Search+Engines

Introduction
Where do you go to find your information for school? Search engines search websites on the internet. Some examples include Google, Yahoo, and MSN. Did you know there are certain kinds of search engines that do different things? Metacrawlers and directories are different from regular search engines. In the following exercises, you'll find out how they're different.

Exercise 1.
Try this (read all the directions before you do it!):
 * 1) Go to [|www.searchenginewatch.com].
 * 2) On the left side, click on Search Engine Listings.
 * 3) Read the information under Major Search Engines and Metacrawlers and Metasearch Engines. There is a lot of information here.
 * 4) Also, visit each of these engines and do a search for something you're studying in school See what kind of results you get. Look, too, for any special features on the sidebars (those are the buttons or highlighted words along the sides of the webpage).
 * 5) On a piece of paper, write about the following in complete sentences:

Describe something significant about these search engines:
 * Google
 * Yahoo
 * Ask

Which search engines do these metasearch engines search?
 * Dogpile.com
 * Vivisimo.com
 * Kartoo.com

What is the difference between search engines and metasearch engines? Which one will give you more results? Is that a good thing?

Exercise 2.
Go to [|www.kidsclick.org]. This is an example of a directory. What do you notice about it? Without using the search box, look up something you're studying in another class.
 * Do you think a directory makes it easier or harder to find the information you're looking for?
 * What advantages does it have over a search engine?
 * What disadvantages?

Do you think you'll try some of these when you need to find something out?

Additional Resources & Bibliography
About.com. What Is a Search Engine? Found at: http://websearch.about.com/od/enginesanddirectories/a/searchengine.htm

About.com. What Is a Web Directory? Found at: http://websearch.about.com/od/enginesanddirectories/a/subdirectory.htm