11 Free Google Helpouts To Get Expert Tips For Your Everyday Problems

11 Free Google Helpouts To Get Expert Tips For Your Everyday Problems

Google Helpouts is a new service that connects you to real experts who can help you with a variety of problems. Whether it’s a household plumbing problem, a tricky tech problem or how to stick to your diet, there’s someone on Helpouts who can assist. Here’s a look at some of the best and most useful Helpouts we could find.

Title photo by Nemo, NEGOVURA (Shutterstock), OpenClips.

Google Helpouts is only a few days old, but one popular misconception is that all of the helpout sessions are expensive. In fact, many of them are completely free, and even the ones that aren’t are often very well priced for the type of help you get. We rounded up a bunch of the best free tutorials and sessions available at Google Helpouts, for everything from cooking classes to home improvement to computer troubleshooting.

Basic Cooking

Basic Cooking from the Rouxbe Online Cooking School is a free class that will get your basic cooking questions answered. It’s less of a cooking class (although they also have those) and more of a Q&A session with real chefs and cooks that can help you with your pressing kitchen issues. This Helpout is just one of many offered by the school, and the school is one of Google’s launch partners, so if you’re interested in more classes and topics, they have them available.

Programming 101: Foundations

If you’re interested in learning to code but don’t know where to start, these free Helpouts from Clayton Rieck, a CS major, teaching assistant and tutor, might give you some leads. If you’re looking at a tricky problem, he may be able to help. He’s not an enterprise programmer or anything, but he’s one of the things that makes Helpouts great — someone offering their experience to people who have questions about how to get started doing what he’s doing.

Rock Guitar Lessons – Artist Development

Whether you’re interested in learning how to play the guitar, or you’re already a musician who could use some help promoting himself, Matt Gibson is willing to answer your questions in this Google Helpout. While the point of the Helpout is to teach people to play the guitar, find their own sound and style, and really learn to love the instrument, he’s also a musician of his own and happy to share the techniques required to get your music in front of people who can help promote it, get endorsed by music production companies, take better recordings, and even learn to promote yourself via social media.

Tai Chi for Everyone

I’ll admit, I’ve always wanted to take a Tai Chi class, but I never really knew how to get started or where to go to find one in my community. Thanks to this Google Helpout, I can essentially stand in front of my TV or computer and take a virtual Tai Chi class led in real time by instructor Hendrix Yuri, who has over a decade of experience in the subject, and has taught classes before. He even says that if you want, he’ll teach martial techniques — but that’s not what the Helpout is for — it’s really Tai Chi for exercise, flexibility and activity. If you’re interested in martial arts and self defence, Yuri has a separate Google Helpout designed to teach martial arts and self-defence skills that anyone can join (it’s also free!)

Kitchen Catastrophes Solved

There comes a time in every cook’s life, whether you’re cooking at home for a family dinner or you’re cooking for a large affair like a holiday meal or dinner party, where you’re not sure exactly what you’re trying to do. Things turn out poorly: grey steaks, limp veggies or soggy pies. Sherród Faulks is a chef and food blogger with a number of credentials under his belt, and he’s willing to answer your pressing cooking questions and help you make better food at home through this Google Helpout. You don’t have to be in the kitchen to talk to him, but if you have a tricky cooking question, want to know why your rolls never come out fluffy or your roasts are always dry, he can help you out.

Photography and Gear: Learn to Take Better Pictures

Looking to take better photographs or improve your photography skills? Well, we have a guide to help, but if you want to chat with a professional photographer about your specific camera, what the buttons and settings do on it, how you can improve your “eye” for good shots, or what kind of camera or photography gear your should invest in and what you should stay away from, this Helpout can help you.

Urban Farming Basics: How to Grow Your Own Vegetable Garden

Living in an apartment or a small space in the city doesn’t have to mean giving up on a container garden, a little herb garden, or your dream of being a little more sustainable and growing some of your own food. In this Helpout, you’ll get tips and suggestions for garden size, what to grow, where to grow it, and how to take care of your plants all taking your specific situation into account. You’ll get tips on the herbs and veggies you should pick for your climate and personal preferences, and how to make it work with your space or any available shared space for planting.

Learn about Coffee: Advice from Roasting to Tasting

If you want to learn the ins and outs of coffee, we have a guide for that too, but if you have questions about home brewing, the art (and the science) of roasting your own beans and brewing the perfect cup, and where your coffee probably comes from, this Helpout is a free opportunity to talk to a coffee enthusiast and home roasting fanatic about the topic. Ideally geared towards people who love coffee but don’t really consider it a hobby or a passion just yet, it’s a great way to learn more.

Computers: Questions Answered, Problems Solved

If you’re looking for live answers to your technology problems from someone who’s been doing tech support for various companies and products for a long time, Jeffrey Hellman is willing to offer his expertise via Google Helpouts. He notes that he’s willing to take a stab at your computer problems over Helpouts, or help you pick great service technicians outside of Helpouts if you need to take your computer somewhere else to be serviced, or he can just answer your technology questions.

General Contracting & Home Inspections

Whether you’re in the market for a home or you’re just looking to do some improvements on your current one, Jeff Bond can help you make sure you’re getting your money’s worth with your home inspection, and help you pick a good contractor from a bad one. He’s been a home inspector and general contractor for over 25 years, and he’s willing to look at issues you’re concerned with and answer your home improvement and DIY questions, not to mention help you find reputable contractors and repair people to address the problem the right way.

GIMP Photography Postprocessing/Image Editing

GIMP is a remarkably powerful image editor and processing tool. However, it has a bit of a reputation for being difficult to use and find your way around, and part of that is for good reason — the app can be pretty dense. This Helpout with photographer Patrick David will help you learn to use GIMP and other free, open-source photo editing tools to get your images processed, retouched, and in tip top shape. You’ll learn retouching, colour corrections and other photo manipulations, and it’s all free.

All of these Helpouts are completely free, although it’s important to note that the person you’re working with may limit the duration of the session, the topics covered, or may use the free Helpout as an opportunity to plug paid Helpouts later or offer you additional services for a fee. Keep that in mind when you get started.

If you do have a little money to spend, this nutrition counselling helpout by One Medical Group is a $US65, 45-minute investment in your health and well being. You’ll get individualised counselling for your diet and nutrition needs, and concrete suggestions to help you aim for your health goals. Food lovers can drop $US20 for this helpout on plating and making your meals look stunning. It’s 15 minutes, but by the end the folks from Kitchit will have you plating your weeknight dinners like a pro. If you’re a fan of Top Chef, you’ll be happy to know that Top Chef University is a Google Helpouts launch partnet, and $US20 gets you hands-on, individual training on topics from basic cooking techniques to learning global cuisine.

The beauty of Google Helpouts is that anyone — from huge companies and media agencies to individuals looking to share their skills or make a few bucks can all sign up to offer their services to anyone who happens to need them. If you haven’t, take a look at what’s available at Google Helpouts. Odds are you’ll find someone who has something to teach that you’ve been wanting to learn.


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