Searching for Online Information

Introduction. Greetings! You can find information here about searching the Internet. The icons above represent different sub-topics. Select an option using the icons or from the following table of contents. Frame and simple text versions are also available. This presentation was designed for different Uses, so the relevance of each part may differ according to the information needed; the last section (Expression) may be the most helpful to people who have worked with databases before. The Next icons can be selected to go to the next topic or sub-topic. Comments for improving the presentation or information would be gladly received!

Get me to the search on time. Goes to the "Use" topic for immediate searching. There should be benefit to following the order of the complete presentation, if there's time.

Table of Contents

Searching		general description and overview.
Tools		means of searching.
Sites		search providers.
Use		using search forms.
Expression		writing the search request.

What searching is

Computers can be used to search for words in a document or for finding a reference or a book in a database around the world. This part of the presentation is an introduction to searching and includes the following sub-topics.

• Search Example
• Importance of search commands
• General definition of a database
• Understanding search command words
• Additional considerations for searching

The following example leads to an Alta Vista Advanced search and is offered as a means of clarifying the parts of a search request and presenting some of the options. The example shows different types of search words, including content words (archetype, book), command words (and, or) and search modifiers (title:, *).

Example: title:"Learning Org" and (archetype* or "system* thinking") and (book* or serial* or journal*)
Note: The search topic is print information about systems thinking mentioned in the Learning Organization list archives.

Explaining the example. When searching Alta Vista, parentheses show the elements of the search that should be evaluated together by the computer. The asterisk is a search modifier that represents all words that start with the same letters. The phrase "system* thinking" has an understood adj or adjacent command between system* and thinking.

Importance of search commands. The process of using a computer to search for data has the following parts.

search engine + access to engine + syntax + concept in words + review of results = excellent results

Explanation of the equation, starting with the idea for a search. Benefit from searching depends on each of the components of the search process. Concept in words represents the user's starting point. Syntax is part of the process that should convey the user's idea and make it useable in the computer search. It includes requirements for how the search words are put together. Thus, syntax is the means for exact wording. Search engine, in the present context, is the popular name for a WWW database and the search program used to access the database. In the equation above, it is the starting point for the technology of computer searching. The content of the database and search options define the limits of searching. Access to engine is required for the capability to be put to use. Access involves permission to use, knowledge of availability, and computer and network access. Access is the means for using the search engine. Review of results is the additional work the user adds near the last of the search when evaluating the returned items. Excellent results have their basis in the effective use of search opportunities and methods. The part of the process that is most controlled by the user is the clarification of ideas and choice of wording (concept in words), and the use of search syntax. Because syntax is not part of common language, it requires particular attention. (Expression).

General definition of a database. A simple database could be thought of as a table consisting of rows and columns of data, as shown in the following example. Each row represents a record and each column represents a field. The records each contain the same fields. Each record has its own ID, and the content of each field of a record may be different than the fields of other records. The fields are the parts of records.

Technical information about data files. A simple method of data management has each field defined exactly in terms of the type of data recorded in the field and the amount of space allowed for the data. For example, the author field could have space for 40 letters and the title field could have space for 200 letters. More recent databases often allow flexibility in the amount of data, at least in text fields. In such a database, at the time that data is associated with a field, space is allocated for the data as needed.

Example of a simple database

Databases are usually more complicated than this example indicates. One complication is that there may be multiple tables in a database with the relations between the tables providing significant information. One use of relational databases is having records for customers in one table, records for products in another table and records for sales in another table. The information about who purchased what product would be represented through relations among the tables. Another consideration is that full-text indexing of WWW data is available, and the data isn't distributed in the kinds of fields shown in the example. Alta Vista provides options such as url:, link:, title:, anchor:, and host: for limiting search words to those fields. I do not know if any WWW search sites use the field and record method of database design, though they may. Databases intended for public use should likely be designed so that knowledge of how they are constructed is not necessary for use.

Understanding search command words.

Of all the command words used in searching, AND, OR, and NOT seem to be the most basic. In the following Venn Diagrams, the colored sections show the set that results from using the command words on the sets A and B.

In a search, AND requires that both of the search words be found in each of the resulting records. OR requires that at least one of the search words be found in each of the resulting records.

In more complicated searches like (A OR B) AND (C OR D) these methods apply to the groups (indicated with parentheses) within the search and then apply again to the result. Starting with the simplest sets, there is the set of all records within the database. A, B, C, and D are elements within the search request and could be thought of as the subsets that contain those particular elements. These subsets could contain some of the same records. Explaining the search procedure in words, (A OR B) is evaluated; then (C OR D) is evaluated. Then the first result AND the second result is evaluated. Because AND is the final operator, the records found in both the first and the second result are the result of the complete search.

The search words are not necessarily attributes of the item being sought; the item could be focused on or about the words, or the real information could be provided using those words. What is requested is the writing that contains those words. It is possible, given the tentative nature of keyword searching and writing itself, that useful items might not include some given search words. A search for a particular named item like an author or a title has the requirement of finding an exact result, yet some searches could be worded in different ways, so search results might not include the original search words yet still be counted as successful. The words that the search is made of and the logic it represents are less significant to the searcher, perhaps, than the idea they are trying to express with those words. The main idea is that different wording of searches is possible and may be necessary to find all relevant information.

Further communication is planned for

Extent that search engines index information that is on the WWW
Subject words within records
Characteristics of Boolean logic. Difference from general reasoning and general use of the words of Boolean logic.

Tools for searching

List of ways to search for information:

WWW - This document emphasizes searching the WWW.

Gopher - Searching gopher sites could find online information that pre-dates the WWW.

ftp - Archie is one method of searching ftp sites.

Online Database - government databases, for example, available through the U.S. Government Printing Office site.

Browsing - Learning Organization archive, Continuous Quality Improvement Server at Clemson

List of search sites

List of Internet Search Options

Other explanations of searching from Zigzag, home of The Re:Search Centre.

Further communication is planned for

Check major search sites for particular learning organization listserve notes.
Check major sites for other major sites.
List of keyword search sites allowing logic.
List of phrase search sites. Same as keyword + logic?
List of simple keyword search sites.
Are there any other national or international search sites that provide access to additional information?

Using data input forms

Search Alta Vista

Search the Web Usenet and Display the Results in Standard Form in Compact Form in Detailed Form

Alta Vista simple search combines search words in an effort to list more relevant items first. For more exactness, use + for required, - for not included words and phrases. + or - is typed as though it were the first letter of the word or directly before the first double quote of the phrase. Put phrases in "double quotes". * includes all words with the same starting letters. The use of any capitalized letters in a search finds only the exact same capitalization for the word. (Nasa would not find NASA though nasa would.) The Alta Vista Advanced Search may be as easy to use as the simple search, however, the syntax is different.

Example of a simple search: +boolean +"search engine*"

Both the simple and advanced search include useful help options.

Search Lycos.

Query:
Search Options: match all terms (AND) match any term (OR) match 2 terms match 3 terms match 4 terms match 5 terms match 6 terms match 7 terms loose match fair match good match close match strong match
Display Options: 10 results per page 20 results per page 30 results per page 40 results per page summary results standard results detailed results

How to phrase the search

Example of building a search

gum

Begin with the main topic or a necessary term that is likely to be found in fewer records within the database.

gum and talking

Add another sub-topic using and to begin focusing on the exact topic.

(candy or gum) and (talking or conversation)

Expand on the sub-topic level using or to put together words with the same meaning. Use parentheses to indicate sub-topic groups.

(candy or gum) and (talking or conversation) and (poll* or survey*)

Continue adding sub-topic groups with and and expanding on the sub-topic level with or until finding the required information or the search results show that the search is too limiting.

Guidelines for searching

Thinking about the search request

Conceptualize the search topic.

What elements identify the request?

Break problem into components.

What groups of like elements identify the request?

Be flexible in thinking.

What other ways of identifying the request could be used?

Imagine the words that could be used to express or describe the topic.

Imagining words may be perceived as beginning the search.

Using search words

Consider synonyms and other related words.

Finance, money, cash flow, earnings, salary, pay, income, remuneration.

Expand the search through using words that do not have as direct a relationship.

Return on investment, successful venture, expansion, industry leader.

Broaden or narrow the search as part of the general toolkit of options.

OR broadens a search; AND narrows a search.

Allow for different spellings.

mispelling, misspelling, mis-spelling.

Use unique phrases or words when possible.

Steinbeck and "Winter of Our Discontent" instead of American novels.

Use classification codes or established subject words, when available.

Official subject words (like the Library of Congress subject headings) make subject groups easier to find.

Use database vocabulary helps.

Databases may have lists of words to use for searching.

Using the Search Program

Review online help.

Learn program options and requirements.

Parentheses are helpful and often necessary.

Keep or print search strategy.

It may be helpful to know what search led to a set of references.

Iteratively develop the search. (Interact with the system.)

Narrow or Broaden the search according to numbers of items found.

Use early results to improve the search.

For example, search for a title, and get an author's name; then, search using the author's name.

Use a relevant article for search clues.

Find words, combinations of words, and phrases.

Use the system capabilities.

Wildcards, phrase searching, and limiting to fields is useful when available.

Use the right database for the topic.

Don't require numerous attributes in the search when records have few words.

Databases sometimes have "stopwords", words that cannot be searched (like of, the, and with).

Examples of search expressions