Searching the Web

Isn’t it funny how much you THINK you know about searching the web, but then you read Chapter 3 of Discovering the Internet and you think again.  I’ve always prided myself on being able to find whatever I wanted whenever I had a query to be performed on the Internet.  Looking up an IP address was neat, although I don’t think I’ll ever use this tool – or was that Chapter 2?  It’s becoming a blur.  Anyway, simply choosing the best search tool was enlightening to me.  I’m a Google fan myself.  However, now I must spend time evaluating which tool is the best for the specific search I am doing.  I look forward to familiarizing myself and becoming even better at surfing the web.

So I’ve mentioned I like Google.  Other search tools are bing, Ask.com and dogpile.  There are many more.  By using specific keywords for searches, you should be able to find what you are looking for.  We’ve all read by now that stop words are unnecessary.  Learning which search tool works best for what you are looking for will be through trial and error.  Play around and become familiar with different search tools.  Be sure to check out a website’s creditability.  You don’t want to go with a page that is too opinionated or one-sided.  Some web pages will offer various links.  By using these links, you may be offered yet more links and access to more valuable information.  The process of navigating through these links is called drilling down.  You may be able to see a trail of the places you’ve clicked to get where you are.  This is referred to as a breadcrumb trail.  There’s much to learn.  Luckily, since we are students who find it necessary to use the internet, we’ll have lots of opportunity and reason to familiarize ourselves.  Happy surfing! 

(Curtis, Mike. "Jing Blog." TechSmith Corporation, 11 Feb 2011. Web. 18 Feb 2011. <http://blog.jingproject.com/>.)