Learn How to Search and Not Strain Your Brain

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Learn How to Search and Not Strain Your Brain

• A painless presentation
• Terence Moore
• April 20, 2008

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Sometimes searching the internet is a hassle

• especially when you have to find something
  quickly.
• And your poor brain

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Dont Fry your Brain

• There are several ways to improve your search
  that can make finding information easier.

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Before you begin your search remember

• Keywords are key!!!
• Consider your topic and develop a list of
  keywords.
• First, brainstorm a list of keywords relating to
  your topic.

Volcanoeruptionhmm
Tip Use Rogets Thesaurus to develop a good
list of synonyms.
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Topic Volcano
Volcano

• Keyword list
• Hawaii eruption lava flow
• explode magma run
• outburst rush

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Decide which keywords you think are the best to
use and prioritize.
A 3M chart is a good tool to use
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Use Boolean Operators

• Boolean operators are words that signal the
  search engine to retrieve documents that include
  your keywords in them and even eliminate some
  terms.
• The Boolean operators include
• AND, NOT, and OR
• (Notice the Boolean operators are capitalized.)
• Click here to see how Boolean operators are used.

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Boolean Operators in Operation

• volcano AND lava will retrieve these terms in a
  document together
• volcano NOT lava will retrieve documents with
  volcano and exclude lava
• volcano OR lava will retrieve documents with
  either volcano or lava

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Try searching by title or phrase

• Place quotation marks around your title or
  phrase.
• volcanic plume
• Quotation marks signal the search engine to keep
  the phrase together as it retrieves documents.
• Click here to view before and after examples.

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Notice the bolded terms are separated.
Click here to see results after quotes are placed
around the phrase.
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Now observe that terms are placed together in
every result.
Sweeeet!
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Another way to search is by URL

• The URL is the web address. In some cases the
  keyword may be included in the URL, so you can
  search by typing

Search
Inurlvolcano
Example
Volcanoes!
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There are even more ways to search
This is just awesome!

• It is also possible to search
• by file type
• Excel documents, text, powerpoint, portal
  document format,
• even language, and date.

Volcano AND .xls
Volcano AND .txt
Search
Volcano AND ppt.
Volcano AND pdf
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And guess what?

• Several search engines offer subject directories
  that can assist in your search. A subject
  directory starts with a broad topic and with each
  click on a link you can narrow down your topic
  until you find the information you need.

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So what do you think?
What an eruption of knowledge!!!
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Work Cited

• "Brain Clipart clipart/Brain.gif." Clipart
  Heaven. 2008. 18 Apr 2008 lthttp//www.clipartheave
  n.com/show/clipart/anatomy/brain-gif.htmlgt.
• "Clip Art." Microsoft Office Online. 2008. 20 Apr
  2008 lthttp//office.microsoft.com/en-us/clipart/de
  fault.aspxgt.
• Google." Google. 2008. 18 Apr 2008
  lthttp//www.google.comgt.
• Hock, Randolph. The Extreme Searcher's Internet
  Handbook. 2nd. Medford,NJ Cyber Age Books, 2007.