THE FOLLOWING IS INFORMATION ABOUT SEARCH ENGINES ON THE WEB

There are a number of Search Engines that are available on the Internet for use by anyone at no cost to the user. You might ask, "If they are free, why is it so important?" They are free because information about certain sponsors is highlighted. They are important because they provide the easiest method of finding information on the Internet in which you might have an interest.

Some Search Engines have a limited scope; others are limited only by the bounds of information that is available on the Internet. So choose a Search Engine that includes the information in which you have an interest.

What is a Search Engine, anyway? Well, it is a data base that relates information contained on the Internet to the location (URL or ADDRESS) where that information is found. It is somewhat like a Telephone Directory, which contains the name of all the persons in a certain group (like a city, area, region, state, etc.) and their telephone number (that is, how you can get in touch with them).

So, if you had the telephone book (data base) on a computer, you could enter a person's name, and it would give you that person's phone number. To make certain that you get the number of the person that you wish to contact, you must spell that person's name correctly and also give that person's first name correctly; in case there is a number of persons with that last name. If you are looking at a directory that covers a large area, you would need other details like the city and state where that person lived. If there is more than one person whose name and location fits the criteria, you may get multiple responses from which you can choose the person whom you wished to contact.

You should be getting an idea about how to use a search engine, which is really just a program that examines entries in a data base to try to find a match. Since you probably not be looking for information as precise as a person's name and location, you will need to provide one or more words that relate to your subject of interest. Your choice of the word(s) that you enter will play an important role in getting exactly the information in which you are interested.

If you think for a minute about the size of the data base that will relate to ALL of the information on the Internet, it will seem to be a mountain of information; however, most of it is not generated by a person who looks and then records. Rather, the data base is built by computer programs that automatically scan the Internet and build relationships between information and its location. Looking though that information is also a big task, but that, also is done by a computer program, which is called a SEARCH ENGINE!

Most Search Engines will have a rectangular box in which you can insert words that relate to your subject of interest. Then, there is a [GO] box or [START] box that tells the program to start looking in its data base for words that match the ones that you put in the box. Your care in selecting these words will have a great influence on the success of the search in giving you the location of information in which you have an interest. In fact, some search engines give you the choice of saying what things that you want to know about and what are other things in which you have no interest. These are called an "Advanced Search."

You might guess that this search might take a significant amount of time; however, the computers that contain these data bases are large in capacity and very fast, so that the search is completed in a fraction of a second.

Google is a large search engine with a number of features that make it useful for a general search. You can find this Search Engine at http://www.google.com. When you examine the initial page, you will see that, even before you enter your search word or phrase, you can select the type of information that you are looking for.

You will see that you can select among categories like: Images, Video, News, Maps, and more. You may have noticed the "Gmail" link in the search list; this refers to the free email accounts that Google offers to its users. Notice that the box into which you can add your search words has links to allow you to specify an "Advanced Search," your "Preferences," and your use of "Language Tools," which allow you to search information on the Internet in other languages.

Notice that, below this box, you can choose "Google Search" or "I'm Feeling Lucky" as you [GO] box. The first choice returns all possible responses; the second choice return only the best fit for your search words. If you enter the name of a well-know individual and use the second choice, you will probably get the biographical information you wanted. If you enter you own name and select the first box, you will find all of the times that your name appears on the Internet. Some people call this a "vanity search."

Note that Google offers you some other tools that will help in searching. You can download a Google Toolbar the will add to your internet browser and help you enter a search of the Internet. You can also add Google to your desktop that will permit you to search items that are stored on your computer. This is useful when you forget exactly what folder you used to store a file that you have created.

We have already had a program in our PC Users Group about Google Earth, which provides a map of the world that consists of satellite photographs. You can maneuver the location to look at any point on the surface of the earth from any desired altitude. The resolution of these photographs are not the same for all locations, but you will find the program interesting.

The use of this search engine has become so familiar to most people that "google" has become a verb that means to "search for" something. You might try to google Google and find more about the programs that are offered. A general search on the word Google provided 1,430,000,000 "hits" in a search that took 0.12 seconds.

Another Search Engine that has become available recently is ASK, which can be found at http://www.ask.com. You have probably seem promotional material about this Search Engine in televised advertisements. Initially, the search screen may appear to be very similar to the one for Google; however, it is the format of the results that distinguish it from other search engines.

For example, by pointing at the items in the search results, you get a thumbnail copy of the page that will be produced by invoking the related link. This will speed your overall search by allowing you to eliminate the time it takes to acquire a page that will not be helpful in your search. In addition, related information is provided that may give the results you wanted without additional searches.

This web page is currently being constructed. More information will be added subsequently. Briefly, Yahoo! also provides a search engine, as does MSN. Also, many vendors have a search engine on their site, for example - Microsoft, that help you find information about that site.

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