Tips for Successful Searches

I)                   Choose the best search engine for your needs.

A)      When searching for specific facts or information use a search engine: (AltaVista, Google)

B)      When browsing for information to get an overview, use a search directory: ( Looksmart)

C)      Use specialized search tools for looking for people, etc. (Anywho, InfoSpace)

D)    Use metasearch engines to get the most comprehensive results. (Dogpile, Metacrawler)

E)    Yahooligans is a safe searching directory for students. All of the web sites have been reviewed and are   appropriate for children. 

F)    Use Reference Search engines. 

II)                 Narrow your search as much as possible by using many key words.

A)    ex. Siamese cat shows rather than just cats

III)              Capitalization

A)    Capitalize only proper nouns.

B)     Most search engines are case sensitive.

C)    Results will be better if words are not capitalized.

IV)              Put phrases or words that must be found together in quotation marks. Ex. "educational technology"

V)                Use + and – to include or exclude words. Ex. +cats +dogs; +cats –dogs

VI)              Do not  include common words like “the” or “web” in searches. Search engines ignore them.

VII)           Try more than one search engine.

VIII)         Use Power Search or Advanced Search if it is available.

IX)              Use the wildcard * to search for a word and its variations. Ex. bird* = birds, birding, birdcage, etc.

Cool Sites
Using the Internet for Research