Files (x86)\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe
PARAMETER: http://www.google.ie/images?q=$replace($regexp(%artist% %album%,'\s*\[.*\].*',), ,+)&hl=en&biw=1236&bih=1372&tbs=isch:1,isz:lt,islt:svga&source=lnt&sa=X&ei=-u1wTZTpPMK1hAeb0qkx&ved=0CAoQpwUoBA
[] for all selected files
```
However, this search too doesn't work with ampersands in either the artist or album field.
Since I'm violently allergic to regular expressions, I'm wondering if anyone else has had any luck creating a bullet-proof script or tool for searching google using Mp3tag?
thanks in advance!
---
### Author:  [@stevehero](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/stevehero)
#### Post date: [September 5, 2011, 1:54am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479/3 "2011-09-05T01:54:20Z")
try this script from pone
[[WS] Google Images Cover Search](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/11166/1)
**EDIT**
Failing that try this, its a quick dirty fix but seeing as many songs dont have "&" in the title I just changed the search function around.
for all sizes
```
http://www.google.de/images?q="%title% %artist%"
```
for 800x600px or larger
[http://www.google.de/images?q=](http://www.google.de/images?q=)"%title% %artist%"&hl=en&biw=1236&bih=1372&tbs=isch:1,isz:lt,islt:svga&source=lnt&sa=X&ei=-u1wTZTpPMK1hAeb0qkx&ved=0CAoQpwUoBA
---
### Author:  [@pone](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/pone)
#### Post date: [September 5, 2011, 4:59am UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479/4 "2011-09-05T04:59:23Z")
I use this:
Name: Google Artist + Title
Path: C:\Program Files\Mozilla Firefox\firefox.exe
Parameter: [http://www.google.de/search?q=$replace(%artist%](http://www.google.de/search?q=%24replace(%artist%) %title%, ,+,#,+,&,+)
---
### Author:  [@stevehero](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/stevehero)
#### Post date: [September 5, 2011, 5:40pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479/5 "2011-09-05T17:40:30Z")
> [@pone](#):
>
> Parameter: [$replace - Google Suche](http://www.google.de/search?q=$replace)(%artist% %title%, ,+,#,+,&,+)
I know it might be a typo pone 🙂 but to search an image is:
```
http://www.google.ie/images?q=$replace(%artist% %title%, ,+,#,+,&,+)
```
and add the following to the end of the above code if you want to search 800x600px or larger images which is my workflow and then use irfan to resize all my images afterwards to 1000x1000.
&hl=en&biw=1236&bih=1372&tbs=isch:1,isz:lt,islt:svga&source=lnt&sa=X&ei=-u1wTZTpPMK1hAeb0qkx&ved=0CAoQpwUoBA
---
### Author:  [@pone](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/pone)
#### Post date: [September 5, 2011, 6:18pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479/6 "2011-09-05T18:18:29Z")
> [@stevehero](#):
>
> I know it might be a typo pone 🙂 but to search an image is:...
as far as I understood, DJ SizzlePuff (great name) asked for google, not google images. at least in his first post, ...
---
### Author:  [@stevehero](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/stevehero)
#### Post date: [September 5, 2011, 7:01pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479/7 "2011-09-05T19:01:17Z")
> [@pone](#):
>
> as far as I understood, DJ SizzlePuff (great name) asked for google, not google images. at least in his first post, ...
Least now hes got two options now 🙂
---
### Author:  [@DJSizzlePuff](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/DJSizzlePuff)
#### Post date: [September 5, 2011, 10:01pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479/8 "2011-09-05T22:01:39Z")
thanks guys! 
i like Pone's option of just stripping out '&' from the artist or title, because Google is still smart enough to know what i'm looking for even without the ampersand in the name.
---
### Author:  [@system](https://community.mp3tag.de/u/system)
#### Post date: [February 9, 2026, 12:23pm UTC](https://community.mp3tag.de/t/custom-tools-for-google-searches/12479/9 "2026-02-09T12:23:20Z")