Guide to Internet Search Tools

Scope (or what you can expect to find here): This guide is designed to identify resources on the Internet that can be used to help one find information more effectively. The resources discussed in this guide are organized according to the following categories: Search Engines and Searchable Indexes Bibliographies to Sources of Information on Search Engines Information on Specific Search Engines Search Engine Tutorials Subject Catalogs and Directories Guides to Subject Catalogs and Directories Specific Subject Catalogs Useful for Academic Research Sources for Information on Evaluating Internet Sites Bibliographies on How to Evaluate Internet Sites Guides to Evaluating Internet Sites Current Awareness Sources Bibliographies of Current Awareness Sites Selected Current Awareness Sites   Search Engines and Searchable Indexes This section contains links to sites that provide information on "searchable indexes." They are commonly called search engines and meta-search engines (such as AltaVista, Excite, or MetaCrawler). Bibliographies to Sources of Information on Search Engines Literature about Search Services A regularly update bibliography of articles and web sites on search engines and search engine comparisons. The "Searching About" page at the Librarians' Index to the Internet contains very useful annotated links to sources of information on various search engines, including several links to sites that offer charts that compare various search engines. The "Search Engine Reviews" page at Search Engine Watch Contains lengthy annotated links to articles and web sites on search engines. Understanding and Comparing Web Search Tools Information on Specific Search Engines Eight Internet Search Engines Compared The "How to Choose the Search Tools You Need" page at the University of Berkeley's "Finding Information on the Internet Tutorial" (the bottom of this site contains a very useful chart comparing the features of major search engines Internet Scout Project "Searchable Indexes" Page Moderate-length reviews of searchable indexes that concentrate on how the links are gathered, search features found in the index, and the amount of information displayed in a link. The "Searching Best Engines" page at the Librarians' Index to the Internet Search Engine Watch: News, Tips, and More about Search Engines Contains a variety of pages with information for web page developers and search engine users. The "Search Tools Chart" Search Engine Tutorials Internet Tutorials - University at Albany Libraries The "Search Engine Tutorials" page at the Search Engine Watch Site Provides a guide to a variety of sites and sources for tutorials on using search engines. The "Searching About" page at the Librarians' Index to the Internet Web Searching, Sleuthing and Sifting (a tutorial designed for newer users) webTEACHER Tutorial   Subject Catalogs and Directories The links in this section are to Internet sites or guides to these sites that use human intervention to create directories of Internet sites. These directories can be searched by subject or by a classification system. Most of the sites listed in this section have been chosen because they are recognized as some of the better sites for locating academic material on the Internet. Guides to Subject Catalogs and Directories (sites which provide information on or links to Internet subject catalogs and directories) The Internet Scout Report "Subject Catalogs, Annotated Directories, and Subject Directories" pages Scout Report Toolkit Designed to provide links to the best meta-pages of academic Internet resources chosen for their selectivity, breadth and depth of coverage, scope, and authority. The "Searching - Best Subject Indexes" page at the Librarians' Index to the Internet Specific Subject Catalogs Useful for Academic Research Academic Info Designed as a guide to resources for the college and university audience. There is a link to this site from our home page. The path is Library Home Page/Internet Resources/General Reference Sources/Internet Guides and Catalogs/Academic Info. Argus Clearinghouse Topical guides of recommended sites developed by individuals, some of whom are subject specialists. Each site is rated on a 1 to 5 scale. BUBL LINK: Libraries of Networked Knowledge UK site created as a national information site for the UK higher education community. Uses the Dewey Decimal System as one of organizing the links to resources. INFOMINE: Scholarly Internet Resource Collections Maintained by librarians in the University of California system, this site is known for its selectivity and the quality of its reviews. Librarians' Index to the Internet This site is designed for public library users. It contains over 40 major categories, with many subcategories under each. The annotations for a site are quite lengthy and evaluative. Scout Report Signposts This site is designed to permit browsing and searching of the best Internet resources, as chosen by the editorial staff of the Scout Report. Links to Scout Report reviews of the site provided. SOSIG UK-based site (with a mirror site housed at the Internet Scout Project) that provides direct links to high quality social science education and research sites. WWW Virtual Library The oldest directory on the Internet, the WWW Virtual Library was started by Tim Berners-Lee and is now overseen by Gerard Manning. Subject experts compile many of the directories. Sources for Information on Evaluating Internet Sites The links below are to sites that provide assistance in evaluating Internet sites (see the Search Engine and Search Indexes section above for sites that provide assistance in using search engines). Bibliographies on How to Evaluate Internet Sites The "Bibliography on Evaluating Internet Resources" site The "Internet Evaluation" page at the Librarians' Index to the Internet Guides to Evaluating Internet Sites Evaluating Web Resources (Widener University) Evaluating Web Sites: Criteria and Tools (Cornell University) The ICYouSee Guide to Critical Thinking About What You See on the Web Internet Detective An interactive tutorial. Registration required. Recommended. Kathy Schrock's Guide for Educators: Critical Evaluation Information A site designed for K-12 instructors. Thinking Critically about World Wide Web Resources/Thinking Critically about Discipline-Based World Wide Web Resources Two sites from UCLA with general and disciplined-based evaluation criteria.   Current Awareness Sources These links are to sources that help one keep abreast of information resources on the Web. Bibliographies of Current Awareness Sources Staying Current In Cyberspace Guide to e-zines and web sites that highlight new sites, sources of information on Internet culture and technology, and mailing lists to join. Keeping Current with Web-based Resources Guide to library and web-based resources, publications/webliographies, news services, search engine updates, what's new for specific resources, and current awareness services Keeping Up with New Internet Resources From the Librarians' Index to the Internet, a guide to daily, weekly, and monthly sources to keep up with new Internet resources. What's What on the Web: Finding New Resources On and Information About the Internet This site, created by Carolyn Kotlas of UNC, is a good webliography to sources that help one keep abreast of information found on or about the Internet. Selected Current Awareness Sites AC&RL NewsNet Internet Resources Reviews of 15 to 20 resources, each month from the ALA College & Research Libraries News. Internet Publications Another site maintained by the Internet Scout Project that provides reviews of the major magazines and webzines that focus on the Internet. Internet Resources Newsletter A free current awareness newsletter published by the Heriot-Watt University Library staff. LJDigital WebWatch Reviews from the Library Journal column on web sites on a particular topic. Scout Report Current Awareness Metapage Business & Economic Science & Engineering Social Sciences Announcements of new periodicals, tables of content, books, think tank papers, working papers, technical reports, preprint, jobs, conferences, grants, and data and statistical sources posted on the Internet. Web Tools Maintained by the Internet Scout Project, this site provides links to sites that provide current information on web tools such as Web Browsers, Web Browser Plug-ins, and Web Authoring Tools.   Send comments and corrections to RodriguezL@Mail.Montclair.Edu   Last Update March 1999