Search engines
Search engines are finding tools. They allow you to perform keyword searches on the terms you specify and list results in order of relevancy.
Search engines do not directly search the web. Each search engine searches its own database of web sites. Search engine databases are created by computer programs (robots, spiders, worms) that look for new sites by following links from sites already in its database. There is no evaluation of sites before inclusion into the database.
General search engines
Academic search engines
- Scirus - for scientific information
- Google Scholar - for scholarly literature
Metasearch engines - search multiple search engines
- Dogpile
- Clusty - formerly Vivisimo
- Ixquick Metasearch
- Metacrawler
Deep web search engines
Even large search engines like Google do not find all of the pages available. This is because the computer programs used to identify sites cannot access or have a policy not to access some kinds of web hosted content. Examples of content considered to reside in the deep web include:
- dynamically generated pages
- pages which are not linked to from any other page
- pages that require authentication
- content in a file format not handled by search engines.
Deep web search tools have been designed to retrieve this type of content.
Australian search engines
Subject directories
These are categorised lists of web resources, and may be created by machine or by people who may or may not have evaluated each resource. No directory lists the whole web so you should use more than one.
General subject directories
Academic subject directories
- Academic Info: Educational Subject Directory
- BUBL LINK Catalogue of Selected Internet Resources - uses the Dewey Decimal Classification system to organise resources
- Intute
- Librarian's Index to the Internet
For discipline specific subject directories refer to the library's subject guides.
How to find more web search tools
Try these resources to find more web search tools:
- Pinakes - launchpad to subject directories
- Search engine colossus
- Beaucoup!
- Web search engines
How to evaluate what you find
All information warrants evaluation according to the criteria such as reliability of the source, accuracy, authority of the author and potential bias. It is particularly vital to take the time to evaluate information found via the web. This is because publishing on the web is relatively easy, inexpensive, and available to sectors of the community who may not have access to print publishing. This makes it relatively easy for a publisher to misrepresent themselves on the web, particularly to those who are not highly experienced in its use. Assistance with evaluating resources is available in:
