Mrs. Schroeder's Website

Please read all the information below and perform whatever tasks asked of you. Your assignment is due tomorrow. Any questions, ask Mrs. Schroeder for assistance.

LESSON TWO: SMART INTERNET SEARCHING

Have you ever thought about looking for a needle in a haystack?  Pretty difficult task, can't you imagine? Even taking a large magnet and running the  haystack would take a lot of time.

When you think of Internet searching, this idea can apply as well. If you do not search 'smart', you can waste valuable time, become frustrated, and ultimately not find what you need.

SEARCH ENGINES: THEY SERVE A ROLE

• Commonly referred to as 'crawlers' or 'spiders', they search for new web pages all the time.
• they are automated and index many sites
• often find information not listed in directories
• often pull up information note related to topic you are searching for
• Examples of search engines include:

AltaVista, Google, Yahoo, MSN, Ask.com

PUBLIC SEARCH ENGINES

• Use advertising to pay for their sites
• Display results based on predetermined factors that include advertising dollars

SEARCH DIRECTORIES

• Index a site based on an independent description
• Organizes sites by subjects
• Usually maintained by humans instead of software

Web Search directories include: About.com, Yahoo search directory, Yahoo!Kids

Refining the search can be tough

REFINE YOUR SEARCH: USE ADVANCED FEATURES OF THE SEARCH ENGINE

• Narrows Search Engine results
• Located to the right of the search blank with most search engines
• Provides a number of options depending on the site.
• Specify an exact example or phrase to include or exclude
• Use quotations (",") or brackets around your search terms so the engine looks for it as a phrase

Examples: Google.com and Yahoo.com

 DOMAIN SPECIFIC SEARCHES

• searching specific domains is helpful if you want to leave out .com sites.
• know what domains to aim for! .edu? YES! .org? YES! .com or .net? NOT ALWAYS!!!!
• GOOGLE and others: put the site =+ the domain in the search box. ("tigers in Africa"  site:.org)

ASSIGNMENT: Lesson 2

Print out the assignment sheet below and follow all directions. It will be due tomorrow. If you have any questions, ask Mrs. Schroeder.