Best search engines?

[C.Ann]

Not finding current, up-to-date info on certain specific subjects via Google or my Yahoo search engine..

Any suggestions on better ones?

Thanks!

 

[eduk8r26]

Bing is supposed to be good.

 

[NotUrsula]

Depends entirely on what you're looking for. If you are searching for things from peer-reviewed journals, you need to go to Google Scholar, or better yet, go to commercial databases supplied through libraries. If you are not in any way able to access a university collection (by visiting a campus library in person, for example), try calling your local public library's reference desk and asking for help with your search. They are very likely to be able to give you an answer better tailored to your needs, based on exactly what you're looking for.

The most important thing to remember is that contrary to popular myth, most of the really authoritative information available via the web is not freely accessible; much of it is in subscription-access databases. Sometimes there are ways to access them other than pulling out a credit card, and in most cases a Librarian is going to be the best person to tell you whether or not that is possible for you.

One possible thing that can help with Google if the issue is that your first-level hitlist is too large; you might try installing YoLink. It's a browser extension that can more narrowly focus Google based on your result preferences.

 

[phorsenuf]

I do all my searches through swagbucks.

 

[JessicaR]

I used to like Dogpile but since Google havent been on recently. You can try Alta Vista also. Really does depend on what you are searching for.

 

[Witch Mountain]

Depends entirely on what you're looking for. If you are searching for things from peer-reviewed journals, you need to go to Google Scholar, or better yet, go to commercial databases supplied through libraries. If you are not in any way able to access a university collection (by visiting a campus library in person, for example), try calling your local public library's reference desk and asking for help with your search. They are very likely to be able to give you an answer better tailored to your needs, based on exactly what you're looking for.

The most important thing to remember is that contrary to popular myth, most of the really authoritative information available via the web is not freely accessible; much of it is in subscription-access databases. Sometimes there are ways to access them other than pulling out a credit card, and in most cases a Librarian is going to be the best person to tell you whether or not that is possible for you.

One possible thing that can help with Google if the issue is that your first-level hitlist is too large; you might try installing YoLink. It's a browser extension that can more narrowly focus Google based on your result preferences.

This is so true. In my studies, there are many excellent articles that cannot be found through Google, or if you find them through Google, you will be paying a fee.

I don't know what I'm going to do when I no longer have access to the peer review journals through my college!

 

[tvguy]

This is so true. In my studies, there are many excellent articles that cannot be found through Google, or if you find them through Google, you will be paying a fee.

I don't know what I'm going to do when I no longer have access to the peer review journals through my college!

Wow. I've never had a problem with Google. We even use Google to find stories on OUR website because it's faster, and I swear our stories are in their files within a hour of being posted.

It is interesting to see how schools have changed their attitude about information on the web. My son was cleaning out his room and found the academic rules from when he started high school in 2000. "Internet sources may not be used in class work, even if cited. The Internet is not considered a reliable source. Use of information from the Internet will be grounds for an automatic F."

 

[pigletgirl]

Google is best IMO.

 

[FireDancer]

The majority of the time the problem isn't the search engine but the search string that is entered into it.

I have found that Google (either normal or via a site: search) is the best at finding almost anything with 3 exceptions, images, shopping, and travel. Bing does a better job with those three thanks in part to their search deal with Yahoo and their integration into Flicker, Yahoo shopping, and Yahoo Travel.

 

[NotUrsula]

Wow. I've never had a problem with Google. We even use Google to find stories on OUR website because it's faster, and I swear our stories are in their files within a hour of being posted.

And you are a journalist, perhaps? Searching for stories in newspapers and general circulation magazines, yes, you are likely to be able to find the full text via Google most of the time.

Now, if you are a biochemist, or a geologist, or a physician looking for articles published in scientific or medical journals ... not likely at all, unless the research that the article was based on was funded by the US govt. within the past 3 years.

It is interesting to see how schools have changed their attitude about information on the web. My son was cleaning out his room and found the academic rules from when he started high school in 2000. "Internet sources may not be used in class work, even if cited. The Internet is not considered a reliable source. Use of information from the Internet will be grounds for an automatic F."

Well, it's still not a reliable source in about 70% of cases. I'd fail a student who quoted Wikipedia in a class paper, unless it was being quoted verbatim simply as a example, rather than as source material. As a general rule of thumb, I tell students that sites that are dot-edu or dot-gov are fairly trustworthy, that a dot-org needs careful scrutiny to determine who is sponsoring it, and that a dot-com is commercial speech and therefore should not be used without verification from a source that does not have a commercial interest in the information.

 

[C.Ann]

Thanks all!

I will try some of the suggestions here and see if I have any better luck..