What Do You Need To Find Things Online

Online is like having the biggest library in the world right at your finger tips but finding what you want can be a bit tricky if you don’t know the secrets of searching. So what do you need to find things online?

Of course the first thing you need to find things online is a computer and access to the internet which means you will need a connection which can be either dial up, DSL, or Cable. Then all you need is a bit of time, a little determination, and a few skills. Before you know it you’ll be a pro at finding things online.

Search Engines - First you need to familiarize yourself with the search engines. Most of us are familiar with Google and MSN. But there are other good search engines such as Yahoo, AltaVista, Lycos, Ask Jeeves, Hotbot, and Dogpile. There are also many other smaller search engines, some of which specialize in specific areas.

Directories - Are an excellent resource to find information. Most directories are broken out by categories so you can quickly find the general area you are interested in and then refine your search. Dmoz is a well known directory and there are some new players on the web like Zeal. Be sure to use these valuable resources.

Articles - There are some excellent article banks online. These article banks will host a wide variety of articles from a wide variety of topics. The articles are free to use on your website, print, or read. If you reuse them you just need to give the author credit. Ezine, ISnare, Go Articles, Article City, Zinos, URL, and Get Articles Free are just a few of the many article banks available to use.

Forums - Forums are a great way to find out about a specific topic, and get solutions to problems. Forums can be general but normally they are topic relevant. You can read the posts or post your own questions and someone will be sure to give you a reply. You can share your knowledge with others too. Most forums have a real community spirit and they are a very valuable resource on the web.

Encyclopedias - There are several online encyclopedias available, as well as other resource sites. There are also online dictionaries, thesaurus, and language translators available. Spend some time learning about the resources that are available for you to use.

Learn How To Search - Learning how to search correctly is a key element in having successful searches. If your searches are too generic then you will have to wade through huge numbers of pages to find what you want. On the other hand if your searches are too tight then you may not find the results you want.

Keyword Search - This is the most common method of searching. A keyword search can be one word or a combination of several words. Be sure your keywords are relevant and clear so that the results are what you want. Remember with keyword searching there is no cross reference so if you type in heart you won’t get the queries with the word cardiac. So if you are not seeing the results you want refine your keywords.

Refine Your Search - Most search engines offer two types of searches. Basic and advanced. In a basic you enter your keywords then hit search. In an advanced search you have more options. You can use Booleans such as “and” “or” “not”. You can use quotes to group words, and you can even use a wild card such as the *.

Once you understand what you need to know to find things online you’ll be able to very quickly locate the information you are looking for. You’ll wonder how you ever lived without the resources of the internet which are so readily available and such a handy tool!

Aura Mirchandani is the Editor and Publisher of Article Click. For more FREE articles for your ezine and websites visit ArticleClick.com. Article Click is a free content article directory.