STARTING OUT
It's always a good idea to THINK about your search before you begin. Create a search strategy in your head by asking yourself this question:
What do I want to do?
CREATING A SEARCH STATEMENT
When structuring your query, keep the following tips in mind:
It's always a good idea to THINK about your search before you begin. Create a search strategy in your head by asking yourself this question:
What do I want to do?
- Browse?
- Locate a specific piece of information?
- Retrieve everything I can on the subject?
- If you're browsing and trying to determine what's available in your subject area, start out by selecting a subject directory like Yahoo! Then, enter your search keyword(s) into one of the metasearch engines, such as Clusty just to see what's out there.
- If you're looking for a specific piece of information, go to a major search engine such as Google, or to a specialized database such as Australian Bureau of Statistics (for statistics).
- If you want to retrieve everything you can on a subject, try the same search on several search engines. Also, don't forget to check resources off the Web, such as books, newspapers, journals and other print reference sources.
CREATING A SEARCH STATEMENT
When structuring your query, keep the following tips in mind:
- Be specific
EXAMPLE: cyclone tracey
- Whenever possible, use nouns and objects as keywords
EXAMPLE: fiesta dinnerware plates cups saucers
- Put most important terms first in your keyword list; to ensure that they will be searched, put a +sign in front of each one
EXAMPLE: +hybrid +electric +gas +vehicles
- Use at least three keywords in your query
EXAMPLE: interaction vitamins drugs
- Combine keywords, whenever possible, into phrases
EXAMPLE: "pyroclastic lava flow"
- Avoid common words, e.g., water, unless they're part of a phrase
EXAMPLE: "bottled water"
- Think about words you'd expect to find in the body of the page, and use them as keywords
EXAMPLE: cone lava eruption pumice
- Write down your search statement and revise it before you type it into a search engine query box
EXAMPLE: +"new south wales" +"financial aid" +applications +scholarships
Activity Time 4
You are going to practice how to parse a question so you can make a search query. It's not that hard. First find the keyword or keywords. Think of some synonyms for the keywords especially when you might have a sentence like 'what's wrong with it?' and one word e.g. sick, would work.
Download the worksheet, save it in the class folder, then follow the directions on the worksheet.
Download the worksheet, save it in the class folder, then follow the directions on the worksheet.
s3_parsing_a_question.docx | |
File Size: | 106 kb |
File Type: | docx |
QUICK TIPS
NOTE: These tips will work with most search engines in their basic search option.
NOTE: These tips will work with most search engines in their basic search option.
- Use the plus (+) and minus (-) signs in front of words to force their inclusion and/or exclusion in searches.
EXAMPLE: +meat -potatoes
(NO space between the sign and the keyword)
- Use double quotation marks (" ") around phrases to ensure they are searched exactly as is, with the words side by side in the same order.
EXAMPLE: "out like a light"
(Do NOT put quotation marks around a single word.)
- Put your most important keywords first in the string.
EXAMPLE: dog breed family pet choose
- Type keywords and phrases in lower case to find both lower and upper case versions. Typing capital letters will usually return only an exact match.
EXAMPLE: prime minister retrieves both prime minister and Prime Minister
- Use truncation (or stemming) and wildcards (e.g., *) to look for variations in spelling and word form.
EXAMPLE: librar* returns library, libraries, librarian, etc.
EXAMPLE: colo*r returns color (American spelling) and colour (Australian spelling)
- Combine phrases with keywords, using the double quotes and the plus (+) and/or minus (-) signs.
EXAMPLE: +cowboys +"wild west" -football -dallas
(In this case, if you use a keyword with a +sign, you must put the +sign in front of the phrase as well. When searching for a phrase alone, the +sign is not necessary.)
- When searching within a document for the location of your keyword(s), use the "find" command on that page.
- In Boolean searches, always enclose OR statements in parentheses.
EXAMPLE: Yosemite (campgrounds OR reservations)
- Always use CAPITALS when typing Boolean operators in your search statements. Most engines require that the operators (AND, OR, AND NOT/NOT) be capitalized. Other engines will accept either CAPITALS or lower case, so you're on safe ground if you stick to CAPITALS.
Search Engines
Grouping Key: White = Kids search engines; Yellow = metadata search engines; Orange = General search engines; Red = Visual-relational search engines; Purple = Subject search engines; Pink = Australian search engines; Black = Dictionaries with a difference; Teal = Search help