Performing a Simple Search

The most basic rule of thumb in Web searching is this: the more specific you are, the more specific the search engine will be. If you want information on the Clinton administration's failed health-care proposal, a search for Clinton health care will yield better results than a search for health care reform.

Remember that it's not always better to be more specific--it depends on what you need to accomplish. If you're interested in a certain subject for a research paper but you're having trouble focusing your topic, a general search will turn up many options for you to consider. Used in this way, search engines are a great tool for deciding what to write about. If you already know the angle you'd like to pursue in your paper, tailor your queries to find the specific information you need.

There are three simple symbols you can use with most search engines to refine your searches quickly and easily. The first one tells the engine that you want to find only pages that include a particular word or words. The second tells the search engine to exclude pages that contain a particular word or words. The third tells the engine you want pages where a particular set of words appear together in a specified order (i.e., as a phrase). To understand how to use these symbols, you first need to understand how search engines handle keywords. Back Next