Laura Adams
SLM 521
June 2002
Search Engines - The
Best of……
Locating information on the internet is an
overwhelming task. There are literally
billions of pieces of information available and seemingly as many ways to find
it. The following is a list of the
types of available search methods with a brief description and a selection of
my favorite sites, for adults and children.
For additional information see the reference links at the bottom of the
page.
Search
Engines: search by keyword; enclose in “ “; databases
complied by computers; size varies.
Google – Google is one of the largest and
most popular search engines. It offers an easy to use advanced search option, a
search within results option and ranking by popularity. This site also provides for searching via
subject directories, within groups and for images. Last visited June 2002. http://www.google.com/
For KIDS:
KidsClick – This search
engine was created by a group of librarians from Ramapo Catskill Library System
and contains over 600 subjects can be searched by title or alphabetically. It had an advanced search option which allows
you to limit results by reading level and amount of pictures. This site does
not have a filter and will not keep the user for going to any address
requested. It also has no
advertising. Last visited June 2002. http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/KidsClick!/
Yahooligans – This search engine is
operated by Yahoo and contains only sites which have been determined to be safe
for children. It provides options to
search or select from a subject directory.
The Ask Earl feature offers a place for kids to get answers to specific
questions and see what others are asking.
Last visited June 2002. http://www.yahooligans.com/
ProFusion
– This meta search engine provides searches from many good engines including
AltaVista, Yahoo, Excite, etc. It has an
advanced search option which allows you to customize which specific search
engines it will use during your search.
The results of your search are in one, rated list and can be
sorted. Last visited June 2002. http://www.profusion.com/CatNav.asp?ID=1&AGTID=1&queryterm=
For KIDS:
ithaki for kids – This meta search
engine searches kid safe site such as AOL Kids, Yahooligans, Fact Monster,
Ivy’s Search Engine
Resources for Kids – This site provides access to a wide variety of
information for kids. It contains search
forms and links to many search engines and specialized sites. A brief description of what to look for on
each site is provided and very useful.
It also has web guides, family friendly search engines and more. Last visited June 2002. http://www.ivyjoy.com/rayne/kidssearch.html
Subject
Directories: less
specific search / broader categories; human-selected sites, organized by subjects
categories, no full text documents.
About.com - This site offer search
alphabetically or by category. The
education category is divided into specific areas such as elementary educators
and you can search within that topic.
The homework helper http://www.about.com/
Infomine – Infomine provides a basic
search, an advanced search and browsing specific databases. It has over 20,000 resources which have been
put together by university and college level librarians. It has a many specific database including one
for Instructional Resources for K-12.
Last visited June 2002. http://infomine.ucr.edu/
Specialized
Databases: search for specialized directories by adding “web
directories” to your search keyword within search engine or look for
directories within subject directories themselves.
Education Planet – This site offers
over 100,000 educations sites, lesson, etc.
It provides general search, subject directories and for specific areas
of interest such as .teacher, student, parents, store, on-line coursed,
etc. Last visited June 2002. http://www.educationplanet.com/
Teach-nology – This outstanding site is
a web portal for educators and it has a wide variety of information on many
topics. Some of its many features
include best and free sites, lesson plans, motivator, teacher tools, student search,
tutorials, etc. This site is maintained by professional educators. Last visited June 2002. http://www.teach-nology.com/
The
Invisible Web: information that you cannot see in search results;
contained in specialized databases; search for the invisible web by adding “databases” to your keyword search
within search engine.
Image,
Sound and Video:
AltaVista
Image / Video Search – This site offers an advanced search option for
images, audio and video. It also has a
family friendly filter options. Last
visited June 2002. http://www.altavista.com/sites/search/mm_imageresults?pg=q&stype=simage&imgset=2&q=&avkw=tgz
For KIDS:
YahooliganDownloader
– This site offers children a safe place to search for picture, videos, and
sounds. It can provide a search of
downloader or you can select from a category within one type of media. Last visited June 2002. http://www.yahooligans.com/Downloader/
Additional Resource Links:
Things
to Know Before Searching -
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/ThingsToKnow.html
Types
of Search Tools -
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/ToolsTables.html