You're Doing it Wrong.
How to really use the internet
Explore
Find It!
5 ways to do MORE than just "Google it"
1. Use a meta search site to include other search engines in your search.
All search engines (google.ca, ask.com, bing.com, etc.) use different methods to find things for you. Use a site such as dogpile.com or metacrawler.com to search a bunch of sites at once!
2. Quit asking Google questions!
With the exception of Ask.com, most search engines aren't made to answer questions. Think about the keywords you want to search for and use those. Try to use 6-8 keywords for an accurate search. Skip words like a, the, he, it, and, or and to.
3. Use those math skills.
Search engines use things such as +, - and " " to find what you're looking for. Speak the language to improve your search!
+ means "I want results that contain both or all of these words." For example' cheese + pizza' will only bring you sites that show 'cheese pizza' together and will ignore sites that just say 'cheese' or just say 'pizza'.
- means "I want results that contain the first word(s), but not the other word(s)". For example, 'cheese + pizza - mushrooms' will show all the 'cheese pizza' sites except for the ones with mushrooms.
" " means "I want sites that show these words together." For example, "tomato pizza sauce" will only show sites that show the words 'tomato pizza sauce' together, instead of showing 'tomato', 'pizza' and 'sauce' in different spots on the same site.
4. Spell it right.
5. Have some patience!
The first site you see on a search engine is not always the best one! Learn how to analyze what you see to figure out which information is true, accurate and useful! Keep reading for more tips on finding credible sources on-line.
Solve It!
Use the 5 W's (and One H) to check the credibility of a site
1. Who is the source of the Information?
Look for information such as Contact Us, an organization name, author's name, phone number, address, etc. Do a quick search using the "author's name" or "organization name" to find out more about the source.
2. What are you getting?
Is the information presented in a positive or negative way, instead of being neutral? (Hint: facts are neutral!) Are emotions, exaggerations or broad statements used? For example "HUGE EVIL CATS ESCAPE FROM ZOO AND TORMENT TOWNSPEOPLE" is probably not a reliable headline. How can you tell? The words huge, evil and torment are opinion words.
Also, does the site have sources to back up what it is saying? All facts should explain or link to another reliable source. Remember, a proper search takes patience!
3. When was the site created?
The internet isn't that old, but some information is. Check it.
4. Where are you?
Learn to understand URL's. Some important things to look at are:
The site name. (crazycatlady.org is probably not the best place for news)
The host. (.ca is Canadian, .edu is usually a college or university, .gc is the Government of Canada and anyone can use .com, .net or .org)
The pathway. (crazycatlady.org/food will show the part of the site that talks about food)
5. Why are you here?
Not everything can be found on-line. WHAT?!?! Seriously. Could you find this information faster or more accurately offline? Can you verify this information?
6. How can you tell what's what?
When in doubt, doubt. If you aren't sure if something is accurate, assume it isn't and try to verify it.
Consume
Use It!
PowerPoint has its place in projects, but you need to know that there is SO much more to explore!
Check out go2web20.net to explore TONS of on-line tools that will help you present the information you've worked so hard to find and verify!