Take the time to try them out.
-
Consider what you need to find then start with that
type of resource. If you need
web pages you will start with a search engine. If you need
periodical articles you need to use a periodical database.
If you need books you will need to find the library catalogs online. Remember:
some things are on the "invisible web" or it
isn't on the Internet at all; sometimes, it is easier and
faster to get your information from a book.
-
Use a Meta Search Engine. Meta
engines will allow you to use several different search engines simultaneously.
This is particularly helpful since no two engines search the same part
of the Internet. A versatile and programmable meta engine is at :
http://21cif.imsa.edu/tools/tools/locate/.
-
THINK about the words you need to search with.
Don’t just start with the most obvious terms AND don't use just one word! Take the time to consider
alternative terms, synonyms, plural and singular versions of key words.
Sometimes names or dates will be significant too. For example: when
searching for information on this topic I used the following words in the
same search – immigrants, immigration, America, "United States".
Want to test your skill at this?
Take the Internet
Challenge!
-
Use the search engine short cuts!
Every engine and meta engine uses short cuts to insure you get the right
word combinations – AND, OR, and NOT. Find out what cuts YOUR engine uses.
Be sure you put phrases or multi-word terms in quotation marks! HINT:
IMSA Wizard suggests you put a + sign in front of each word you must
have on the web sites which it finds for you, and each term is separated
by commas. (+immigrants, +immigration, +America, +"United States")
-
Always consider the source of the site’s information.
Is it valid? Is the author reliable? Where did the information come from
originally – is it documented? If you have ANY doubts on any one of these
questions, find another site. Also, read the hit summaries carefully for
clues of site usefulness. Words like "book", "Visa", "Mastercard", etc.
are good clues that it’s NOT what you want unless you are in the market
to BUY something.
-
If you find a great site, write down the following
information: its URL, the keywords
and engine used to find it, and the date you found it. You can also print
out the first page of the site which will have SOME of that information.
(This printing option also proves that you actually found the site in case it
disappears later!)
-
Watch out for sites that lead you to other good sites!
Once in a while you will discover a site that contains links to other sites
that are on your topic. Make sure you keep a record of that web site page
of links. (You can also bookmark your results page on your search engine
so you won’t lose your place on that list!)
-
If your hit list doesn’t produce good sites revise
your search. Switch the
order of the words, change the words, consider your topic again. Are you
using the most appropriate words?
-
If you want to find a word on a page fast,
use "Find In Page." You will
discover this very useful tool under the "Edit" command on the toolbar
at the top of your browser. Just click to get the "find" box, enter one
of the keywords you need to locate, and click "find". If your word is on
the page it will be instantly highlighted or you will be told "Search string
not found!"
- Before you print ALWAYS look at PRINT PREVIEW. Web sites are deceptively long. You may think you are only printing one or two pages which appear on the screen. However, the printer may print out thirty or forty pages! Highlighting what’s on your monitor and then going to PRINT does NOT print what is highlighted! Print preview allows you to designate which pages of your site actually get printed.
Prepared for students at Naperville Central High School by Jane A. Sharka, 05/17/2007. All rights reserved.