Search the Web More Efficiently: Tips,
Techniques and Strategies
By Daniel Bazac - November 6,
2003 Copyright © 2003. All Rights Reserved.
Studies show that after email, searching the
Web is the most popular activity on the Internet. Searching is easy;
finding what you're looking for can sometimes be difficult. Hopefully the
advice below will make your next Web search a breeze.
Do you really need the Web?
Before using the Web to search for information, you'll have to ask
yourself if the Web is the most appropriate medium to use to find your
information. You can find a florist shop in your neighborhood faster by
using the local, printed Yellow Pages instead of using the Web. And
sometimes a library can give you better, more comprehensive answers than
the Web.
However, in most of the cases, the best and fastest way to find
information is... a Web search.
Obviously, the first thing you need to search the Web is a computer with
Internet access.
Before really starting your search, you'll have to decide which browser
you are going to use. As a reminder, a browser, according to WhatIs.com is
a program "that provides a way to look at and interact with all the
information on the World Wide Web." You can select a popular browser
such as Explorer, Netscape, Mozilla or Opera or you can use an alternative
browser. My favorite: Avant Browser. (I have NO connection with
MyBookmarks.com.) Keep in mind that some browsers are faster or have more
options. You can download these browsers from their companies' web sites.
Tools for searching the Web
There are many search tools available: search engines, subject directories
/ virtual libraries, invisible (deep) web databases, meta search engines,
etc.
A search engine is a keyword searchable database of Internet files that
uses a software program to continually scour the Web. The resulting
information is then indexed and stored in its database.
My favorite search engines are:
* Google™ [ http://www.google.com/
]
* AlltheWeb [ http://www.alltheweb.com/
]
* MSN [ http://www.msn.com/ ]
* Teoma [ http://www.teoma.com/ ]
* AltaVista [ http://www.altavista.com/
]
* WiseNut [ http://www.wisenut.com/
]
A subject directory (web directory) is a searchable collection of Web
pages gathered, selected and organized by human editors into
hierarchically subject categories. A virtual library is a web directory
that includes highly selective links, chosen mostly by librarians.
Web directories cover a much smaller proportion of the Web but using them
will bring you more highly relevant results. The largest web directories
index a few million pages compared with the billions of pages indexed by
some major search engines.
Remember that the web directories - like the search engines - do not
search the Web directly. Instead, they search their own databases of
indexed Web pages. Also, be aware that directories might not be
up-to-date. Some search engines are in fact hybrid search tools because
they are both search engines and web directories. (Google™, for example,
has a search engine and a directory, powered by Open Directory Project)
Some widely used web directories are:
* Google™ Directory [ http://directory.google.com/
]
* Open Directory Project (ODP) [ http://www.dmoz.org/
]
* Yahoo! [ http://www.yahoo.com/ ]
* Zeal [ http://www.zeal.com/ ]
* JoeAnt [ http://www.joeant.com/ ]
* Gimpsy [ http://www.gimpsy.com/ ]
Popular virtual libraries include:
* Librarians' Index to the Internet [ http://www.lii.org/
]
* Internet Public Library [ http://www.ipl.org/
]
* The WWW Virtual Library [ http://www.vlib.org/
]
* Internet Scout Project [ http://www.scout.wisc.edu/Archives/
]
* BUBL Link [ http://www.bubl.ac.uk/
]
The so-called invisible (deep) web is a collection of online information
stored in live databases accessible on the Web but not indexed by
traditional search engines. Examples of excellent invisible web databases
are:
* ProFusion [ http://www.profusion.com/
]
* Invisible-web.net [ http://www.invisible-web.net/
]
* Complete Planet [ http://www.completeplanet.com/
]
* Resource Discovery Network [ http://www.rdn.ac.uk/
]
* direct search (Gary Price) [ http://www.freepint.com/gary/direct.htm
]
A meta search engine (also known as metacrawler or ultithreaded engine) is
a search tool that sends your query simultaneously to several search
engines, web directories and sometimes to the so-called invisible (deep)
web. After collecting the results, the meta search engine removes the
duplicate links and - according to its algorithm - will combine and rank
the results into a single merged list.
Because most of the meta search engines take only the top 10 or 20 from
each search engine, you can expect excellent results, "la crème de
la crème."
But be aware that because some search engines and web directories do not
support advanced searching techniques - such as quotation marks to enclose
phrases or Boolean operators - no results from those search engines will
appear in the meta search engines' results list when those techniques are
used.
Remember, meta search engines do not maintain their own databases and
therefore cannot accept web site submissions.
The best meta search engines are:
* ez2Find [ http://www.ez2find.com/
]
* Vivisimo [ http://www.vivisimo.com/
]
* InfoGrid [ http://www.infogrid.com/
]
* Infonetware [ http://www.infonetware.com/
]
* iBoogie [ http://www.iboogie.com/
]
A special kind of meta search engine is the search utility (also called
desktop search programs or client-side search software). Unlike the
web-based meta search engines listed above, search utilities are software
programs that you download to your computer. The most popular are:
* Copernic [ http://www.copernic.com/en/index.html
]
* Arrow Search [ http://www.rt-software.co.uk/arrow_search/
]
* SearchRocket [ http://www.searchrocket.com/
]
* WebFerret [ http://www.ferretsoft.com/index.html
]
* ProtoSearch [ http://www.npccenterprises.com/products.shtml
]
Meta search engines are excellent tools, but they do not eliminate the
need for search engines.
For more about meta search engines, see my article: The Meta Search
Engines: A Web Searcher's Best Friends.
Which Search Tool Should You Choose?
* If you're looking for specific information use search engines.
* If you're looking for a unique or obscure search term or if you want to
make an in-depth analysis of what's out there on a specific subject, then
use meta search engines.
* If you're looking for general information on popular topics, use subject
(web) directories.
* If you're looking for scholarly information use virtual libraries.
* If you're looking for real-time information or for dynamically changing
content such as the latest news, phone book listings, available airline
flights, etc., then use specialized databases (invisible or deep web.)
There are thousands of search engines, hundreds of meta search engines and
dozens of web directories and specialized databases. Choosing the right
search tool - from the start - can make the difference between a
successful search and a frustrating experience.
Before Starting the Search
The easiest way to find information is when you know a web page Internet
address or URL (Uniform Resource Locator) such as Fortune Magazine at http://www.fortune.com.
You can find these addresses on business cards, TV commercials or
newspapers. Simply type the URL in the browser's address box and hit the
<enter> (PC) or <return> (Mac) key.
Be aware that in most browsers, you do not have to type
"http://" or even "www" before the domain name. You
can access a site simply typing the domain name such as "sony.com."
Special note: Be careful when you copy and paste a long URL from an email
message or from some web sites. URLs that span two lines have a gap
(space) between the last character of the first line and the first
character on the second line. First, get rid of the gap and then paste it
in the browser's address line.
Other times you may not know the URL but... you can guess it. Often
companies will use their name, acronym or abbreviated name followed by
".com", such as ibm.com or apple.com. The same thing is true for
educational institutions (add the ".edu" suffix) or government
sites (add ".gov") So, whenever you don't know an URL, you can
try to guess it.
If you do not know the URL, you'll have to find it by searching the
Internet. In many cases, a simple search on the name of an organization
within most search engines will return a direct hit on their web site.
Tips For Searching Smarter:
* Read the search engine's "search tips" or "help"
page before using a search tool. Strangely enough, most of the time you'll
find the "search tips" link on the "Advanced Search"
page or on the "results page." Anyway, regularly check the
search tips page because the rules often change.
* Customize the output of the results. Use the search engine's
"preferences" page. Some search tools allow you to select the
value for:
* the total results per page; usually 10 by default (select
* the maximum - often 100)
* the search tool's timeout - select the maximum
* the search depth - select maximum.
Be sure to save the new "settings" or "search
preferences" for the next time you use the search tools. Also, set
the browser you use to accept cookies.
Tips To Make Your Search Faster:
If you're searching for information and you are not interested in graphics
on the pages you see, turn off or disable graphics. You can also turn off
sounds, animation, Java, JavaScript, etc. See your browser documentation
for instructions.
If you decide to keep the graphics, in the case of a "heavy"
page, you can always press the <STOP> button in the browser,
immediately after you see the text and before the graphics are entirely
loaded.
More Tips:
* Most search tools are case-insensitive which means that you can
construct a query - your search request - by typing all the words - even
proper names - in lower case text.
* If you type a long query, most of the search tools' search boxes are not
very wide so you cannot see the entire query. Write the query in a word
processor and then "copy and paste" into the search box. Be
aware that Google™ only allows 10 words in the search box.
* Some search tools offer an option called "similar pages"
(Google™) or "related pages" (AltaVista and Teoma.) Clicking
on that option will show you relevant results for the page you're
interested in.
* Some search engines have a function called "see more
hits/results/pages from the same domain." Sometimes it can be useful.
* Also, some search tools, such as Google™, allow you to see an English
translation for a results page that is written in a foreign language. If
you want to translate a web page and you have the URL, you can also use
these sites:
* Systran [ http://www.systransoft.com/
]
* Fagan Finder [ http://www.faganfinder.com/translate/
]
* AltaVista' Babel Fish [ http://babelfish.altavista.com/
]
* alphaWorks (IBM) [ http://www.alphaworks.ibm.com/aw.nsf/html/mt
]
Remember, don't expect perfect translations because that seldom happens.
* Looking for pages in a specific language? Some search engines (Google™,
AlltheWeb, etc.) have an advanced search page that allows you to select
the language from the pull-down menu.
* If your search terms contain letters not present in the English alphabet
such as "é" or "ü" (example fiancé or München),
use Fagan Finder's (Search Engine Ultimate Interface) which allows you to
use these special letters in many major search engines. It makes a big
difference. A search for Munchen in Google™ gives 570,000 results while
for München - "u" with umlaut - gives 51,700,000 - almost 10
times more.
So, let's start searching!
Most of the search tools can be searched using keywords. Web directories
and the invisible web databases can also be searched by browsing
categories and subcategories.
Start with a popular search engine such as Google™, for example.
Before typing the keywords, take your time and brainstorm relevant words.
Create a list of search terms. Write them down. A few seconds of
brainstorming could save you minutes or hours of retrieving irrelevant
results.
Advice for Searching Better:
* Select the most descriptive words. Brainstorm thoroughly.
* Use at least two keywords.
* Place the most important words or phrases first. Whenever two or more
words can appear in exact order,
enclose the words with double quotation marks ("word 1 word 2".)
Example: "United States." If you use a longer phrase, you will
achieve more precise results. With a very long phrase, however, you may
get zero results. Some search engines allow you to select the
"phrase" option in the pull-down menu on their advanced search
page or you can type it in special phrase search box, so you don't have to
use quotes.
* When possible, use unique, rare or unusual keywords. The more uncommon /
obscure or less frequent the keywords you use are, the fewer and more
relevant results you will get.
* Use nouns and objects as keywords. Do not use the so-called "stop
words" such as "what," "where," "the,"
"in," "and," etc. Many search tools ignore them. If
you need a stop word to appear in the results, place the implied Boolean
operator "+ " in front of that word. The standard Boolean
operators AND, OR, NOT (or AND NOT), NEAR, BEFORE, AFTER and the Boolean
logic "(parenthesis)", are used to construct complicated
queries. The implied Boolean operators "+" and "-" can
replace the AND and NOT respectively. An example of Boolean logic is (tips
OR tricks) AND ("search engines" OR "web
directories"). It will find tips or tricks for search engines or web
directories. Check the search tool's tips to see if they accept Boolean
operators. For example Google™ does not support full Boolean logic.
* Do not use common terms such as Internet, Web, etc. except for cases
that it is necessary. (For example, the query is "searching the
web" with quotes.)
* Avoid redundant terms and complicated query structures.
* Choosing the right words for your query is the most important part of
web searching. The more specific the search term, the more relevant your
results will be and the more likely it is that you will find what you
seek. Remember, work smarter not harder.
* The secret to constructing a professional query is to type words you
expect to find in the matches.
Note: Some search tools, such as Ask Jeeves allow you to use the so-called
"natural language." This means that you can construct a query as
a question in plain English, such as "What's the weather in LA?"
When you have a specific question in mind, these tools can be helpful.
Checking the Results:
After typing your keywords into the search box press either the
"enter" key on the keyboard or, click on the "search,"
"find" or "go" button on the search tool's homepage.
You will receive a list of documents that - hopefully - match your query.
If you do not, it may be because some unscrupulous webmasters use
unethical methods to cheat the search engines and achieve undeserved, top
rankings for their sites. To learn more about this topic, please read my
article, "Search Engine Spamming Sucks!"
The results returned, also called "matches" or "hits"
will be web pages related to the subject you're searching for, ranked in
order of relevancy according to the search tool's algorithm or by date,
URL, title, etc.
Each result will contain information such as the title of the page, a
short description, the page's URL and the size of the page.
Now you have a tough job. You have to decide which of the search results
will take you to the most informative site. Your best bet is to take a
look at the title and description of the page. Are they relevant to your
search? If yes, open the page. If not, check the next result, by scrolling
down on the right side of the browser.
To view a page you have two options:
1) Click on the title of the page - even if says "No title" or
"?????". Place the cursor on the page title and the cursor will
change to the picture of a hand. Usually the links are in blue and
underlined, but often they are not. You can find links in any color,
including black, which makes it difficult to recognize a link in text of
the same color.
2) The second method is to open the page in a new browser window.
Right-click over the title of the result. This produces a pop-up menu.
Select "open (link) in new window." After checking the result,
close the new browser window. You will still have the first window browser
with your search. Some search tools have an option that allows you to open
the result in a new window. Don't get used to that, do the right thing:
open a new browser window by using the mouse's right-click.
If you use the first method most likely you will not use the back button
to go back to the results page, but instead you will simply close the
window, losing the search page altogether.
Criteria for Evaluating a Web Resource:
First of all, don't believe everything you read on the Internet. Recently
I found a page where it stated that Google™ has about one billion web
pages indexed. Well, according to Google™, it indexes 3,307,998,701 web
pages. Be careful what you believe. Governmental agencies, educational
institutions, libraries and prestigious publications are the most reliable
sources of information. Be circumspect with information found on personal
sites stored in free hosts.
Six Tips For Evaluating A Site:
1) Is the web site published by an authoritative source? Is the author a
recognized expert in the field or subject area?
2) Is the information relevant, credible and accurate? It doesn't hurt to
cross check two to three additional, reliable sources.
3) Is the site current and recently updated?
4) Does the site have a professional "look and feel": structure,
layout, color scheme, navigation menu(s), etc.?
5) Are there spelling, grammar or punctuation errors?
6) Does the site have contact information such as a postal address, phone
or email?
Four Additional Tips:
1) Don't look only at the top ten listings. Excellent results can be found
on the top 20, or even top 50 results. This is why customizing the result
output at 100 results per page is handy. You don't have to open a next
ten-results-per-page page. If you don't find relevant results in the first
20 to 50, reformulate your query or try another search tool - a meta
search engine, for example.
2) Check only results that truly looks relevant.
3) Be aware that many search tools list "sponsored links" at the
top of their results page. These are not results from the search tool's
database. Instead these results are paid listings from corporations that
have an interest in providing you with information about their products or
services. Studies show that searchers find it hard to distinguish between
regular and paid results, so be aware that these exist.
4) To quickly discover if a result is relevant, use the "Find (on
This Page)" command of the browser (in the Edit menu) or
simultaneously press CTRL and F keys then type one of your important words
and press "Find next". You will find the location of that word,
and you can see if the page is really relevant or not.
What To Do When You Get TOO MANY Results:
It's common to receive millions of results, often unrelated to the search.
To receive more relevant results you'll have to refine or even rethink the
search. Here are some ideas to help you refine your search:
* Add one or more descriptive words to your query.
* Use phrases. Enclose two or more words that can appear in exact order
within double quotation marks.
* Exclude words you don't want in the results by using the implied Boolean
operator "-". Example: the query "red apples"
-"yellow apples" will find pages that contain "red
apples" - in that order - and will not include pages that contain
"yellow apples. " As you see, there is no space between the
"-" sign and the word or phrase you want to exclude. There is,
however, a space between the "-" sign and the previous word.
* Use the search tool's "advanced search" functions. Limit your
search by language, date or by field searching: title, URL, link etc. See
the search tool's "search tips" for details.
What To Do When You Get Too Few Or Irrelevant Results:
Sometimes you will get messages like "Your search did not match any
documents" or "No pages were found containing your query"
or "No results." Other times you may get few or irrelevant
results.
What You Should Do:
* Check the spelling of the query. Some search engines automatically
detect misspelled words and will show the correct spelling. Just click on
the suggested word or words.
* Delete the least important word from the query.
* If you used a search phrases try eliminating the double quotes.
* Use more general terms, alternate spellings, plural forms or synonyms.
Recently, "Google™ introduced a new advanced search feature that
allows you to not only search for a particular keyword but also for its
synonyms. Just place the "~" (tilde) diacritical mark directly
in front of the keyword in your search query. For example, "browser
~help" not only searches for "browser help", but also for
"browser support", "browser tips" and "browser
tutorials."
* You can also check the spelling of the Web page's URL if you typed it
directly into the address field of the browser.
* If all the above strategies fail, switch to another search tool,
preferably a meta search engine such as ez2Find (formerly ez2www.)
Remember: if you're doing a serious research, consider asking a
professional Web searcher to do the job. In a few hours, he may find
information that would have taken you days to find.
If you receive the message "The page cannot be displayed" or
"Not found" the page has been discontinued.
What you can do:
* If a page that doesn't display is not the site's home page you can use
the following trick. Cut the Web address of the page starting on the
right-hand side and stopping at every forward slash (/). Let's say that
the URL of a dead link is www.domainname/archive/article_1.html. First
delete "article_1.html" and click "enter." Hopefully
you will see the "archive" page and the "article 1."
If not, also delete "archive" and click "enter."
Hopefully you will get the home page and there will still be an option
"archive."
* When you cannot see a page, use the "cached" function of some
search engines, such as Google™. Go back to the results list and click
on the "cached" link near the result. You will get a snapshot of
the page stored in Google™'s index. Keep in mind that Google™ does not
cache all the Web pages in its index and cached pages are often not
up-to-date. Wayback Machine can also show you previous versions of a Web
page. Simply type the URL and than select a date in the results list. Keep
in mind that there are a limited number of URLs indexed in the Wayback
Machine's database. Be aware that sometimes receiving few results means
that ONLY a few results matched your query. Switch to a meta search engine
and I guarantee you will receive better results.
Sometimes a search tool simply will not work. Why? Because it may be
disabled or undergoing changes. Try again later. Other times you might
receive messages like "503 Server is busy" or "Too many
users. " Check back later. For U.S. residents, early morning and late
night are the least busy times.
Qualities Of A Good Web Searcher:
* Patience. You can find what you're looking for in ten seconds, ten
minutes or never. Keep in mind that searching the Web can be a very time
consuming operation.
* Persistence. Don't be scared of millions of results. Don't give up too
fast. Searching the Web is a process of trial and error.
* Good memory. When conducting extensive research, you'll have to remember
all your previous search queries so you know what terms you have already
tried. Write them down - it's easier.
* Good organizational skills. Plan your strategy ahead of time and stick
with the plan.
* Creativity. Select the best words for your query.
* Decisiveness. Learn to quickly recognize relevant results in the search
engine's result page. Don't waste your time with search tools or
strategies that don't work.
* Learn and accept the Web's limitations. Sometimes you cannot find the
information because there is no information available on the Web related
to your search. But this happens very rarely. Most of the time, the
problem is not a lack of information but rather being overwhelmed by
relevant results. That is if you know where and how to search.
And yes, practice, practice, practice. The more you search, the more
you'll know and soon you will be scoring the most relevant results in the
timeliest manner.
A final piece of advice: use bookmarks or favorites.
When visiting a page that you think you might want to visit again, it's
wise to save its web address (URL) in your "bookmarks" or
"favorites" folder in your browser or - much better - in a
Web-based bookmarks manager - such as MyBookmarks.com - which allows you
to access your bookmarks from any computer at any location. (I have NO
connection with MyBookmarks.com)
The next time you want to visit that page, you simply open the saved
bookmark instead of searching again or typing the page's URL.
Be aware that in time you can collect thousands of bookmarks. Be smart and
organize them in thoughtfully labeled categories and subcategories.
Last but not least, back-up your bookmarks just like all the other
important information you back-up from your computer.
Rest assured that finding information on the Web is never a question of
luck. Instead it is the result of a thorough understanding of how search
tools work, combined with mastering the art of creating a targeted search
query. Searching the Web is not difficult. Like any task, you simply must
press the right buttons.
Good luck with your searches!
Note: Google™ is a trademark of Google Inc.
Do you have searching tips not listed above? Please send them to mailto:danielbazac@hotmail.com.
________________________________________________________________________________________
This page is part of the eBusiness Gateway website and was published in Nov. 2003.
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