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From: Walter McKenzie [mrmck@staffnet.com]
Sent: Saturday, May 06, 2000 4:54 AM
To: innovative-teaching@egroups.com
Subject: [I.T.] Search Tools <May 6, 2000>

From the engine to the directory and now the portal, tools that mine the Web for specific information are a lucrative and dubious proposition. Every search tool finds different hits on a topic and presents them in a different format. It can be an exercise in futility if the tool you're using doesn't match your needs. And who's to know based on word of mouth? People vary in their allegiance to search tools and they are fiercely loyal. But how many times have you found that your own experience with a given tool doesn't match what you were told?

With this edition you can begin to set aside the hype and learn for yourself which tool is best for you. It's not that there's one definitive search tool. The trick is finding the search site which most closely matches your own approach to syntax, semantics and deductive reasoning. When you find that match, searching will become so much easier. Let the journey begin!

ALTA VISTA - http://www.altavista.com/
Perhaps the premier index online; includes a language translator, photo
finder, and a family filter to block out objectionable material, as well
as one of the best advanced searches anywhere - and Alta Vista Discovery
makes searching for information more coordinated than ever

ASK JEEVES - http://www.askjeeves.com/
All directories are conceptual, AJ handles semantics and syntax by
accepting queries as complete questions taking conceptual searches to a
whole new level; if you are more verbal than logical, AJ may be what
you're looking for

BEAUCOUP - http://www.beaucoup.com/
Lists available search engines by categories - very helpful if you're
looking for something new and different aside from the mainstream
searches we are all accustomed to

BIGFOOT - http://www.bigfoot.com/
Searches for websites and Yellow Pages listings, but this site is most
noted for its people searches - you have an email address, they can help
you find them; check out their Neoplanet service as a way to integrate
all your web needs into one location

BRITANNICA - http://www.britannica.com/
The editors of the renowned encyclopedia harness the riches of the
Internet, categorize them for your use, rates and reviews them, and
offer them through a searchable database here; can include Alta Vista searches

CHOOSE THE BEST SEARCH - http://nuevaschool.org/~debbie/library/research/adviceengine.html
A nice table of descriptors and the engines which truly will help you find what
you're looking for; some descriptor examples: "I need a few good hits fast",
"I have an general broad academic subject and need to explore or focus it" and
"I have general keyword(s) and need help refining my search strategy"

COLOSSUS - http://www.searchenginecolossus.com/
An index of all search engines from around the world - great for studying
culturally-based or language-based information; also includes unique categories
such as webmaster, christian, academic, city and XML.

DOGPILE - http://www.dogpile.com/
The meta-search engine with the offbeat image, Dogpile takes your query
and processes it through Yahoo!, Thunderstone, Lycos' A2Z, GoTo.com,
Mining Co., Excite Guide, PlanetSearch, What U Seek, Magellan, Lycos,
WebCrawler, InfoSeek, Excite and AltaVista all at once, adjusting to the
peculiarities of each for you - you can also look for newsgroups, stock
quotes, yellow pages, FTP sites, weather and maps

EDUCATOR'S NET - http://www.educationsearch.com/
Touting itself as "The World's #1 Education Search Engine", this site offers
10,000+ education resources actually reviewing each of them - a must see!

EUROSEEK - http://www.euroseek.net/page?ifl=uk
A search tool designed specifically for finding information and
resources throughout Europe; this URL is the English link, but you can
search in any major European language

EXCITE - http://www.excite.com/
A personalized directory engine that uses Intelligent Concept Extraction
to increase conceptually appropriate hits for your searches; also offers
news, chat, bulletin boards, domains and a variety of services from
airline tickets to movies and  personals - the kind of site which tries
to be a home base as much as a pit stop

EXPRESS - http://express.infoseek.com/
Infoseek's dazzling new search tool which is fabulous for finding
graphics - download the free software and have its capabilities at your
fingertips whenever you need it; easy to individualize to make it useful
for your specific needs

FINDING DATA ON THE INTERNET - http://nilesonline.com/data/
Robert Niles' site offering ideas on how to successfully find what
you're looking for on the largest single information source known to
mankind - the Web

FINDING INFORMATION ON THE INTERNET -
http://lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/FindInfo.html
A tutorial from UC Berkeley which provides strategies and information to
help you focus your searches on the WWW, in newsgroups and listservs

FINDSPOT - http://www.findspot.com/
Tips on using the most popular indexes and directories so that you can
have the most success with the time you put into it - great summaries

4ANYTHING - http://4education.4anything.com/
A unique directory that offers intuitive categories or allows you to search
more than 5,000 listings - visually stimulating too.

GOOGLE - http://google.com/
A new contender in the search engine sweepstakes claiming to use a
sophisticated mathematical formula to help you find the highest quality,
most accurate searches possible from "more than a billion hyperlinks";
also allows you to view cached versions of web pages so you're not out
of luck if the actual site is down when you need it

HOTBOT - http://www.hotbot.com/
If this were a popularity contest, this index may well win hands down;
Wired Digital offers a fast, efficient tool which is not as conceptually
oriented as I would like, but is certainly exhaustive in bringing back
every possible hit you could be looking for - definitely geared for a
younger clientele, some of the nomenclature for their related services
are bordering on being distasteful.....to each his own

INFIND - http://www.infind.com/
"We are is the first and only search tool that calls out in parallel all the
best search engines on the internet, merges the results, removes redundancies,
and clusters the results into neat understandable groupings. InFind queries
the best 6 search engines on the web, but can be configured to call any search
engine"; allows you to determine how fast to return hits too.

INFOSEEK - http://infoseek.go.com/
One directory I seem to have particular success on; it may not be as big
as some of its competitors in the volume of sites it covers, but it
tends to connect me to resources i can truly make use of - if you've
never tried it I would highly recommend it (click on tips to learn of
all its features before you give it a whirl)

KIDS CLICK - http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/KidsClick!/
If you are comfortable with the thought of a librarian directing you
towards the best resources (and who isn't?), this is a great site for
locating kid's resources; this directory is built by librarians and
narrows down the content to that which is truly kid-appropriate -
created and maintained by the Ramapo Catskill Library System

LYCOS - http://www.lycos.com/
In a lot of ways Lycos is just as conceptually accurate as Infoseek, but
it offers some intriguing free software such as Stock Alert and Planet
Oasis, as well as a customized version of IE Explorer and other
navigation tools; of course there's the all-too-familiar chat services,
shopping links and other frills to lure you into making this your homepage

MAMMA - http://www.mamma.com/
Access with an attitude - "the mother of all search engines"; aside from
fluff like personals and horoscopes, Mamma can give you powerful search
results without having to surf from engine to engine - especially
interesting is "Mamma Remote", a small second window you can take with
you as you surf around the web to search at any time, any place without
having to return to the main Mamma page.....now that's helpful!

NETGUIDE - http://www.netguide.com/
Emphasizes its staying current with the ever changing Web landscape;
editors of various categories serve as experts in their disciplines to
help you find satisfaction in your Net pursuits

NORTHERN LIGHT - http://www.northernlight.com/
Web resources from over 120 million sites, plus articles and reviews
from more than 5,400 periodicals dating back to 1995; while purchasing
actual materials from special content areas is not free, it is nominal

ONE SEEK - http://www.oneseek.com/
A meta-search tool which specializes in not only web sites but web rings
and a variety of specialized subjects; the frames get really annoying
when you want to see the actual page, but you can get around that easy enough

OPEN DIRECTORY - http://dmoz.org/
Formerly "New Hoo", this 'self-regulating republic' asks netizens to
volunteer as editors to recommend the corners of the Web they know best,
making for a non-commercial, populist directory where democracy runs
amuck! If you want to see the input of the common man rather than
polished experts, this site will definitely give you a new perspective

PINAKES - http://www.hw.ac.uk/libWWW/irn/pinakes/pinakes.html
Named after the catalogue of the library in ancient Alexandria, Egypt,
this site links major subjects to help make searching more productive
and successful; the newsletter for educators may also be of interest for
Higher Ed people

PLANET CLICK! - http://www.planetclick.com/
Another attempt at populism, this directory offers sites based on the
ratings of people who visit.....participatory democracy with a twist -
the hits can be fresh and off the beaten path

PROTEACHER - http://www.proteacher.com/
An index specifically for the cataloging of educational websites and
materials; ProTeacher is an up and coming player looking to index
the best of what's available, so be sure to submit worthy URLs while
you are visiting!

PROTEUS - http://www.thrall.org/proteus.html
Incredibly sophisticated site allowing you to make use of dozens of
search engines and tailor them to an interface you are most comfortable
with; it's a little overwhelming to see all the choices it offers you,
but if you have the time and the patience the rewards are there

SEARCH ENGINE WATCH - http://searchenginewatch.com/
Search engine guides, status reports, facts, resources and a mailing
list to keep you up to date on what's new, what works and why

SEARCH SPANIEL - http://www.searchspaniel.com/
Billing itself as the biggest metasearch engine on the web, Search
Spaniel offers searches through all the major search sites with
one click of a button. If you've tried Dogpile or other metasearches
you should compare them to this.

SEARCHING THE WEB - http://numa.niti.org/enc/
The Eisenhower National Clearinghouse's nicely organized tutorial on
making the most of Web searches, from beginner to advanced

SPIDER'S APPRENTICE - http://www.monash.com/spidap.html
Helps make searching a more efficient, rewarding process, with
up-to-date news on search engine improvements and a ticker to show you
what are the most popular search queries at any given time

STUDENTS' GUIDE TO THE WWW - http://www.gis.net/~peacewp/
Made by William Peace from Cape Cod, select search engines by subject
area to facilitate successful information gathering online

SURFIN' - http://members.aol.com/search/index.html
Reviews for search engines, meta searchers, people and business finders,
usenet and other specialized types of searches

TKMs EDUCATION WEB SEARCH - http://www.tkm.mb.ca/education/
Out of Manitoba, TKMs search covers all levels of education and seeks
sites of interest to educators exclusively; it's not flashy but it does offer a unique service

YAHOO - http://www.yahoo.com/
The original fun directory with enough common sense to keep it useful
and enough extras to keep you checking back - I find myself coming here
when I get frustrated with other searches.....it just makes sense to me

YAHOOLIGANS - http://www.yahooligans.com/
Of all the kid-centered search tools, this one consistently gives me
offerings I can use, usually with a few surprises I wasn't aware of; I
get tired of out of date links here, but the good outweighs the bad and
I recommend it to you highly

ZAPME! - http://www.zapme.com/net/
A grade 6-12 directory bringing you some 10,000 educational sites on
such areas as the classroom, library research , the teacher's toolbox,
news and current events and the future for students - worth a look

Next week's topic: "Creative Drama"
Please send in URL's of high quality sites which may be
of interest to our readers to walter@surfaquarium.com!
Also, I'm always looking for new topic ideas and input!
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