How to See the Search History on a Computer
All four of the world's most popular web browsers--Windows Internet Explorer, Mozilla Firefox, Google Chrome and Apple Safari--allow you to view your search history, whether you want to see websites you visited very recently or several weeks prior. Being able to see the search history provides a few benefits for certain individuals. For parents and teachers, it's an effective way to make sure the kids are not looking at inappropriate websites, and if you're the forgetful type, it allows you to go back and revisit your favorite pages without having to remember the exact address.
Other People Are Reading
Instructions
-
Windows Internet Explorer
-
1
Open the Windows Internet Explorer browser.
-
2
Locate and click the yellow star icon that represents your "Favorites" menu on the browser toolbar if you're using Internet Explorer 7 or 8. For Internet Explorer 6 and lower, click the "History" icon next to the "Favorites" icon.
-
-
3
If using Internet Explorer 7 or 8, click the tab marked "History" when the small pop-up window appears. Disregard this step if using Internet Explorer 6 or lower.
-
4
Select the date or time period for which you want to see the history.
Mozilla Firefox
-
5
Open the Mozilla Firefox browser.
-
6
Click the "History" menu located on the main toolbar near at the top of the Firefox browser.
-
7
Select the "Show All History" option from the drop-down menu.
-
8
Choose a time period for which you want to view the history, or type relevant keywords into the search bar to locate a particular page or set of pages.
Google Chrome
-
9
Open the Google Chrome browser.
-
10
Click on the wrench icon located near the top of the browser and to the right of the address bar.
-
11
Select "History" from the drop-down menu.
-
12
Choose a time period to view results for, or click the "Show All History" link. Use the "Search History" feature to perform a search for the page or pages you wish to revisit.
Apple Safari
-
13
Open the Safari web browser.
-
14
Click and hold down on the "History" menu until you see a list of recently visited websites and dates.
-
15
Move the mouse cursor over any of the dates to see the full search history for that particular day.
-
1
Tips & Warnings
Use keyboard commands as a shortcut to access your history folders. Press "Ctrl+H" if using Internet Explorer or Google Chrome; "Ctrl+Shift+H" for Firefox; and "Click+Hold on Back" for Safari.
If you only want to see your most recently visited URLs and web pages, it isn't always necessary to go to the "History" folder. A quicker option is to click on the small "down" arrow at the end of the address bar or next to the back/forward arrow icons on the browser. Clicking the arrow brings a drop-down menu of the URLs or titles of websites you visited last.
References
Resources
- Photo Credit internet image by Attila Toro from Fotolia.com
