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Find what you really
want with good Internet searching skills.
All too often I hear comments like "I can't find anything on the
Internet" or "I'm afraid of getting viruses from the Internet" or "Where do I
start". In today's meetings, we discussed some tried and true methods of
searching the Internet successfully and easily.
Google is the current king
of web searching and should be your first stop to start any search.
Boolean searching is probably the single best methodology to
learn to improve your searching skills. Here's how it works in a nutshell:
| Search
Convention |
Result |
Phrase -
ex: "create template" |
only documents with the phrase you enclose in quotes |
Include (AND) - ex:
"create template" +Excel |
documents with your phrase AND the word or phrase you include after
the + sign* |
Exclude (NOT)- ex:
"create template" -Lotus |
documents with your phrase WITHOUT any sign of the word or phrase
you include after the - sign* |
OR
ex: dogs OR canines |
returns documents that include one of the words or phrases you typed
on either side of the OR |
NEAR
ex:
abraham NEAR lincoln |
documents that include either word before or after the operator IF
they are within 10 words of each other |
* Note that the AND and NOT operators/conventions can be used in place of
the + and - sign respectively.
Unlike searching topics in a library, web searching requires you to start
more specific and then broaden your searches if unsuccessful with results.
SPEED SEARCHING
Learn to utilize the power of your computer and the Internet to
cull through results faster. Even with a fast Internet connection, clicking on
one search result at a time is tedious and wastes time. Instead try these
techniques:
Internet Explorer
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RIGHT Click on a promising search result
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Click Open in a New Window
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Push Alt + Tab on your keyboard to return to list of results
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Repeat Steps 1 & 2 for up to 8 search results
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Now use the Alt + Tab to look at each of the results you
opened, and close the ones you don't need.
Mozilla Firefox
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Middle Click (scroll button click) on each result you want
to explore and a new 'tab' will automatically be opened.
Remember that with Google you can search for just
pictures, just
news, and perform other specialized
searches as well.
Use this sites for specialized searches:
CLICK HERE
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