The most common Internet searching tools are Search Engines and Directories.
- Search Engines are programs on the web
which collect lists of web sites for you to view based on the search terms
you enter. They use software called "spiders" to search
the web.
- Directories
are different from search engines because of a 'human' element.
Directories are human efforts to sift through
web pages and categorize them by
subject. So while you may get more exact, reliable results in a
directory, you are searching considerably fewer sites.
- Another type of Internet searching tool is the meta search engine. Meta search engines send your request to several different search engines simultaneously. Meta search engines used to be very valuable in the early days of Internet searching when search engines and directories had very few sites indexed.
......and the many web pages they search......
Kim Zetter, in a September 2000 PC World article called "How to stop searching and start finding," estimates the number of search engines (conservatively) at just over 8000. Those 8000 search engines must search an estimated billion web pages. And the web is growing at a rate of about a million pages a day.
Here are a few of the top rated search engines, directories and meta search engines:
Google http://www.google.com
The most thorough search engine on the web. Very little advertising
Yahoo! http://www.yahoo.com
One of the very first search engines. Now appears very much like
a directory with lots of distracting advertising, but still one of the
most heavily used engines out on the web
MetaCrawler http://www.metacrawler.com
Combines results from top search engines such as Google.
Search.Com http://www.search.com
One of the first meta search engines. Still a very useful tool.
The Open Directory Project http://www.dmoz.org
One of the largest Directories on the web. A very "pure
searching" feel. Very little advertising.
Entering the correct search terms, in the smartest way
The search terms you use and the way you submit them to a search engine is very important--it will determine whether you get 500 hits (pretty good) or 5 million hits (not so good). If you get five million returns, you may want to re-evaluate your search terms and how you've entered them.
Coming up with your terms
- What is your information need? Make sure you have a clear idea of what it is you're searching for.
- Are there other words or subjects which describe your information need? Consider these alternate search terms.
- Spelling is very important--If you misspell a word or a name, you won't get the results you want.
Entering your Terms
Of course you could type in a subject any old way and see what happens. But it is better to use certain symbols in addition to your search terms in order to communicate better with your search engine.
| Symbol | Example |
| + | Grand +Canyon +tour (tells the search engine the pages it retrieves must contain all three words) |
| - | Nixon -Watergate (tells the search engine you want info on Nixon, but not Watergate) |
| " " | "southern cooking" (tells the search engine you want the word southern to appear right next to the word cooking) |
Does your site pass the integrity test?
Remember, anyone can publish information on the Internet. It is very important that you evaluate the information that you plan to use.
You can tell a lot about a site and the information it contains simply by checking out the site's URL, and especially the domain name.
|
.com |
This a commercial site. Anyone can put up a .com
site. A company might provide you valuable information....they
may also be trying to sell you a product.
|
|
.gov |
This is a government site. Government sites have over
the past couple of years become excellent sources of good
information. For example, there is The Unites States Copyright Office, Small
Business Association, Internal Revenue Service...the list goes on.
|
|
.edu |
This is a site hosted on a server at an educational
institution. Probably a pretty good sign that you've hit
something pretty reliable.
But many .edu sites are student papers. Beware of
other student papers.
|
|
.org |
This is a non-profit organization. Probably
pretty reliable, though not without bias, depending on the goals of
the organization. The National Rifle Association definitely
has an agenda. So understand that you're getting one
perspective. Also understand that this information may not be
current.
|
- Is it well designed? Can you see the text? Can you see all of it? Don't waste your time on a site that is difficult to navigate.
- Do all the links work?
- Is the writing style readable? Does the writer use correct grammar and spelling?
- Is the site attributed to a person or organization? Is there a contact person, phone number or address?
- Is there a date when the site was last updated?