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Windweaver's updated
Searcher Guide
Using the Top Directories and Search Engines
Which search tool to use and for what purposes
How to choose your search terms and syntax
(Or see condensed SEARCHHELPER
page for Net newbies)
BASIC SEARCH INFORMATION
Preliminary Searching Hints
Choosing Search Terms and Syntax
Which Search Engine or Directory to use?
HOW TO USE....
Yahoo
Magellan AltaVista
HotBot
Infoseek Webcrawler
1. Choose a search engine, directory or library in accordance with
the kind of search you are doing and the kind of results you are seeking.
2. Consider: Are you looking for a Web site? Information that might
be contained within Usenet? Academic articles that may only be
retrievable with gopher?
3. Determine your aims: Do you want a specific hard-to-find document
on an esoteric subject, or general information on a broader topic? Do
you need to search the entire Web, or is what you are seeking likely
to be found on a number of sites, or only the most popular sites?
4. In making your choice, determine whether the information you are
looking for is likely to be in a page's title or first paragraph, or
buried
deeper within the document or site.
5. Use a search engine's advanced features, if available, and read the
help files if you are unclear about its searching procedure.
CHOOSING SEARCH TERMS AND SYNTAX
1. Enter synonyms, alternate spellings and alternate forms (e.g.
dance,
dancing, dances) for your search terms.
2. Enter all the singular or unique terms which are likely to be
included
in the document or site you are seeking.
3. Avoid using very common terms (e.g. Internet, people) which
may lead to a preponderance of irrelevant search results.
4. Determine how your search engine uses capitals and plurals, and
enter capitalized or plural forms of your search words if appropriate.
5. Use a phrase or proper name if possible to narrow your search
and therefore retrieve more relevant results (unless you want a large
number of results)
6. Use multiple operators (e.g. AND, NOT) if a search engine
allows you to do so.
7. If you receive too many results, refine and improve your search.
(After perusing the results, you may become aware of how to use
NOT - e.g. Boston AND hockey AND NOT Bruins)
8. Pay attention to proper spacing and punctuation in your search
syntax (i.e. no space when using + means +term not + term)
WHICH SEARCH ENGINE OR DIRECTORY?
Do you want....
to browse a subject area?
USE Yahoo, Magellan
to search Usenet?
USE Yahoo, Magellan, Webcrawler, AltaVista, InfoSeek
to include older gopher files in your search?
USE Magellan, Webcrawler, InfoSeek
to search as much as the Web as possible?
USE AltaVista, InfoSeek
to search every word on a site or in a document?
USE AltaVista, InfoSeek
to locate an obscure or hard-to-find document?
USE AltaVista, InfoSeek
to locate a fairly popular site or easy-to-find document?
USE Webcrawler, Yahoo, Magellan
to retrieve a large number of results?
USE AltaVista, InfoSeek
to retrieve few but relevant results?
USE Webcrawler (or Infoseek for relevance)
to search only titles, urls or keywords?
USE Webcrawler, Yahoo
to specify in what part of a site your search terms will occur
(including titles, urls and summaries)?
USE AltaVista (adv), InfoSeek
to search reviewed and evaluated sites?
USE Magellan
OR Lycos/Pointcom's Top 5%
Directory: Yahoo
URL: http://www.yahoo.com
SIZE of database: small
SEARCHES: Web, Usenet
SCOPE: searches keywords only
RELEVANCE: not organized by relevance
SPECIAL FEATURES: numerous directories available: uses DejaNews
for Usenet searches; passes on searches to
AltaVista
WHEN TO USE : browsing, subject categories, overviews of topic
WHAT TO REMEMBER WHEN USING YAHOO: + - ""
Yahoo has many specialized search sites and
directories.
YAHOO HOME PAGE:
http://www.yahoo.com
Use + before a word which must appear
Use - before a word which must NOT appear
Enclose phrases in double quotation marks ("this is a phrase")
Use wildcards * to specify a root and retrieve various word forms
(e.g. sing* will retrieve sing, sings, singing, singer - but
also
singe, singular, singularity etc.)
To search within a title use t:word (e.g.
t:astronomy)
To search within a url, use u:word (e.g. u:harvard)
SPECIAL CONSIDERATIONS
CAPITALIZATION: Capitalization doesn't matter.
ORDER: Combine search operators in this order: + - t:
u: " " *
SEARCH OPTIONS
PAGE: http://search.yahoo.com/search/options
Rather than type in your search terms, choose whether you want to
include all search terms (AND), only one of your search terms (OR)
or an exact phrase.
SEE ALSO Windweaver's Yahoo Review
Directory: Magellan
URL: http://www.mckinley.com
OR http://magellan.excite.com/
HELP: http://magellan.excite.com/magellan/Info/advancedtips.html
SIZE of database: moderate
SEARCHES: Web, Usenet, gopher, ftp
SCOPE: searches most words
RELEVANCE: fair organization by relevance
SPECIAL FEATURES: can choose reviewed and rated sites only:
can read reviews of sites; green
light parental safety index
WHEN TO USE : when wanting rated and reviewed sites, parental
safety ratings, more relevant
organization or more academic and
gopher (older Internet) sites than
Yahoo provides,
WHAT TO REMEMBER WHEN USING MAGELLAN:
USE: + before
all words that must occur on page
USE: - immediately
before words that must NOT occur
OR use Boolean terminology: AND, AND NOT,
( )
MAGELLAN HOME PAGE
http://www.mckinley.com
Use + or - immediately before words that must or must not occur.
OR INSTEAD, use Boolean terminology: AND AND
NOT
and ( ) around phrases or words which must
appear together.
CAPITALIZATION does not matter. Magellan is not case-sensitive.
See also: Windweaver's Magellan review.
NEXT: Search syntax for AltaVista, Infoseek, Webcrawler, HotBot
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