L.F.M.S.S. Library - Internet Search Engines

I need help to define my topic...
I need a topic	Clusty Brainstorm topic ideas using result clusters Social Issues Browse hot topics and pro/con links Google Directory Search this subject tree enhanced by Google results
I need to understand the scope of my topic	Intute Investigate annotated academic sites INFOMINE Browse annotated research and educational sites enhanced by second-tier "robot-selected" results
I need to investigate alternative or related topics	Grokker Explore a web of your topic and subtopics (Yahoo results) Clusty Uncover buried sites by choosing a related cluster Ask.com Select "Expand Your Search"
I need to refine and narrow my topic	Ask.com Select "Narrow Your Search" Clusty Drill down into a cluster of results SurfWax Click "Focus" to identify similar, broader, and narrower topics
I need to find quality results...
authoritative and scholarly sites chosen by a subject expert	Librarians' Internet Index Search the selective database or drill down into the well-organized subject tree Virtual LRC Select a subject category, then search on term(s) or a phrase Google Scholar Find scholarly, peer-reviewed subject-specific results with advanced search
personal help from experts	Sources and Experts Browse a journalist's contacts Ask a Librarian Get last-resort help (no homework questions) AllExperts Self-identified subject experts volunteer to answer questions
sites ranked or tagged as valuable or relevant	Google High PageRank means popular, relevant sites link to the page Technorati Browse or search user-identified subjects ("tags") for blog advice or opinions Ask.com High ExpertRank indicates subject-specific popularity
primary sources	American Memory Locate documents, sound recordings, images, maps, and other American primary sources Ready, 'Net, Go! Browse worldwide archival index Library and Archival Exhibitions on the Web Search for online exhibitions selected by Smithsonian librarians
I need to do research in a specific discipline...
government	USA.gov Search or browse official U.S. information and services Govt. Publications & Maps: Foreign Gov. Browse worldwide government sites Directgov Search or browse official UK information and services
science, engineering and technology	Scirus Science-specific Web portals, reports, peer-reviewed articles, patents, preprints and journals Natl. Science Digital Lib. Science, technology, engineering and math Intute Science, engineering and technology hub
health and life sciences	Intute Health and life sciences hub Fealth Health-specific search engine and directory
law	FindLaw Search U.S. cases, codes, news and commentary LOUIS Search Congressional documents, Federal Register, GAO reports, bills and resolutions Intute Social sciences: Law hub
arts and humanities	Intute Arts and humanities hub Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy Browse peer-reviewed, continually-updated entries on contemporary philosophy
The timeliness of information that I need is...
today	Google News Top news stories auto-generated every 15 minutes NewsNow Worldwide news auto-generated every 5 minutes 10x10 Explore machine-compiled single image composed hourly of 100 words and pictures that "matter most" on a global scale
recent	Yahoo News One month archive with editor-created "roundups" in Full Coverage World News Network Click a category (below news item) to gather related news or images, select Mon-Sun to track story's development Google News Click on "related" (below news item) to see story's development
historical	American Memory Search America's primary source documents and images, browse by topic, time period, medium or place Librarians' Internet Index Drill down into the history section or search fewer, broader terms (e.g., "terrorists" not "Righteous Path") Digital History High-quality historical resources, primary sources, multimedia, subject guides
ancient	Ancient History Sourcebook Search online ancient-history texts, images, audio, or browse by region, period (e.g., Persia, Late Antiquity) Librarians' Internet Index Drill down into ancient history section or search fewer, broader terms (e.g., "Greece" not "Spartan women")
I need facts...
a person	Biography.com Search 25,000+ biographies by name, keyword and profession Who2 Search for famous people with "four good links" to more information Dictionary of Canadian Biography Online Search biographies from Canada's history (16th-20th century)
a place	CIA World Factbook Select country for basic profile and transnational issues Country Studies Cross-search or view a country (last update 1998) - historical, social, economic, political and national security data Stately Knowledge Basic U.S. state facts, links to state government site and encyclopedia (IPL KidSpace)
a company	NYPL: Searching for Company Information Find company information based on your need
general reference answers	Ask.com Find a fact, biography, statistic or conversion, or reference answer Columbia Encyclopedia Find basic information Yahoo Learn shortcut words to get quick answers
news background (facts, people, and documents)	Intute Behind the Headlines Editor-compiled background for headline news
I need opinions and perspectives...
I want opinions on current issues	Yahoo News Browse columnists and cartoonists, or search Opinion HeadlineSpot Opinion/Editorials Browse opinion/editorial in U.S. and some international newspapers PollingReport Browse results of U.S. public opinion surveys
I need news from other countries' perspectives	World Press Review Get nonpartisan summaries of views outside U.S. Newspaperindex Browse selected world newspapers ABYZ News Links Browse international broadcast and Internet news, newspapers, magazines, and press agencies
I want multiple perspectives on hot social and political topics	Social Issues Links to pro/con on current social issues Public Agenda Analysis of public attitudes on social issues with overview, pro/con, organization links UN News Centre: News Focus Browse for UN-related issues by region, country or topic
I want to compare news treatment	Newseum Compare news reporting on U.S. front pages PressDisplay Compare news reporting from 55 countries
I need a specific type of media...
maps	Google Maps Search and view satellite and street-level maps (repeat in Yahoo Maps) MapMachine Search, browse and print country, physical and political maps American FactFinder Maps See trends/patterns when you superimpose chosen geographical features and census data on U.S. maps
photographs and visual images	Google Image Search Use advanced search to limit by size, coloration, file type Yahoo Image Search Use advanced search to limit by size and coloration Flickr Search users' photos by their subjects ("tags"), then choose a subtopic ("tag cluster)
fine art	Artcyclopedia Search (e.g., artist, medium, movement, subject) or browse for digitized art and online exhibits, see actual size Intute: Arts and Humanities Search or browse selected, evaluated resources SILS Art Image Browser A database of art, architectural and museum object images from four collections
videos	Yahoo Video Search Search by keyword or phrase, use advanced search to limit by file format, size, duration and domain Truveo Video-only search engine, advanced search limits by title, description, actor, director, genre, duration, quality Internet Archive: Moving Image Archive Search public domain films, newsreels, ads, documentaries, television series and other “cultural artifacts”
radio	PublicRadioFan Find public radio programs and podcasts worldwide Podcast.net Search or browse podcasts
music	AltaVista Audio Search Search for MP3s and other types of music files, limiting results by file type and song duration. Google To find song lyrics, search (in quotes) title or performer (plus) "song lyrics," to find information about the song's history search title (in quotes) and "origin"
sounds	FindSounds Get sound effects and music samples: select a keyword or search a term limited by file format, quality and size Soundsnap Free, user-contributed sounds can be browsed or searched by category, keyword or tag
speeches	American Rhetoric Search site or browse categories of full-text, audio and video of American public speeches, lectures, debates, interviews, events History and Politics Out Loud Search or browse full-text public-domain audio with transcripts of 20th century political and historical events, personalities, and protest songs American Memory Find sound recordings of American primary source speeches
quotations	Bartleby.com Quotations Search classic passages, phrases and proverbs (1901 edn.) Quotations Page Search word, phrase, author within or across quotation collections Quoteland Search by keyword or browse topics, authors
statistical data	Statistical Information (NoodleTools) Links to statistical databases and advice on locating and understanding data
dictionary or thesaurus (for definitions, etymology, pronunciation, synonyms)	Yahoo Reference Definitions, etymology, synonyms (English and Spanish) and audio-pronunciation Merriam-Webster Dictionary and Thesaurus Definitions, etymology, synonyms and audio-pronunciation WordCentral Definitions with pictures (student dictionary)
encyclopedia	Columbia Encyclopedia Factual information (updated 6/05) Wikipedia Volunteer-created and collaboratively edited: valuable for current topics (e.g., people in the news), technology (e.g., podcasting) -- information quality uneven
almanac data	Country at a Glance (U.N.) Basic country profile, use InfoNation to compare data from 6 countries Information Please Almanac Statistical and factual data -- beware popup minefield
books and other printed works	WorldCat Search for books and reviews, options to refine results, check your local library's holdings Google Scholar Search (free and fee) scholarly works, locate related information using "cited by" links, use advanced search to limit (author, date, phrase, in title, subject area) A9 Search for books by keyword, then "Search Inside!" to see keyword-in-context
I have special search requirements...
run my search periodically and be notified of new results	GoogleAlert Run Google search of 3 interests and get e-mail or RSS notification of new results Google Alerts Run periodic Google searches and get e-mail (no RSS) notification of new results
specify a country where my search results are located	Google Limit by domain (advanced search) or by country (Language Tools)
use a search engine outside the U.S.	Search Engine Colossus Browse search engines and directories from countries and territories
find sites organized by the Dewey Decimal System or Library of Congress Classification	Virtual LRC Select Dewey Decimal number before searching INFOMINE Drill down into Library of Congress Classification directory BUBL LINK Select "DeweyClass" from dropdown menu in Advanced Search
locate resources by file type	Google Limit search by file type (.pdf, .ps, .doc, .xls, .ppt, .rtf) Yahoo Limit search by file type (.html, .pdf, .doc, .xls, .ppt, .xml, .txt)
I am...
a kid	KidsClick! Find kid-friendly sites with educational content (grades K-7) selected by librarians Ask for Kids Search by keyword, then select the best-match question for answers and links Yahoo Kids Select from kid-safe sites (grades 2- 7) organized by topic
pretty new to the Internet	Google Largest general purpose search engine Yahoo Large, general purpose search engine Librarians' Internet Index Easy-to-navigate, well-annotated directory of librarian-selected Web sites
an Internet wizard	Exalead Configure highly-specific searches including proximity ("folk tales NEAR sun"), but smaller index than Google or Yahoo INFOMINE Configure a narrow search of a large, comprehensive academic virtual library (Web sites, databases, electronic journals, electronic books, bulletin boards, directories of researchers) JUX2 Compare results to Identify the strengths of Google, Yahoo and MSN for your search

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