Transcript Search Tools

Chapter
Discovering the•Internet
3
Complete Concepts and Techniques,
Searching
the
Web
Second Edition
Discovering
the Internet
Fourth Edition
Objectives
• Describe the search process
• Use different types of search tools and compare
search results
• Apply search tool shortcuts and advanced
features, including Boolean operators
• Perform searches using browser search features
• Identify and use specialized search tools
• Identify online research alternatives to search
tools
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The Search Process
• Choose the best search
tool
• Formulate the search
query
• Perform the search
• Examine the search
results
• Evaluate the credibility
of the search results
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The Search Process
• Choosing the Best
Search Tool
– Easy to use
– Returns results quickly
– Large, frequently
updated index
– Most relevant search
results returned
– Clearly marked paid
listings
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The Search Process
• Formulating the Search Query
– The search query or question defines the information
you seek
– A query should include at least one keyword, the
specific word that describes that information
– To perform a search, enter one or more keywords into
the search text box
– A search tool then uses the keywords to identify
relevant Web pages and return a search results list
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The Search Process
• Formulating the Search
Query (cont'd)
– Choose keywords
carefully
– Use specific keywords
– More keywords equal
more focused results
– Surround a phrase with
quotation marks
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The Search Process
• Formulating the Search Query
– A targeted search seeks
specific information using
keyword combinations
– An open-ended search seeks
information on a broader
scale using a simple keyword
– A search that uses complete
sentences is sometimes called
a natural language search
– Small, unimportant words in a
natural language search
query are called stop words,
and are ignored
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The Search Process
• Examining the Search Results
– Different search tools return different search results
for the same keyword
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Use different algorithms to rank pages in search results list
Gather different information for indexes
May include paid or sponsored listings
People typically look only at the first 10 or 20 hits; search
again with different keywords or search tool, if necessary
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The Search Process
• Evaluating the Credibility of Search Results
– Authority
• Owner or author expertise
• Primary sources
– Objectivity
• Fair
• Unbiased
• Not skewed toward commercial interests
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The Search Process
• Evaluating the Credibility of Search Results
– Scope and Quality
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Depth of coverage
Amount of detail provided
Accurate and up-do-date
Compares favorably with other pages on the same topic
– Design and Functionality
• Well-designed and easy-to-use page
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The Search Process
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Search Tools
• Directories
– A human-compiled hierarchical list of Web pages
– Organizes links in categories and subcategories
– Users drill down through categories and subcategories
to find specific information
– A breadcrumb trail shows the hierarchical
arrangement of categories and subcategories through
which you have clicked
– Yahoo! is one of the first directories
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Search Tools
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Search Tools
• Search Engines
– Three major components
• Spider, Bot, or Web crawler
• Index
• Search engine software
– A spider or bot automatically browses the Web going
from link to link to add and update its searchable
index
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Search Tools
• Search Engines
– Typical information collected by a Web crawler
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Page title
URL
Meta tag keywords
Occurrence of keywords in page
All of the words on the page
Internal links
Number and relevancy of other pages that link to the page
– Search engines use different algorithms to rank Web pages
in a search results list
– Most search engines also include paid or sponsored listings
on the search results page
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Search Tools
• Search Engines
– Some search tools provide special toolbars you can
download as browser plug-ins
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Search Tools
• Metasearch Engines
– Compiles the search results from multiple search
engines into one list
• Some eliminate duplicates
• Watch for paid or sponsored listings in search results list
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MetaCrawler
Dogpile
KartOO
Mamma.com
Ixquick
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Search Tools
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Advanced Search Techniques
• Using Boolean Operators
– Complex searches may require the use of Boolean
operators to include or exclude keywords
• AND
– Keyword must be included
• OR
– At least one of multiple keywords must be included
• NOT
– Keyword must be excluded
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Advanced Search Techniques
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Advanced Search Techniques
• Advanced Search Forms
– Used to structure complex search queries
– Prompts you to specify Boolean operators and other
criteria
– Can filter results by:
• Language
• File type
• Domain
– Great way to learn more about how to use specific
search engine shortcuts and Boolean operators
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Advanced Search Techniques
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Browser Searches
• Search by using features and tools available in the
browser
– Enter keywords in the Address bar, Search box, Find
Bar, and Research Explorer Bar
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Browser Searches
• Address Bar Searches
– Enter keywords in the Address box on the Address bar
– IE uses designated default search tool for Address bar
searches
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Browser Searches
• QuickPick Menu Searches
– You can add-on additional search engines to the
QuickPick menu by selecting a search engine provider
in the Internet Explorer Add-ons Gallery: Search
Providers page
– Open the gallery by clicking the ‘Add search providers’
button next to the QuickPick menu, and then clicking
the Search link to open a scrollable and searchable list
of search engine providers
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Browser Searches
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Browser Searches
• Find Bar Page Searches
– Allows you to search the contents of a Web page
– Press CTRL+F to display the Find Bar
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Specialized Searches
• People and Business Search
– Use online white or yellow pages directories
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Yahoo! People Search
Lycos Whowhere?
WhitePages
Superpages.com
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Specialized Searches
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Specialized Searches
• News and Current Events Search
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Specialized Searches
• Video Search
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Specialized Searches
• Social Media Search
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Specialized Searches
• Shopping Search
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Specialized Searches
• Research Alternatives to Search Engines
– LexisNexis
• Abstracts and articles on business, news, government,
medical, and legal topics
– ingentaconnect
• Full-text online articles from academic and professional
publications
– FindLaw
• Legal resources portal
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Specialized Searches
• Research Alternatives to Search Engines
– Hoover’s
• Information on businesses of all sizes
– Dialog
• Provides information services to the business, science,
engineering, finance, and law communities over the Internet or an
internal intranet
• Government resources
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Federal Citizen Information Center
Internal Revenue Service
U.S. Census Bureau
USA.gov
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• Chapter 3
Complete
Chapter 3 Complete
Discovering
the Internet
Fourth Edition