  We discuss the giant-pulse phenomenon exhibited by pulsars and the distances
to which giant pulses might be detected from extragalactic pulsars. We describe
the conditions under which a single-pulse search is more sensitive than a
standard periodicity search. We find that, for certain pulse-amplitude
distribution power laws and time series lengths, single-pulse searches can be
superior. We present the results of searches toward several extragalactic
targets, including M33, the LMC (PSR B0540-69) and several other galaxies.
While we have not conclusively detected giant pulses from any of these targets,
these searches illustrate the methodology of, issues related to and
difficulties in these types of searches.
