A search engine is a computer program that finds information stored on a computer system such as the World Wide Web. (Search engines have also been designed for corporate and proprietary networks.) The search engine allows the user to ask for content meeting specific criteria and retrieves a list of references that match those criteria.
At the present time, Google is the world’s most popular search engine.
Search engines that work with keywords help you locate Web sites. You type in a keyword and the search engine automatically looks through its giant databases for matches. The more specific the word or phrase, the better your chances of finding the precise information you need. For example, if you’re interested in a college, don’t use “college” as a keyword. You’ll get millions and millions of responses. Instead, name a specific college, such as “Farmingdale State University.” This will send to you the precise web page you need.
Below are the most popular search engines and the dates they began.
Most web search engines are commercial ventures supported by advertising revenue; as a result, some allow advertisers to pay to have their listings ranked higher in search results. This makes your research more difficult and time-consuming because you have to sift through irrelevant information. Those search engines that don’t charge for their results make money by running ads on their pages.
Since not all search engines lead to the same sources, you should use more than one to find the information you need for your research paper. Bookmark sources to which you want to return. You can also print out hard copies.
Research paper – searching the Web
Unfortunately, the Web is not like a library where information has been arranged within an accepted set of rules. It’s more like a garage sale, where items of similar nature are usually grouped together-but not always. As a result, you’ll find treasures side-by-side with trash. And like a garage sale, the method of organization on the web shifts constantly.
So how can you search the web for information to use in your research paper? There are several different ways, each of them surprisingly easy. Here’s how they work.