Technology

Issue date:
Nov. 6-8, 1998

12 tips to search the Internet successfully

In this article:
The Web: What are people looking for?
Links for Web search help

by Bruce Maxwell

rying to navigate the World Wide Web without help is like trying to do research in a library that has no librarians, a jumble of card catalogs listing just a fraction of the collection - and 320 million books.

To flounder less and learn more in your maiden voyages on the Web, follow these tips.

ONE If your subject is broad (cancer, archaeology, politics), start with a directory - such as Yahoo! (http://www.yahoo.com) - that categorizes Web sites by subject. Just pick the most likely subject, then drill down through layers of subcategories until you find what you want.

TWO If your subject is narrow (such as a particular bed-and-breakfast you want to try), choose a search engine: AltaVista (http://altavista.digital.com), HotBot (http://www.hotbot.com), Excite (http://www.excite.com), Infoseek (http://www.infoseek.com) or Northern Light (http://www.nlsearch.com).

THREE For comprehensive research, use several search engines or try a meta-search engine such as MetaCrawler (http://www.metacrawler.com) that simultaneously queries numerous engines.

FOUR Before using a search engine, read any instructions it offers. Yes, these documents can be snoozers. But each engine has its quirks, and knowing them will help you craft a more accurate search.

FIVE When choosing keywords for a search engine, select six to eight words to help narrow your search. If you type just one or two words, you'll likely get thousands or even millions of documents. Use nouns whenever possible, and put the most important words first. Put a "+" before any word you want to include, and a "-" before any word you want to exclude (this works with most engines).

SIX To increase your search's accuracy, use phrases instead of single words. Put quotation marks around the phrase.

SEVEN Many search engines will let you refine the results of your initial query. Do it.

EIGHT When you find a good Web site about your topic, check whether it provides links to similar sites.

NINE You may be able to guess the address of specific sites. Many are "www," a period, the name or acronym of the site's operator, a period and three letters denoting the site's type. Thus: www.microsoft.com (commercial), www.fbi.gov (federal government) and www.harvard.edu (education).

TEN Double-check your spelling. You'd be amazed at how many people misspell words in their queries.

ELEVEN Keep in mind that even if you type a precise query, many of the documents returned won't be applicable. Computers (and search engines) aren't perfect.

TWELVE Remember: The Internet does not contain the sum of all knowledge. You may still need to hit the library.

Bruce Maxwell (http://bmaxwell.home.mindspring.com) is the author of How to Find Health Information on the Internet and How to Access the Federal Government on the Internet.

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Looking over searchers' shoulders

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WHERE TO GET SEARCHING HELP

Among the best:

Tutorial: Guide to Effective Searching of the Internet http://thewebtools.com/searchgoodies/tutorial.htm

Yahoo! How to Search the Web
http://www.yahoo.com/Computers_and_Internet/Internet/ World_Wide_Web/Searching_the_Web/How_to_Search_the_Web/

Search Engine Watch
http://searchenginewatch.com

How to Search the World Wide Web: A Tutorial for Beginners and Non-Experts
http://www.ultranet.com/~egrlib/tutor.htm

The Spider's Apprentice: How to Use Web Search Engines
http://www.monash.com/spidap.html

Searching the Internet
http://wwwscout.cs.wisc.edu/scout/toolkit/searching/

Looking over searchers' shoulders

-- Bruce Maxwell (http://bmaxwell.home.mindspring.com) is the author of How to Find Health Information on the Internet and How to Access the Federal Government on the Internet.