Using Search Engines
As the World Wide Web contains limitless amounts of information, searching manually through all the information that exists is impossible. There are two types of web based programs which search the Internet and return a list of results. One of these is search engines and the other is a directory. Both of these contain a search function which allow the user to type in key words and be returned with a list of results.
Information on the Web is available in three categories; either by the 'free visible web', which are the results returned when using search engines and are free to the user. The 'free invisible web', which are sites free to the user but are not accessible by the use of a search engine eg. Legal or financial sites. Or, 'paid databases.' These are commercial sites which need a subscription and the customer has paid to access this program. Such as Ebsco or the West Australian.
There are many search engines, some with similarities but many with differences. Some examples include Google, AltaVista and Yahoo. Search engines can return either global, reference, targeted, or regional based searches. Global search engines search all over the world in many different languages. Regional search engines are limited geographically so for example may only search and return pages from one country, ie. Australia. Targeted search engines a limited to a specific subject, eg. medical information. As reference engines will search a list of reference resources such a encyclopedias.
Directories are cataloged lists or indexes created by people and have less resources than the web and can be more reliable as the information listed in a cataloged will have been viewed and specifically chosen by a reputable source. Some examples include Yahoo, Looksmart and Snap.
Some problems when using search engines include too much results being returned, some returned sites can be repeated more than twice in the same results list. Other problems can include broken links, out dated results and a doctored ranking system.
There are four main query types when conducting a search.The most commonly used is the key word search. The key word search option is a good place to start for broad searches before narrowing to a more condensed search for more relevant results. Another type is the phrase search where the words to be searched are in exact order and are placed in quotation marks. Thirdly, a Boolean search includes the use of mathematical symbols to include or specifically exclude certain words. For example if searching to buy a road worthy vehicle a search may be 'cars - toys' which would exclude any results including toy cars. The fourth way to conduct a search would be to conduct a search using the advanced features of a search engine. Under the key word search box there generally is a 'advanced search' option. This will allow certain features to left out or included in the search such as limiting to a geographic region.
Things to keep in mind include not limiting yourself to using just one search engine. Always try a few and find the ones best for you. Read 'search tips' offered in the search engine page, use as many words as needed for key word searches and try to guess the URL
Workshop Summary
List four strategies that will help structure a good search.
1. Avoid the use of stop words. These are words that are short and very common. If using words in a phrase that are common use quotation marks.
2. If searching for information that fits into a obvious topic, try a search directory such as yahoo or The Open Directory before searching with Google.
3. Make use of the word 'near' for Boolean searches. The plus and minus sign are used more often because they are more obvious but when words that are searched for appear in a document apart when they need to be together, the results from the search are often useless.
4. Use capitalisation
Complete the online quiz found at Siteseen.co.uk and list the answers to the questions.
- Inca
- Violet
- Birchard
- Alfred Lord Tennyson
- Sea shells
- Maps
- Giacomo Puccini
- Volcano
- Basenji
- Hieronymus Bosch
- Waterloo
- Ant
- Leo
- Siam
- Mushroom
- Orangutan
- Pluto
- Benito
- Lizard
- Napolean Bonaparte
Discuss the strategies you used to locate answers to the quiz.
I was lucky enough to locate the answers fairly quickly from a key word search in Google. I then browsed the results list seeking the most frequent answer. For questions where the answer was slightly more difficult to locate I browsed one or two of the sites as I didn't understand the particular word I was searching for. This related particularly to question 15 and the response of mushroom. Realising the most returns were about food I then scanned for the most reoccurring ingredient in each dish. Question 5 also posed a slight challenge as 'sea shell' was a more common answer than I had expected.
The most covered area of module four has been the quality of information found on the web. The process is then to determine if information is 'fit for use.' What I was not aware of before doing this module was how to distinguish legitimate factual information from false information. I have now learnt to look for important details like the name of the author, facts, information on their expertise on the subject and the reasons why they may have created the site. I now know how easily distinguish the type of site from the URL and to be weary of bias. Using search engines has taught me the difference between Google and Yahoo, the reasons they are different and the different purposes they serve. I now know to use more than just Google for searching and how I can structure search words in order narrow a search.
Week 9 Reading
The Spiders Apprentice
This site assists with some of the difficulties faced when using online search engines. It explains the basics and would prove useful for the novice user. It covers enough information to give a good understanding of where to start when searching the Web. It suggests first considering carefully what sort of information is to be searched for in order to asses where to start before diving in. Such as, if the topic will fit into broad categories, Spiders Apprentice suggests using search directories over search engines. It also covers areas such as refining a search, explains the use of metadata and ranking, and discusses different types of search engines, which are useful and why.
Search Engine Watch Tutorial
A valuable resource, Search Engine Watch Tutorial covers types of word searches such as Boolean searches, refined word searches, extending the range of returned results and the use of related terms when searching. This site has provided a long list of annotated links to other sites relating to search engines. This site has ensured that by viewing this site all questions relating to search engines can be answered. As has been suggested this site is worth bookmaking.
Web Search Strategies
This article is an excellent resource for search engine information and tips. This site explains the Free Visible Web, Free Invisible Web and paid databases for the purpose of deciding which location to seek information from before conducting a search. It explains when to use a search database and when to use a search engines and gives clear examples of each making the information provided clear and easy to understand. It also covers expanding search words with the use of the asterisks, using related words such as the plural of a word to extend searches and explains how specific a generally terms will differ in the amount of search results. It also list useful tips such as trying to guess the name of a site, using several search tools and to read the search tip information given in the search engine help.
The History of the Internet: (Chap 4 – Search Engines)
This article demonstrates how the first search engine originated with Archie, which employed the use of spider searching, to the development of gopher in 1981 which differed but only fractionally from Archie, to Wais developed in 1991. Hosted website grew considerably each year from 1000 in 1988 to 10 000 in 1987. With the rise in sites to be used the need for faster and more updated search engines developed. Today there are many much more choices and better quality search engines and directories. Suggested
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