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-SEARCHING THE INTERNET

Websites on research Search Tools & Techniques Conducting Research Websearch Searchengine watch Research buzz Researchengine guide Freepint Showdown Boolean research is based on AND, OR, NOT For example: You are looking for pages with information about ‘cats’ and ‘dogs’, use AND. If you are looking for information only about ‘cats’ and you want to exclude everything that relate to ‘dogs’, use ‘cats’ NOT ‘dogs’. If you are looking for any of these, use ‘cats’ OR ‘dogs’. The same applies using ‘+’ or ‘-‘. If you’re looking for the exact phrase use quotes “..” More on Boolean... Few tips: (using a search engine) Try to re-order words, for example: ‘middle east’ AND ‘journalism’ instead of ‘journalism’ AND ‘middle east’. If that’s still doesn’t give you anything, try synonymous words: ‘middle east’ and ‘media’ Sometimes using capital letters can make a difference If you are searching for a specific quote, use the quotes “ Some search engines let you use an asterix * if you’re not sure of spelling: jour* Tips for journalists Make use of news groups. Good way to start searching for relevant groups: Listz’s Usenet Newsgroup Directory or DejaNews. Local newspapers are sometimes a good start too Use Ctrl+ F to search a site on a certain keyword Realise that there are also lots of specialised sub directories. The Virtual Library is a good example, another one is Clearinghouse or the Liberian Index to the Internet, or Law crawler for legal stuff. Or try the more general Webcrawler Make use of someone’s e-mail to ask for more information Don’t forget that there’s something simple like a phone too. Not everything is on the Internet, see a specialist. Universities or NGO’s might have one DOUBLE CHECK YOUR INFORMATION Few tips that can help: Big organisations are more likely to provide you with accurate information then someone’s personal home page (identifiable with ~); Try the ‘Who are we’ or ‘About us’. You’ll find it on every web page; Is there any information on the writer itself; Is there a mentioning of a phone number or e-mail address you can contact; How is the text written: a business like approach or a more emotional approach; Again use you’re brains-- does it make sense to you. Have you read the information somewhere before; Is there any evidence for the content, for example links to other organisations?