Often we find searching for the information
that we need on the internet difficult. It is especially a
problem when we face the huge amount and variable quality
of information available. However, there are strategies we
can use to make this job easier. We can use the right search
engine to suit the particular search, we can develop skills
to use search engines intelligently, we can learn to make
sensible choices about which site to visit and finally we
can evaluate the usefulness of the site once we examine it.
(Or we might want to go to the P.L.
Duffy search page, or the search box on the right hand
side of this website and type in a key word! )
Choosing the right search engine
There are many search engines and different
types of search engines. You can choose different ones for
different purposes, and different kinds to suit your way of
thinking.
First, we ask some questions about what we are looking for.
Do we want to browse a subject area or look for something
particular; to find for a website, a journal article, a picture,
an academic article, a book; a specific piece of information,
or general information? Do we want information from everywhere
or just Australia?
Browsing
If we want to browse then a directory or category
search engine is a good start. Search Engines like this Bomis are
or Google
Directory . More Category
Search Engines engines are available.
If we have something specific in mind, but are not sure where
to start, general search engines the most familiar kind, are
where to start. Google
is one of the best in this group. Google has the advantage
of searching ordinary html files, PDF files, Usenet groups,
images, and has a very good algorithm for finding all kinds
of information. Other general searches are Gigablast; Ask; Wisenut or Yahoo
. Some of special note kartoo
les cartes de recherche which arranges results in a visual
format; Zerx which allows
you to find related sites
A more complete listing is available at General
Search Engines
Specialised
If the information we seek is very specific,
and we know the area a specialised search will be the place
to go. These range from search engines that search for science
to finance Money
Web to journals Find
Articles or trivia Cool
Quiz
More Specialist
Search Engines are available.
Australian
If we are looking for specifically Australian
information, there are Australian search engines. Webwombat
or Ozsearch .
Google now defaults
to a search screen that enables us to specify Australian searches.
Altavista and Yahoo
have Australian versions. More Australian
Searches can be found here and
Western Australian Searches here.
Metasearches
If we want a large amount of results quickly,
we can use metasearches, these are search engines that search
a number of engines at once, either returning results in clusters
from each or opening multiple windows. The Australian
Job Meta Search or the Megaspider
More of these at Metasearches
Invisible or Deep Web
Regular search engines only a small percentage
of the web. Even Google only accesses between 10-15% of the
web. In 2001 the "deep" web was 400-550 times the
size of the "normal" web; 7,500 terabytes compared
to 19 terabytes in size; had 550 billion documents compared
1 billion; had 200, 000 sites; 50% more traffic, had 1000-2000
better quality and best of all was 95% free. The deep web
comprises mostly documents in databases or other dynamically
generated sites. Examples of such search engines are Incywincy
; or a huge collection at Gary
Price's Direct Search An Australian direct search is Australian
Digital Theses Program There are more such resources here
Invisible
Web Search Engines and Australian
Invisible Web Search Engines
Searching Intelligently
Decide on what we are looking for and select
appropriate keywords
Just as with other searches, we need to know
what we are looking for. If browsing, decide on appropriate
area; if typing in keywords make them specific eg. koala
rather than animal, Arthur Boyd rather than
just Boyd or painter. We might need to try different
variations or a word eg think, thinking, thought. Don't
use very ordinary words on their own like Australia
or web, nor is there any need to use the, an, a,
it, or other common words like those.
Check out the instructions or help file.
Every search engine uses different ways to enter
the information. For example, Google's
help tells us to use a keyword entry, for it automatically
searches for documents containing all the words. So, it is
clear that the more keywords, the more specific our answer.
It is not case sensitive, that is it doesn't mind about capitals
or lower case. However, it doesn't have wildcards or stemming.
We need to search for the word we need. If we want the exact
words in the exact order, we use inverted commas. So search
for "Tom Brown". Other search engines use
and or +. Read and follow the instructions for
your chosen search engine.
Use advanced search or special sections or
facilities
Many search engines have an option for a more
advanced search, which allows us to specify particular criteria,
like geographical area , time, or pages that are linked. For
example Google
Advanced
and Ask Advanced have advanced search features. Google also has
searches for images Google
Images or news at Google
News Turbo 10 a deep web searcher which allows you to
choose which deep web search engines to use Turbo10
Edit Collections
Read the brief summaries on search results pages
before opening the link
In most search results screens we can see not only the title
of the webpage, but usually a summary or collection of keywords
from the site. Scan these quickly to see if they are related
to your topic or off in a slightly different direct. This
will also give us an idea of how we can narrow our results.
Eg a search for mouse will give results for computer
equipment and rodents. If we are interested in the rodent,
we might need to add the word pet, animal or mammal.
Evaluating Websites
Once we have found a website, which looks as
if it might provide useful information, we need to stop and
assess whether it is worth reading or examining further. One
of the most wonderful aspects of the web is the huge amount
of varied information available. One of the most terrible
aspects of the web is the huge amount of varied information
available! Anyone with the minimal technical knowhow, or the
money to pay for that can put up a website. Some of these
are wonderful, some are very suspect. Some websites are deliberately
misleading. See Web and Internet Hoaxes
and Misinformation
We need to examine:
Authority
Who wrote the website? Can we find contacts:
email, phone number and postal addresses or are the authors
anonymous and uncontactable? Do they have qualifications to
back up what they are saying? Are they enthusiastic informed
amateurs or crackpots? Is there an association connected to
the site?
Domain
What can we work out from the internet address
(url)? Is is a commercial site .com or government .gov Is
it from Australia au or the Italy it? See more about this
in Reading a Universal
Resource Locator (url) or Internet Web address.
Objectivity
What is the purpose of the site? What is the
point of view? Have they made their viewpoint or bias very
clear? Do they attempt to be fair?
Currency
How old is the site? When was it last updated?
Are most links still active?
Usability
Do the pages load quickly? Is the site organised
logically? Can you find what you want easily? Is there a site
map? An index? A search facility?
Relevance Does the site have the kind of information that
you need? Is it too easy or too detailed or complicated?
Accuracy
Does the information seem to be correct? Does
it fit in what you already know about the topic? Can you check
it with books or other websites?
Design Are colour and fonts well chosen? Can you read the
text easily? Do the graphics, animation or Java load easily?
Do they serve a useful purpose? Is the page only viewable
by a specific browser or release of browser or with particular
software you have to download? Is navigation easy? Does every
image have a text alternative?
To read more about this issue Evaluating
Web Sites
Now we have decided that this website has what
we want and is worth using.go for it!!!
Rosemary Horton
Teacher Librarian
P.L. Duffy Resource Centre
Trinity College
Western Australia
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