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Internet Searches
Once you have sampled some of what the Internet has to offer, you'll probably want to initiate your own search parties into the miracles and mire of cyberspace. This is where search strategies and the various search engines come in. Before launching off into using and comparing a handful of search engines, let's first point to some online support for figuring out effective overall searching strategies.
Basic Principle: Learn one search engine thoroughlyYou will find that once you are skilled at using one of the popular search engines, many of the techniques apply to other engines or require only slight modification.
Try this: A very popular search engine is
AltaVista. One way to become skilled at using AltaVista is to print out the help files and work through the examples making annotations as you go.
Try this: Another way to learn about Altavista is to do the interactive online tutorial finding information which is part of the excellent 
site.
Keep learning new search strategies
When confronted with an information problem remember the information literacy cycle. Use this together with specific techniques that you add to your searching skill base.
Some excellent techniques can belearned from the following sites:
- Sink or Swim: Internet tools and techniques
- Designed as part of a "hands-on" workshop, this site provides some good basic background information on search strategies and a summary of popular search engines. It is mirrored in several countries, is regularly updated and includes a selective list of references.
- Choose the best engine for your purpose
- This is a simple but comprehensive summary of search engines organised according to what they do best. It is regularly updated.
- A Higher Signal-to-Noise Ratio: Effective Use Of Web Search Engines.
- Originally a conference presentation, this site includes diagrams to explain boolean searches and has been regularly updated since its original publication on October 8, 1996. It also has an annotated reference section titled Effective Use Of Web Search Engines:A Webliography / Bibliography which lists about 30 sites that rank and critique Web search engines and provide searching tips and other information on conducting efficient Web searches.
Search Engines - some main players
In general you can access the search engines by selecting 'Search' or similar from your browser toolbar. You can also customise your browser to go to your favourite search engine when you click on the 'Search' button (check in the options or preferences of your menus for this setting).
Now let's look more closely at and begin to use the search engines themselves. Each has their own 'flavour'. We have already loked at AltaVista in detail. Others that you may like to try are:
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YAHOO is extremely popular as a directory tree as well as a search engine.All of these search engines are consistently ranked highly when the various magazines conduct search engine reviews.
Some specialist searching tools|
Needle in a CyberStack - the InfoFinder This site gives a comprehensive collection of various search engines, libraries and other information finding tools. It is not a tutorial but rather a catalogue of various searching tools. |
 coordinators at Northern Territory workshop practicing their Internet search skills |
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EdNA - (Education Network Australia)
The EdNA service includes a collection of quality assured educational material relevant to the Australian context. The EdNA directory tree is broadly organised into schools, VET and Higher Education. |
Search Engine Comparisons
As search engines continue to develop, keep in mind that even the best have their flaws. It is useful to be aware of how the search engines index the Internet. The following references compare and evaluate various features of search engines.
- The Spider's Apprentice
- An excellent site that compares the various Internet search engines giving the latest ratings on which is fastest, most comprehensive etc.
- Search Engine Watch
- This site collates comprehensive analyses aimed at different audiences (webmasters, end users). It has a free monthly newsletter which is sent via email and is also archived on the site.The site includes tips on maximising your website's exposure to search engines.
- Melee's Indexing Coverage Analysis
- This site publishes weekly comparisons of the HotBot and AltaVista serach engines following the discovery of some major flaws in indexing techniques as posted to a newsgroup early in 1997
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