Searching and downloading information online is an essential need for Internet users. However, most users are not aware of how to search effectively or utilize tools that enhance their online search experience. This article aims to provide some tips to help you “scour” every corner of the web while saving time and costs during your browsing sessions.
Try Multiple Search Engines
Google is currently regarded as the number one search engine, with extremely fast search speeds, supporting 97 languages, and hosting nearly ten billion web pages. Recently, Google introduced a Q&A style information search service, making it easier to find information. However, other search engines like Ask Jeeves and Yahoo also offer similar features. Therefore, you should try various search engines. Although these search engines are interconnected, it does not mean they produce identical results for the same search term; two search engines can yield different results for the same keyword because they employ different data processing methods. Consequently, if you cannot find the necessary information, consider trying other search engines.
Use Special Syntaxes
Utilizing special syntax (also known as operators) can help narrow down your search scope. Some websites allow the use of logical operators in their search bars, while others require you to use their advanced search options. For instance, by adding the term AND between keywords (meaning both keywords must appear), OR (one or both keywords must be present), or NOT (the keyword following this cannot be present). In addition to these limitations, you can also use parentheses and quotation marks to group search limits. You can refer to some special syntax examples in the box below.
Type Exact Keywords.
Generally, search engines operate on the principle of precisely searching for the user’s requested keywords. Therefore, you should carefully double-check your keywords when receiving unexpected or unwanted results.
Search on Specialized Websites.
Many people believe that general search engines can find any information available online; however, this is not true. In reality, there are many websites lacking links that make them undetectable by search engines, or there are some sites where search engine robots cannot retrieve data types such as images, music, and PDF files. Additionally, many databases require users to have an ID and password, hindering search engine robots. However, you can find and access this data through some portals or specialized search websites that provide access to these “hard-to-find” sites, such as www.completeplanet.com, http://infomine.ucr.edu, http://search.asiaco.com (focused on Asian topics), www.findarticles.com (specializing in searching articles published in over 300 different sources)…
Verify the Source of Information.
Through search engines, you can obtain a wealth of information, but not all information is reliable. Therefore, you need to assess the value of the information, especially for financial and health-related data. Some tools reveal the information owner, allowing you to evaluate its value through the brand and reputation of the organization providing that information.
Browse Offline
While downloading documents online, you can continue browsing the web. Most web browsers allow simultaneous downloads, making it easy to download multiple software packages at once from sites offering free downloads. The best way to reduce your online connection time is to download web pages to your computer for offline reading. In case you are not connected, you can still access your favorite information.
To download a web page, follow these steps: Access the website > Select Favourites on the menu bar > Add to Favourites > Make available offline > Customize > Next > Finish.
Security is always a top concern for web users. If you frequently wander online, you need to stay vigilant as viruses can infect your computer while browsing the web, receiving emails, chatting, or downloading programs. These can delete important files, disrupt Windows, freeze your computer, and significantly slow down your browsing speed. To ensure safety, you should install antivirus software on your computer, such as Norton AntiVirus or BKAV, and use a firewall to minimize attacks.
If you access the Internet via Wi-Fi or from a computer within a LAN, you should also be cautious and disable folder sharing before connecting.
Some Special Syntaxes for Limiting Search Results
Intitle: limits search results to pages with titles matching the keyword. For example, typing Harry Potter intitle:Half-blood Prince will search for all pages containing information about Harry Potter, while the page must have the title Half-blood Prince. The Intitle syntax only affects the word immediately following the colon, while allintitle affects all words following it.
Intext: searches for keywords within the content text of the page, ignoring the title. The same applies to allintext.
Site: limits search results to specified domain areas. For example, entering New Zealand Scholarship site:edu will yield information about New Zealand scholarships on pages with the .edu domain.
Link: searches for pages linked to the specified page. For example, link:www.vnpt.com.vn will return a list of pages associated with VNPT.
Sometimes, you can combine several syntaxes to achieve a narrower search result.
Addresses of Some Popular Search Engines
