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Web Search - Surfing the Internet
Searches, Topical Resources, and Lists
(The How, Why, and Where of using the Internet)
Dateline: February 98
Search Engines and Key Words
First let's examine the essence of searching, the Keyword. Hyper Text Markup Language (HTML), uses a special markup element for the purpose of describing Web sites called the META Tag.The META tags used by search engines are Description and Keywords. The META tag provides a means to describe the web pages content without it being seen by the viewer. Keywords are used to describe the content of Web pages. The search engine uses the keywords to sort through a data base of categories and Web sites.A typical Keyword META tag would look something like this:
{META name="keywords" content="navy, nautical, marine, government, naval, veteran, military, resources, news, links, career, retiree, family, sailor, ships, warships, submarines, chiefs, petty officer, articles, u.s. navy, shipbuilding, shipyard, boats"}If for instance, you were searching for sites containing navy ship information and used the key word ship for a general search, your search results would include every listed site containing the word ship. This would include sites on shipbuilding, package shipping, warships, etc. Most search engines include a means of modifying or narrowing your search.
Modifying Key Word Searches
Some of the better Search Engines include: YAHOO, ALTA VISTA, LYCOS, INFO SEEK, EXCITE, and MATILDA (Australia).We will use Yahoo, a typical search engine, in learning how to modify our keyword searches. Most search engines employ similar methods.
After you have entered the keyword(s) and started the search, Yahoo searches through four areas of its database for a match; "Categories," "Web Sites," "Net Events & Chat," and "Recent News Articles." The search engine then returns a list of matching categories and Web sites. If the engine can not find a matching category or Web site, it will automatically perform a full web document search using the Alta Vista search engine.
Yahoo and other search engines employ modifiers to narrow a search to more specific areas or topics. Modifiers are Boolean expressions such as: AND, OR, NOT, IF, THEN, and EXCEPT. Let's take a look at how Yahoo uses these expressions to modify a search.
Placing a + in front of a word requires the search engine to include that word in its search. For example, a search on the keywords +ship +navy would yield a search result which only included Web sites with both Navy and ships. Conversely placing a - in front of the keyword excludes that word from the search. +ship +navy -submarine would produce a list of sites containing Navy and ship that did not also include submarine.
Quotes placed around a phrase will restrict the search results to only those sites containing a word match in the exact same sequence. For instance, "drydock safety inspection," would limit the search to sites containing that exact phrase. Using the quote modifiers severely restricts a search, if the search engine can not find a match, try widening your search.
Using the t: and u: modifiers restricts searches to Titles and URLs only. Conducting a search using t:naval, would list only those sites containing the word Naval in the title.
If you would rather let the search engine do the work for you, Yahoo provides a Search Options page which contains radio buttons (a kind of check box), that allow you to refine your search. Other search engines also use the modifiers (AND - matches on all words) and (OR - matches on any word). When using either of these two modifiers, they must be entered in ALL CAPS.
Topical Resources and Links
You might want to begin your search using one of the aforementioned search engines to find and list those Web sites containing the topical resources of interest to you. There are a multitude of topical resource pages in the Naval and Military areas. I have listed some of the best of these in the Featured Web Finds section of this site.A good example of a topical resource page is Schooner Man, which contains informational resources, graphics, biographical and historical information, and links to other web sites of similar interest. There are also Web pages devoted exclusively to providing extensive topical link lists. The official US Navy Web site contains a Master Index of virtually every Naval command Web site on the Internet.
There are several excellent Naval and Military news and information services on-line. Some of these are free, while others charge a small monthly or annual fee for their use. The informational services I use include:
(1) Navy Times and Early Bird News (Subscription) Selected articles are available for non-members. The Early Bird News is an additional subscription option of the Times which delivers the latest military headline news via email to your desktop.
(2) Britannica On-line (Subscription) "The Researcher's Bible." (Free 7 day trial subscription)
(3) All Hands On-line (Free) Published monthly, the on-line version is two months behind printed version.
(4) The Washington Post (Free) Contains more articles of interest to the military community than any other on-line newspaper.Finally, please remember that the Internet is still growing and changing. It is not the repository of All Knowledge. Use the Internet's resources wisely and supplement them with your local library, reference works and other publications.
Until next week, I bid you "Fair Winds and Following Seas."
This is your Web site shipmates, help me to bring you the features and articles you want to see here. Suggestions, ideas, articles, and criticisms are welcome and needed. Drop me a note in the "Box", I promise I'll get back to you as soon as I can.
