Search
Engines
My Picks
Emily C. Moser
February 2004
This assignment was exploring new ground for me. I was aware of the more visible search
engines like Yahoo and MSN, etc. But, I was
not aware that I could really refine my search for specific info by
implementing more specific ones. I
approached each category with a certain question or topic in mind and then
searched to find out which search engine was easy to use and what kind of
results I got. I created this list for
personal interest and use. The two
choices listed are not necessarily in order of preference.
General
Searches
1. Yahoo http://www.yahoo.com
2. Google
http://www.google.com
These are the search engines I was already most
familiar with and, after exploring others, these are still the best for most
basic searches. They are both very easy
to use, have consistent results, and rely on popular use. Not a bad criteria.
Shopping
My goal for this search was to find new lamp shades
for some old table lamps I wanted to update.
MSN provided very good basic results from large, well known stores. It was easy to use and navigate, but I was
getting lamps, and could not refine my search for just shades. I tried various other shopping search
engines, and liked dulance. This engine
gave a wide variety of results from large stores to small boutiques which lent
greater variety and depth to the search.
It allowed me to search under 4 major search engines and provided
connections directly to specific stores.
Travel
1. Whats On When http://www.whatsonwhen.com
2. Trip Advisor
http://www.tripadvisor.com
My husband is Russian, so I wanted to research trips
there and any related information. While
we usually use Yahoo to get travel rates and times and buy tickets, I wanted to
see what kinds of results I got from the other engines. The first one was a lot of fun. It was easy to use, and provided useful info
for festivals there (and around the world).
It rated and annotated events.
The second engine was useful for more basic, commercial and touristy
info for more common vacations. It had
good articles from top travel magazines and reviewers. I would use both sites as supplemental
sources of info.
News
1. Christian Science Monitor http//www.csmonitor.com/
2. Headline
Spot http://www.headlinespot.com/
While I usually trust CNN and BBC on television for my
news, I decided to see if I could find more arts news. While I am usually wary of a news source
associated with any religion, a respected friend suggested this site. I thoroughly enjoyed its literature info and
reviews as well as its learning stories which provided pertinent and
interesting stories from students and teachers around the globe. The second engine allowed me to search by
subject and also to refine the search specifically to arts. Other engines did not distinguish between
arts and entertainment. It accessed a
good selection of interesting and informative articles from around the world.
Medical
1.Med Hunt
2. AmeriStat
http://www.ameristat.org/
It was difficult to find results that were easy to
understand with basic information.
Because I hope to be a mother in the future, I chose to research
pregnancy. While the first engine was
very authoritative in that it rated its results by a medical honor code, the
articles were more professionally oriented.
AmeriStat is an engine that concerns American population and
demographics. While it was not
specifically medical, it had much more accessible and helpful information that
could even be used in or for the classroom.