by Pooka

Created on: May 12, 2008

Using Search Engines

One of the fastest and easiest ways to obtain information about any given topic today, is to look it up on the internet. There are billions if not trillions of websites available on the World Wide Web. So sometimes it can be difficult to find exactly what you're looking for. Luckily, search engines can help!

The first step is to find the search engine that's right for you! The most common all purpose search engine in use today is Google, complete with spell check and categorized directory. AltaVista, Lycos, AllTheWeb, AskJeeves, and SearchTheWeb are all similar choices. There are also engines such as Dogpile, that actually filter your search through many different search engines, and shoe you the best choices.

We'll assume that you are searching for information about the elusive Pacific Northwest Tree Octopus. A simple search query like "Tree Octopus" may not bring about the best and most relevant results. Search engines use Boolean, or Formal Logic to determine the best results. So there are certain tricks you can use to increase your chance of finding exactly what you're looking for.

Encasing all or part of your query in quotation marks will imply that you only want the search engine to display WebPages with that string of words in that exact order. So it would give you websites that include the phrase "Tree Octopus" But not "Octopus Tree" If you want even more specific results you can try to remove results with a specific word by using the "-" character. For example, you could now change your search to "Tree Octopus -Sea" to exclude information sites about the more commonly known sea octopus. Similarly, you can use the "+" character to imply a certain word must be included. So changing your search to "+Tree Octopus -Sea" would turn up even more relevant results. You're well on your way to finding http://zapatopi.net/treeoctopus.html

When you've narrowed your results to a reasonable number you can then begin to browse through them at your leisure. Search engines usually sort results by the most relevant match, so start your search at the top of the list! Read carefully through the short description of the website and click on any you think may have the information you're looking for! Try to avoid websites with peculiar descriptions and unusual characters, or ones that include the letter "x" more than twice in a row.

Congratulations, you have now mastered the ancient art of web surfing! The entire world is at your fingertips. Go explore and bring back the knowledge of every question you ever wanted to ask! The Pacific Northwestern Tree Octopus will thank you for it.

Learn more about this author, Pooka.
Click here to send this author comments or questions.