Effective Internet Search

Use more than one search engine?
Enter more than two search words?
Look beyond the first page of results?
Use advanced search features?
Understand how search engines work – how they gather data, index, rank, and prioritize it to answer your queries?

With these simple steps, you can greatly improve the efficiency of your Internet searches, say John Abbott teachers Ed Baylin and Judy Gill. After three years of intensive research and writing, they have recently completed their new e-book (also available in print) “Effective Internet Search: Skills & Strategies for Improved Search Engine Results.”

Why a book on searching? Because, according to Judy, “50 percent or more of search questions go unanswered. Although Internet searching is the most popular online activity after e-mail, most people don’t do it very well. Ironically, although the Web is becoming increasingly complex, user search behaviours have remained consistently simple in nature. Most people still flounder about, using trial and error to find their content. This can pose a problem for searchers, considering there are literally billions of pages of documents on the Web – and electronic information is expanding at the rate of 30 percent per year.”

Ed and Judy’s book addresses these problems and much more. Focused on the searcher, it offers a combination of information and strategies to solve your search problems and improve your search skills. Both an instructional manual and reference, it also provides a structured system to select the best search engine for your needs and help to maximize its features. There are also lots of search tips and tricks, detailed case studies and examples, and search engine tutorials, to name other features.

Why an e-book? Ed says, “The book’s unique architecture maximizes the power of the Internet through extensive use of hyperlinks, both internally within the book itself, and externally to the Internet. This means you simply click links to navigate both the book and the Web.”

“Our book also provides a Control Centre,” says Ed, “which permits you to try out and compare dozens of search engine features – for instance, how to customize a search engine to suit your personal preferences. Further, the book’s companion ‘Search Tool Guide’ provides links to literally hundreds of information sources to help you locate your target content quickly and easily.”

Ed and Judy’s website, www.searchhelpcenter.com, provides lots of free information and links on more ways to improve your searches, and how to buy their book.