Searching the Internet
Preparing To Search The Internet
Helping Students Search Effectively
1
Surfing is not searching.
Computers download informationThey do not teach you to think.Computer education imparts technical skills;It does not impart knowledge.John Rosemond
Not all the information that exists in the world is on the Internet--Not all the information that is on the Internet is accurate. Mrs. Kotsch
An hour on the Web may not answer a question that you could find within two minutes of picking up a reference book.
Getting Started SearchingURLsSearching techniquesSearch engines
URLsUniform Resource LocatorThe web address that connects you with a websiteGoes in the address bar at the top of the screen Gives you information about the website
Parts of a URL http://www.starwars.com/seminars.html
http://--hypertext transfer protocol:the language computers use to talk to one anotherwwwworld wide web:the body of information connected by the cables and computers of the Internet.starwarsdomain name: the structured, alphabetic-based, unique name for a computer on a network.comtop level domain:gives an idea of where the document is stored/seminarsfile name: a folder within a website.htmlhypertext markup language: the computer language used to format documents
Top Level Domains.eduhigher education.k-12elementary and secondary schools.comcommercial.govgovernment agency.milmilitary.orggeneral noncommercial organization.netcomputer network
Who Pays For The Internet?Advertisers pay for Internet websites.Popups and banners are trying to influence your spending habits.The information on commercial sites--.commay be presented in such a way as to encourage you to buy a particular product.Be wary of URLs with a ~ in the addressthis indicates a personal homepage and does not guarnantee accuracy.
How Do You Find What You Need?Libraries and department stores are planned.No one is in charge of organizing the Internet.Well-prepared searches will eliminate useless hits and wasted time.
Before you search, you need to:PrepareOrganizeCombine
PrepareWhat do you need to know about your topic?Make a list of all the terms connected with your topic.Include names, organizations, and phrases.
Organize Make a list of the words that are critical to your search. Note terms that you dont want to see appear. Discard the rest.
For exampleIf you are looking for information about life on the planet Mars, you dont want sites popping up about the Roman god of war.
Put that in your list of words you dont want to see.What other words might be connected with your topic that will send you to useless sites?
CombineUse Boolean operators to combine your most important terms.
Use AND to connect the terms you want to see.Use NOT to exclude terms you dont want.Use OR to include similar terms.Use quotation marks around names or phrasesUse lower case for all proper nouns, except for acronyms
For examplemars AND planet AND life NOT god
But what ifyou WERE looking for information about the Roman god of war? The Greeks referred to him as Ares, so now your search will look like this.
mars OR ares AND god of war Notice the quotation marks around the phrase god of war
What Do You Use To Search?Search enginesSearch directoriesMetasearchers
Search EnginesAre like the index in the back of a bookLet you search for specific words and topicsUse robots known as spiders to search for information.
Examples:Alta VistaExciteHotbotInfoseek
Search Directories--Are like the table of contents in front of a bookLet you search for concepts or subject categories Go from general to specific.Sites are added by people.
Examples:Internet Public Library
Instead of looking through the categories in a search directory, you can put in your terms in their search bar, but it will only look through the sites that have been included within that directorynot the entire web, unless indicated.
Metasearchers--Sends your search terms to several other search engines at once.Gives an overview of a topic across the Internet.
Examples:ProfusionDogpileMetacrawler
Remember.Hits are returned and ranked according to-- How many times terms appear on the pageHow often terms appearHow close terms are to each otherHow near the top of the page the terms are found
The best results will appear on the first page or two of hitsNo two search engines are alike. Try another search engine, or rephrase your terms if you dont get good results.
More Searching Help--7 Steps to Better Searching
Evaluating WebsitesLet the buyer beware
Book publishers weed out inaccurate information.No one checks the Internet for accuracy.
EVALUATE!Before you start using the information--
Who is the author?Is he an authority on the subject?Does she have an e-mail address?
Is the information accurate?Can it be verified in an encyclopedia?Is it relevant to your topic?Does the author indicate where he found the information?
Is the information prejudiced?Is it trying to persuade you to another point of view?Is it trying to persuade you to buy a product?
Is the information current?When was the last time the website was updated?Are the links broken?
Evaluation WebsiteQuality Information ChecklistBenefits of Colloidal SilverBurger King Introduces
Copyright IssuesWhat can you copy?Give credit to what you have used.
Copyright Is the legal right of an author or artist to control the copying and use of their creative works.Taking something without permission is theft, including text and pictures from the Internet.Using someone elses words without giving credit is called plagiarism.Fair Use concept lets teachers and students use portions of copyrighted works without permission.
What is protected by copyright?Literary worksComputer softwareMusical worksDramatic worksMotion picturesSound recordings
Before you copy, check the Fair Use Guidelines:Am I using this for a nonprofit, educational purpose?Am I only using a small portion?Will the creator be deprived of future profits?
What can students copy?A single , hard copy for personal or educational use.Limited amounts of websites.Copies cannot be used for public or commercial use.Students must cite the source of their information.For multi-media projects:Video clips10% or three minutesMusic10% but no more than 30 seconds.Text10% or 1000 words
For copyright help, refer to:The diocesan copyright policyCOPYRIGHT FOR SCHOOLS, by Carol SimpsonCopyright BayCopyright KidsCyberbee Copyright
Citing a websiteLast name, first name of author.If there is no author listed, begin with the title.Title of article within the website. Put quote marks around the titleName of website. Underline the nameDate article was written. Put the date first, then abbreviate the month.Date you accessed the article.URL. If the URL wont fit on one line, break it at a slash. Include the entire URL, not just the one for the home page.
More Help For Works Cited:MLA StyleCitation Machine
Example:Adams, Joyce. How Vatican II changed the face of the Catholic Church. Catholic News Service. 2 Sept. 2003. 13 Oct. 2003 .
Staying Safe On-lineDont give out personal information.(phone number, address, pictures)Use Christian courtesy in e-mails and chat rooms.Dont arrange to meet with someone from online without telling your parents.Do tell your parents about inappropriate websites that you run across.Be careful what you post in a public forum.*
Remember: You leave electronic footprints wherever you go on the web.
Works CitedBooksJones, Debra. Exploring the Internet. New York: Neal-Schuman Publishers, Inc., 1999.Simpson, Carol, and McElmeel, Sharron L. Internet for Schools: A Practical Guide, 3rd ed. Worthington, Ohio: Linworth Publishing,Inc., 2000.
WebsitesAdams, Helen, and Beyers, Catherine. Lesson 2: Finding Information on the Internet. American Library Association. Dec. 15, 2003. .
Dodge, Bernie. Seven Steps to Better Searching. San Diego State University College of Education. July 8, 1999. 15 Nov. 2001.Knowledge is power. Librarians Rule.
