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which is how you get your money. You also can earn money with them by being active in their forums, and referring friends.

Winzy.com works on a similar principle, but instead of rewarding you directly with cash, they give you points each time you search with them, and with enough points you can wager them in online games or use them as entries for prize drawings. They also have a referral system which rewards the referrer by automatically presenting them with any prizes their referees have won.

Blingo.com is yet another search engine which operates on the "search and win" business model, but at Blingo each search gives you a chance to earn prizes, and they actually use Google's search results, so you are in no way sacrificing any of the thoroughness you would otherwise get from Google. It works through the search bar in your Internet Explorer 7 or Firefox browser when you install a plugin, or you can download the separate, spyware-free toolbar.

On the other hand, if you have a very specific question that you need an answer to, and you're willing to pay for it, a site like JustAnswer.com may provide better service than a search engine, for a fee. JustAnswer uses "experts" which have passed a test of answering three questions in their field to the satisfaction of the website's moderators. While there is no way to be certain that the person answering your question is really a registered nurse, this site may be just the thing to help you figure out how to get that grape juice stain out of a yellow rayon soccer uniform. Google Answers used to serve a similar function, but since they are now defunct, this is probably the better choice.

JustAnswer works on a free market principle. You pay a deposit on your question in the amount you're willing to pay to get it answered and then read the answers offered up by the experts in that field. When you find one you like, or the best, you accept their answer, and they get paid. The more you offer the more quickly your question will get answered, but if it's a question that doesn't require a long and in-depth answer, you can probably get it answered pretty quickly.

Personally, aside from attempts to earn a little cash back doing searches I would do anyway, I most often skip the Google option when I am looking for a very specific thing. If I want a review of a product, I know I can get that from Amazon.com or Ciao.com. If I want to find a recipe I'll use Gomestic.com. IMDB.com is the best place to find out information related to who was in what movies or television shows. For a game review, I go to GameRankings.com. If you have an inkling already of the kind of thing you're looking for, you can often find sites which are directories of realtors, HTML tutorials, specialty shoes stores, or whatever else you might need.

Ironically enough, Google may just be the best way to search for and discover those directories. I found most of those category search sites by using Google at first, and then I realized the sites Google was repeatedly sending me to most of the time had the same base URL: Wikipedia.com. While Wikipedia is completely unreliable since its content is completely user-created sort of a lassiez-faire encyclopedia so is most of the internet, and at least Wikipedia is thorough.

That's the best advice I can give. To save time, notice what sites you're being sent to most often and cut out the middle man. To save money, or earn a little back, use prize-winning or point-earning search sites like Slashmysearch. To save yourself from the inherent dangers of a monopoly in any market, use tailored, independent search engines like FyberSearch. After all, how else are you going to find the online .pdf version of your alma mater's weekly paper?

Learn more about this author, Samantha Enns.
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