Terri's Tips for Using Google and Amazon
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for Internet Researchers | Terri's Database Tips|
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1. Use Google “Classic” for general searches.
Quicklink: http://www.google.com
2. Use Scholar to look for scholarly resources (Quicklink:
http://scholar.google.com/) Hint:
many of the resources Google Scholar turns up are only available for a fee,
but your school may subscribe to databases that allow you access for free.
Check your school's library website for databases you can use. If you want
more tips, see mine.
3. Use Google News to look up recent news stories Quicklink:
http://news.google.com/nwshp?hl=en&gl=us
4. Use Google Print to look for full texts of chapters (and
sometimes full books) Quicklink: http://print.google.com/
5. Use Google Maps to look for maps or directions http://maps.google.com/
6. Unless you only want the plural version, type your keyword in the
singular (i.e. type “webcam” not “webcams”)
Google seems pretty smart, but in reality, the computer running the system
doesn’t understand some basic things about English. For instance, if
you are looking for information on webcamming and type “webcam”
(singular) you will receive both information on webcam (singular) and webcams
(plural.) However, if you type “webcams” (plural) into Google,
the computer will look for that additional “s” and won’t
return anything in the singular form of “webcam.” Bottom line:
to get results for the singular and the plural of a word, type the singular
form into the search engine.
7. Be sure to try keywords without dashes or slashes (i.e.
type 9 11, not 9/11 or 9-11) Again, Google seems smarter than it is. Don’t
confuse the system with slashes and dashes if you don’t have to.
8. Type quotations marks around words that should stay together (i.e.
“War of the Worlds” will yield better results than typing war
and world)
9. Try keywords in a Boolean search to limit your results
(i.e. war and terror not movie) Boolean searches use the words “and”,
“or” and “not” to limit results.
10. Search for extremely specific phrases to locate a specific document
(i.e. try “The Days and Nights of Terri Senft” to instantly
locate Terri’s homepage)
11. Use the “images” feature in Google to search for pictures
(it’s right below the main Google logo) (quick URL: http://www.google.com/imghp?hl=en&tab=wi&ie=UTF-8)
12. Use codes like “mpg” and “mov” to locate
movie clips (i.e. type in “War of the Worlds” mov to
see a clip from the film)
13. Use codes like wav and mp3 for sound clips (i.e. type
in “Malcolm X” and mp3 to hear clips of him speaking.
14. Use the words “syllabus” or “reading”
for scholarly sources beyond those on Google Scholar (i.e. search
for intercultural communication and syllabus to find out what other students
are reading)
15. Using the words “study” or “results” for
studies (i.e. use the words sexism, computers and study to look for
documented evidence of sexist bias in the field of technology)
Tips for Amazon
1. Use the Amazon Book Search Feature: Don’t limit
yourself to the library when looking for the right books. Amazon features
both professional and customer reviews, some of which may feature exactly
the sort of information you are looking for. Many books feature a few pages
of the first chapter free online, and all have a “search inside this
book” feature. Additionally, be sure to scroll down the page and check
“Related Books on Topic” Go to
http://www.amazon.com and search under “books”
2. Use the Amazon Listmania Search Feature: Amazon allows
people to post lists of their favorite “must have” texts. Great
when you are trying to get a sense of a particular field, or if you want to
see if your citations are among the most popular
Quicklink: http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-form/ref=cm_cnsr_lm_pg/102-9225960-9449716