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	Searching the Web

Off-Campus Access Help/More Info

  Guides to Search Engines - Search Engines and Features -  Evaluating Information on the Web - Citing Web Sources - 

Web Strengths - Web Weaknesses  - Questions?

Guides to Search Engines - search tips, news, statistics, reviews and features of the major search engines

   Search Engine Watch
   www.searchenginewatch.com

   Search Engine Showdown
   www.searchengineshowdown.com

   How to Choose a Search Engine or Directory
   http://www.internettutorials.net/choose.html

Search Engines and Features

Meta Searches - search multiple search engines simultaneously

    Ixquick
    www.ixquick.com

    Vivisimo
    vivisimo.com

Academic Resources - selected resources relevant to academic research

    Infomine
    infomine.ucr.edu

Image/Media Searches

    AltaVista Image Finder
    www.altavista.com/image/default

    Google Advanced Image Search
    www.google.com/advanced_image_search?hl=en

    Image Finder 
    sunsite.berkeley.edu/ImageFinder

 Government Search Engines - find information on State, Local, and Federal Government websites

    FirstGov 
    www.firstgov.gov/

    Google (Unclesam)
    www.google.com/unclesam

    SearchGov.com  
    www.searchgov.com

Evaluating Information on the Web

    Evaluating Sources: Basic Criteria
    www.bothell.washington.edu/library/guides/eval.html

    Evaluating Information Found on the Internet
    http://www.library.jhu.edu/researchhelp/general/evaluating/index.html

    Librarysmart.com's Guide to Evaluating Information
    www.librarysmart.com/working/LSPublic/01_evaluate.asp

    The Virtual Chase
    www.virtualchase.com/quality/

How to Cite Web Information

    Citation Guides 
    www.uwb.edu/library/guides/style.html

What's Good About the Web (Strengths)

Broad Coverage - Because no one is responsible for selecting items to be a part of the Web, and anyone can publish information on a webpage, performing a keyword search in any of the larger Internet Search Engines will retrieve an amazingly diverse collection of websites.  These websites will vary dramatically in both the quality and accuracy of information they provide.  Therefore,  it is very important to carefully evaluate what you find on the Web before you cite it as a source in your research project or presentation. 

Current Information -- but not always current - Information can be added to the Web very quickly.  Because of this speed, most news organizations use the Web to publish breaking news, even when they are in the business of providing news in another format (e.g. Newspapers, TV News).  Internet Search Engines are also regularly updated to include new information that is posted to the Web, but they vary in how often their databases are updated.  
Caution: Even when a Search Engine has been very recently updated, the websites they index may be out of date.  Look at the bottom of each webpage to see if there is any indication of the last time the page was updated.

Government Information - The Web is a great way to access information from government sources at the state, federal, and international levels.  More and more government publications are being made available in electronic format.  In fact, many government publications are only available over the Internet.

Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) - The Web is a relatively inexpensive way for an association, advocacy group, political party or non-governmental organization to get its message out.  Local, national, and international groups are all well represented on the Web.  

Museums, Libraries, Universities - After the US Government, academic institutions were the first organizations to be a part of the Internet.   Universities, libraries and museums around the world still maintain a strong Web presence, and may provide access to online archives of primary sources.  

Special Interest Information - For good or ill, groups and individuals with very specialized interests or alternative viewpoints are able to publish and communicate via the Internet.  For example, you can find websites created by rather harmless groups, like model train enthusiasts; but you can also find websites created by hate groups, such as the KKK.  If you want to know what a specific group says about themselves, visiting their website is a good option.  Keep in mind that when an individual or a group creates a website, they may not only express a particular bias, but they may also be entirely unscrupulous.  

What's Not So Good About the Web (Weaknesses)

Lack of Authority - One strength of the Internet is also its greatest weakness - anyone can publish there.  Individuals with no particular knowledge of a subject are able to publish on the Internet just as easily as recognized authorities.   

Time Consuming to Search - Because of the somewhat chaotic nature of the Web, it can be very time consuming to search effectively.  If you know the special features of the major search engines, you can become a more efficient searcher.    However, in many cases, looking in a reference book or a journal article database you will find the information you need much faster than searching the Web.

Advertising - The large amount of advertising on the Internet can sometimes obscure more informative, non-commercial content.  Online shopping is a popular activity, but a site that is trying to sell you something will not be an unbiased source of information for a research project.  For example, Ford Motor Company will have a different view of the safety of SUVs, than will consumer publications. 

Incomplete - By 2001, only about 8% of all journals were available on the Web (see 10 Reasons Why the Internet is No Substitute for a Library, by Mark Herring).  Copyrighted books and articles cannot be made available on the Web, without the copyright owners permission.  In effect, that keeps most titles published in the last few decades from being legally distributed on the Web, without someone paying a fee.  The University of Washington pays hundreds of thousands of dollars each year to provide access to journal articles (from a variety of Databases) and to a selection of online books (through the Library Catalog), which you will not find searching the Web.

No Editorial Control - Articles in scholarly journals go through a peer review process.  Book publishers, magazines, and newspapers all benefit from editorial staffs who maintain quality control over their publications.  While some information on the Web has gone through this process, there is no requirement that information on the Web meet any quality criteria whatsoever, or be reviewed by anyone other than the author. 

Inaccuracy

Believe it or not, there is false information on the Web!  Since there is no editorial control over the Web as a whole, and anyone can create a webpage, it is extremely important to evaluate what you find very carefully.

Here are some cautionary examples:

Lake Michigan Whale Watching
You didn't know whales lived in the Great Lakes?  They don't but you wouldn't know it from this website.

Museum of Hoaxes: Hoax Websites

The White House
Those domain extensions do make a difference.  This parody site is a .org, the real White House is .gov.

  Note: Some of the strengths of the Web can also be weaknesses, and vice versa, depending on your information needs. 

Questions?

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