Sept. 2, 2009 – Recent surveys indicate that more than 70 percent of Internet users start their online research in Google. However, several other general search engines also produce excellent results. Many are unaware of these engines or rely on Google as habit. These alternatives often support different functionality, which can assist in a more productive online experience. This article introduces the reader to some of these options.
Exalead
Exalead is a powerful search engine with excellent “advanced search” features. In addition to basic Boolean searching, a researcher can truncate terms. As an example, putting in the term negotiat* will produce results that include negotiate, negotiator, negotiation, etc. The site also supports proximity searching. Using the term “NEAR” ensures that keywords are closely situated.
Executing the search produces not only the results page, but guidance to help retrieve items that are more relevant. Choices include narrowing by site or file type, alternative concepts, and related terms. The search result includes a thumbnail image of each Web site, along with the summary.
hakia
The creators of this engine promote its use of semantic technology. The goal is to provide meaningful sites that match the concepts searched. These “credible” results come from Web pages recommended by librarians and represent the most recent and relevant information.
Currently, librarians have evaluated and suggested sites on the topics of health and environment. For example, a query of health-related topics will generate results from Web sites identified by the Medical Library Association. Hakia is acquiring credible content in the areas of law and finance.
Clusty
Clusty is a metasearch engine. It “queries several top search engines, combines the results, and generates an ordered list based on comparative ranking,” which “helps raise the best results to the top and push search engine spam to the bottom.”
The significant feature of this engine is the way it clusters sites. Clusty divides the results by topic and the researcher can select the most appropriate. It eliminates the need to review several pages of hits. For example, a simple search of “electronic discovery” produced topical clusters entitled computer forensics, best practices, electronic discovery experts, and evidence.
Bing
Microsoft’s new search engine is Bing. The interface is very clean and offers some nice features. One such feature is the “related searches.” Found on the left side of a results page, it suggests additional topics and terms. The user’s search history is also clearly available. This can be extremely helpful when trying to remember or retrieve a prior query.
Instead of providing a thumbnail image to a web site, Bing has a “preview” option that displays a few lines from the site. The searcher must hold their mouse to the right of the item to view it. This may be helpful in determining the Web site’s value.
Bev Butula is the manager of library of services at Davis & Kuelthau, Milwaukee. She is a past president of the Law Librarians Association of Wisconsin. Bev has written articles and spoken to numerous groups on issues such as effective Internet research, evaluation of Web sites and legal research. Prior to obtaining her Master's Degree in Library Science from UWM, Bev was a litigation paralegal.
