Right now, this very moment, you have access to the greatest amount of data you've ever had in your entire life. And as the internet continues to grow with every passing second, this rich content in the form of text, pictures and even high-definition multimedia will keep increasing. The biggest problem we face, however, is accessing all this information when we need it. And this is where search engines come in. Most of us tend to use the usual services Bing, Google and Yahoo!. But did you know that there's more to web search than just these big names? Here's a quick primer that will help you...
META SEARCH
For better results, it is recommended that you use at least two or three search engines. But for most of us, querying different services can prove to be cumbersome. In such cases, it makes sense to use meta search engines, which pull data from multiple services, eliminate dupli cates, and use their own algorithms to reorder the results. Here you could look at http:www.dogpile.com (queries Google and Yahoo!), http:www.zapmeta.com (Altavista, Entireweb, Gigablast, and (Altavista, Entireweb, Gigablast, and Yahoo!, among other services) and http:www.search.com (Bing, Blekko, DMOZ aka Open Directory, and Google).Now, if you're looking for multimedia, you site is not a meta search engine in itself, but lets you query services such as Flickr, Fotopedia, Google Images, Open Clip Art Gallery and Pixabay for images; Jamendo, ccMixter and SoundCloud for music; and YouTube for videos.
NATURAL LANGUAGE SEARCH
Most search engines rely on keywords to carry out searches. But if you're looking for a service where you can ask questions in spoken English, try http:www.ask.com. This engine understands queries in natural language to give you exactly the kind of result you were looking for. Type “how large is a whale“, for instance, and the site returns with “whales reach lengths of 100 feet and can weigh up to 200 tons...“.
SOCIAL SEARCH
Searching websites is one thing, but trawling blogs, social networks and tweets for content is quite something else. Here, our favourite tool is http:www.icerocket.com. Simply type your keyword or phrase, and you can then select from any one of its tabs: Blogs, Twitter, Facebook, or Search All for results. It's a great way to keep an eye on what's trending on the interweb.
MAGE SEARCH
Bing, Google and Yahoo! let you search images, but you might want to try http:www.tineye.com, which is a `reverse' image search engine. You can upload a picture, or send a web link to its servers, after which Tineye uses image identi fication technology to tell you where the picture came from, how it's being used, if modified versions exist, and it even identifies higher resolution versions. The site, which regu larly crawls the web for new pictures, has indexed 7.3 billion images from the internet to help you find what you're looking for.
VIDEO SEARCH
If it's online videos you're looking for, try http:www.blinkx.com. This service helps you find clips from hosting services, v-logs, news channels, and more. You can search by category (news and politics, sports, science and nature, technology, movies, and celebrities), keywords and sometime even by content (like song lyrics) and with your results, Blinkx also suggests possible channels to which you can subscribe.
KID SEARCH
http:www.kidrex.org is designed exclusively for youngsters, and leads to content that's safe for kids.
Alternatively, most search engines provide filters that block content that might not be suitable for children. Bing, Google, and Yahoo! have their SafeSearch option, which can be found under `Preferences' on the respective sites. Still, it should be noted that these filters are not perfect and some material does get past them, so keeping a parental eye on these is advised.
MEDICAL SEARCH
http:www.imedisearch.com is a customized Google engine specifically built to search medical-related resources. But unlike Google, which cannot distinguish between reputable and non-reputable medical sites, iMedisearch only displays data from credible websites that have been carefully selected by a practising clinical pharmacist. Additionally, the site separates results based on users whether general public, physician, or nurse to deliver relevant and accurate results.Text: Savio D'Souza
Source | Times of India | 15 November 2014
E Paper Link | http://epaperbeta.timesofindia.com/index.aspx?eid=31804&dt=20141115
