Effective Web Searching Guide
When to Search the Web
Not all topics are equally represented on the web. Chances are good that you will
find what you want by searching the web when your topic is related to:
- an academic institution (departments, research programs, contact information, etc.)
- a government agency or non-profit organization (research, publications, legislation, etc.)
- a well-known organization or business
- computers
- current newspapers, tv, or radio
- current events/celebrities
- something that is interesting to a lot of people, such as cooking or movies
- anything trendy
You will be less likely to find what you want on the web when your topic:
- is over two years old (sometimes only one year)
- requires in-depth coverage
- is very narrow
Keep in mind that if you search only the web, you are limiting yourself to articles that the publishers
make available for free. Perhaps this is because the publisher is a non-profit organization, or because
your tax dollars paid for it. On the other hand, perhaps it is because they want to sell you something
else and can lure you in with articles, or so they can sell your wandering eyes to advertisers, or because
no one would pay for the information. So if you don't want to severely compromise your research from the
outset, use library databases in addition to the web.
For more on this topic, see Point.
Click. Think?: As Students Rely on the Internet for Research, Teachers Try to Warn of the Web's Snares.
For a good introduction to web searching and more, try out TILT, an interactive tutorial sponsored by the University of Texas System Digital
Library.
 Top of Page
Evaluating What You Find
Anyone can publish on the web. A good Guide to Critical Thinking About What You See on the Web is available from
Ithaca College Library.
Here are four criteria to use in evaluating web documents:
- Authority
Is this a commercial, governmental, non-profit, personal, or academic web
site? What credentials/qualifications does the author or publisher of this
site have?
- Objectivity
What is the purpose of the document and why was it produced?
- Currency
When was the document produced?
- Accuracy or Verifiability
Who wrote the page and can you contact him or her? Is the information on the site documented?
These ideas are summarized on a web page by the Utah Academic Library Consortium,
Critically
Evaluating Information.
See also: Evaluating
Web Pages: Techniques to Apply & Questions to Ask.
Exercise: Is there a cancer epidemic, and how significant are environmental carcinogens in causing cancer? Evaluate the following sources of information in terms of their suitability to answer this question.
The Preventable Cancer Epidemic
Cancer and the Environment
The Environmental Cancer Epidemic That Never Was
Top of Page
What is a Search Engine?
A search engine allows you to search a database of web sites created by a software program called a "robot" or "spider."
A spider crawls through the web, collecting information about new or updated
sites and adding it to the database.
When you type in a search, the search engine uses a proprietary formula, called an algorithm, to determine which
of the millions of pages in its database relate to the topic you've entered.
Examples:
Google,
Yahoo! Search,
Ask.com
Advantages:
- comprehensive - large number of sites searched at once
- useful when searching for a specific topic
Disadvantage:
- must often wade through piles of irrelevant sites to find what you're looking for
Compare search engines: Thumbshots.com Ranking
Top of Page
Meta-Search Engines
Examples:
Dogpile,
Vivisimo
Advantages:
- fast
- search multiple databases at one time
- can help you decide which database has better results
Disadvantage:
- not an in-depth search (only brings back a few results from each database)
Top of Page
Search Tips
Phrases
As a general rule, use quotes when searching for phrases. Most search engines will then retrieve only pages where the words appear next to each other in the text.
+ and -
Many search engines interpret a "+" sign to indicate that a word is required to be included on a page, and a "-" sign to mean that a word is to be excluded.
Field Searching
Many search engines allow you to search only specific parts of a document, such as the title, URL, links, etc. Read the help section of the search engine to find out how to search a particular field.
Boolean Operators
Some search engines support the use of "and", "or", and "not" to create precise and logical search statements. Be sure to read the help section of the search engine to determine if it supports Boolean
searching.
Read the Help Section
Most sites provide tips on using their particular service. Here are links to the advanced search help screens for some important search engines:
Google,
Yahoo! Search,
Ask.com
Search Tools Chart - compares features and gives search tips for various search engines.
Top of Page
What is a Subject Directory?
A subject directory is a manually-created catalog of sites on the internet. This means that people actually create categories and assign sites to a place within a structured index.
Examples:
Google Directory,
INFOMINE,
Librarians' Internet Index,
Yahoo
Advantages:
Disadvantage:
- fewer sites in the database
Use the CompletePlanet Deep Web directory to find specialty search engines and databases.
Search blogs using Technorati.
Top of Page
Good Places to Search
- FedStats
- Gateway to statistics from over 100 U.S. Federal agencies.
- FirstGov
- Official U.S. gateway to government information. Pulls together a substantial part of the "invisible web": federal government databases.
- GPO Access
- Provides free online use of over 1500 Federal databases, going beyond what is available on FirstGov.
- Science.gov: FirstGov for Science
- Tool Kit for the Expert Web Searcher
- Pat Ensor's annotated list of web search tools.
Top of Page
Citing Web Sources
APA and
MLA style guides for citing electronic resources. See also ONLINE! Citation Styles by Andrew Harnack and Eugene Kleppinger. Also, here's a nice guide to the information that needs to be recorded for inclusion in a citation: Note
Taking Tips.
Librarian Contact Information
|
