Week Five Using Search Engines

Lecture


This week in lecture, we had to answer five questions. The questions were related to the use of search engines. Search engine is a web based program designed to search information for you. The problem is that most of the times it misuse the page scoring/ranking system. The most popular search engines are Google, yahoo and ninemsn.
Of the 9.4 billon searches performed:
– Google 57%
– Yahoo 23.7%
– Microsoft 10.3%
– Ask 4.7%
– Time Warner including AOL 4.5%.
Google is used the most which is not that surprising to me because Google is the search engine I use majority of the time when I’m doing research.



Tutorial
In tutorial we had to go on this website http://www.monash.com/spidap.html and list four strategies that will help us to structure a good search.
1. One of the tips I got is that it’s best to visit Web directory if I were to be interested in general information. But if I’m after specific information a web search engine would be a better choice.
2. Try to use a lot of unique words and phrase searching.
3. Focus on your field search by subject.
4. Use multiple step approach – can be several clicks to an answer

Afterwards I was required to visit www.siteseen.co.uk/questions/historytrivia/ and answer the History trivia online quiz.

I had no clue on some of the question they asked so I used the search engines to find out the answers. I used the technique that I developed in question one to get the necessary information for the answer.
Todays task has given me a knowledge on how to search for information on the net. When i start doing my degree hopefully next semester I will search for information on the net with ease.

Reading1 Robert Harris Web Search Strategies

The first reading for this week explains a few problems that accurse on the internet and the information that exists on it and it also talks about libraries. The bad thing about the internet is that many people make up websites and puts incorrect information on it. I don’t really know why they do that but they do. With library its deferent no one has access to put wrong information in and it’s organized. They have deferent sections for fictions and nonfictions so you can search for information easier and quicker and get the correct information.
Reading 1 also suggests that it’s better to know one search engine well rather then searching for information all over the net.

Reading 2 The History of the Internet: (Chap 4 - Search Engines)

Reading two briefly explains the WAIS which stands for Wide Area Information Server and that WAIS is linked up to 600 databases around the world which is incredible. Also reading two informs the reader that the first search engine was made for finding and retrieving computer files and it just cover the history of the net.