Search
Engine Subject directories are recommended for finding good quality Websites. They are useful places to start a search, especially for an unfamiliar topic.
Many directories can be searched by keyword. For best results, use broad terms or concepts to search subjects and descriptions of sites and publishers.
The term "Invisible Web" describes Websites that usually cannot be found using general search engines. Check general subject directories or specialist resources to find searchable databases, gateway sites, archives, academic and interactive Websites. The Virtual Reference Library (VRL) also lists many similar resources.
About.Com
http://home.about.com
Selected index of Web sites and gateways. Unique
content and subject guides by site maintainers. International versions.
Academic Info
http://academicinfo.net/
Easy to use index of gateway sites for students and
researchers. Includes primary sources and digital collections. Keyword
searchable.
INFOMINE: Scholarly Internet Resource Collections
http://infomine.ucr.edu/
University-level academic resources including databases,
maps, electronic journals, books, and mailing lists. Multiple database
searching.
Internet Public Library
http://www.ipl.org
Subject directories for adults, teens, and youth.
Includes special resources such as online texts and Online Literary Criticism
Collection.
Librarians' Index to the Internet
http://lii.org
Good general interest directory with excellent Website
descriptions. Keyword searchable.
Open Directory
http://dmoz.org/
Large directory selected by volunteer editors. Use
advanced search to search within a specific category. Fast linking of
new sites but quality may vary. Easy access to Websites in other languages
from topics.
See also French Languages Directories and Search Engines.
http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/caninfo/ecaninfo.htm
From National Library of Canada. Browse or search for Web site titles.
Listings Canada
http://listingsca.com/
Focuses on regional Canadian travel and business
Websites.
MSN Canada
http://search.msn.ca/
Web directory. Advanced search offers keyword search
and limiting by type of files, language, domain and more.
Ready Reference Sources [Southern Ontario Library
Service]
http://www.library.on.ca/information/ref-index.html
Index of resources and gateways.
Sympatico
http://www1.sympatico.ca/
Use Explore Sympatico.ca for Websites. Also includes
news, magazine articles, city-specific resources. Advanced search offers
family filtering and other options.
Toronto.Com
http://www.toronto.com/
Online guide for Toronto lists businesses, shopping,
entertainment and events in the Greater Toronto Area.
The Invisible Web - Databases and Gateway Sites
Ask An Expert Sites
http://k12science.ati.stevens-tech.edu/askanexpert.html
Find sites which list experts to whom you can send
a question. Arranged by categories.
BUBL Link
http://bubl.ac.uk/link/index.html
Selected Web resources covering all academic subject
areas. Keyword searchable. Useful feature is search by country (location).
Digital Librarian: a librarian's choice of the best
of the Web
http://www.digital-librarian.com/
Browse selected Websites and brief descriptions.
No keyword search function.
Direct Search
'http://www.freepint.com/gary/direct.htm
Bibliographies, databases, fast facts, list of lists
and other research tools. Searchable.
Pinakes, a subject lanuchpad
http://www.hw.ac.uk/libWWW/irn/pinakes/pinakes.html
Links to major subject and multi-subject gateways.
Scout Report Archives
http://scout.cs.wisc.edu/archives/
Good small index of evaluated Websites. Search by
keyword or browse by subject headings.
WWW Virtual Library
http://vlib.org/Overview.html
High quality index of specialized subject directories
and gateways maintained by expert volunteers. Check date of last revision
for the category you are searching.
Search engines find your search words or phrases in Websites. Usually every word on a Website is indexed and searchable. If you use search terms that are too general you may get too many results to be useful. For best results, use several terms and subject-specific words. Sites are not evaluated but some search engines rank results by popularity or other criteria. No search engine lists all Web pages and search results, features and commands vary from engine to engine.
New features include related or suggested terms to improve search results (Altavista, Teoma) and grouping results by topic (AllTheWeb, Teoma, WiseNut). Advanced features include filtering by date, content and site. Many offer family filtering or offensive content reduction. Improve your searching by using online help for each search engine.
AllTheWeb (FAST Search)
http://www.alltheweb.com/
Large search engine groups search results by topic
(Fast Topics), general Websites and multimedia. All Websites are fully
indexed. "About your query" shows how the search was performed;
search can be repeated without changes. Advanced Search offers several
European and Asian languages. Customize for family filtering, display,
language and more.
AltaVista
http://www.altavista.com
Database size has been increased and new features
added. Prisma offers related terms; click to add them to your search.
Use "Go back" to revert to original search. Powerful Advanced
Search. Search in European or Asian languages. Family filtering available.
Babel Fish translation tool. News, image and media searching.
AltaVista Canada
http://ca-en.altavista.com/
Choose results from Canada to find Canadian Websites.
Google
http://www.google.ca/
Large search engine finds many file formats such
as Excel and PowerPoint documents and images. Results are ranked by link
popularity. Choose Pages from Canada option for Canadian sites. Limit
by language, date and domain in Advanced Search. Family filtering and
alternative interface languages available in Preferences. International
versions. Use Cached to find deleted Web pages. Check your spelling: “Did
you mean”
Google Groups
http://groups.google.com/
Search online discussions or newsgroups. Advanced
search. Twenty year archive of articles. Sort results by relevance or
by date. Free registration is required to post a message or a followup.
MSN Canada
http://search.msn.ca/
Excellent advanced search options including media,
domain, country and date searching. Directory lists Canadian Websites.
Teoma
http://www.teoma.com/
Groups Websites by topic. Results are ranked by the
number of same-subject pages that link to each Website. Use Resources
to find Website collections from experts or enthusiasts. Refine feature
adds related terms to your search words.
WiseNut
http://www.wisenut.com
One of the largest search engines groups search results
by topic (WiseGuide) as well as individual Websites. Advanced search (WiseSearch).
Family filtering (WiseWatch).
Yahoo!
http://www.yahoo.com/
Keyword searches five areas of Yahoo's database:
you can click beside Your Search to choose type of result. Includes Inside
Yahoo (products and services from Yahoo), Yahoo sites and categories,
Web pages from Google, news and research documents. Offers a variety of
messaging services and specialized resources such as current news, stock
quotes, city maps, weather and travel. International versions.
Yahoo Canada
http://www.yahoo.ca
Canadian version offers all of the above with the
option of restricting results to Canadian Websites.
A metasearch engine does not have its own database of Websites but sends your search to several other search engines. For best results, use several terms and subject-specific words. Check the list of search engines used by a metasearcher - they change from time to time. Some include several paid search engines.
Most rank a limited number of results from each search engine. Useful for quick searches, especially when you are looking for a very rare word. Some offer topic searching by sending your search to specialized subject resources.
Ask Jeeves
http://www.ask.com
Type in a question to search a database of over 7
million questions. Best for general interest searches. Children’s
version available at: http://www.ajkids.com/
Ex2Find
http://ez2www.com/
A global metasearcher: choose country to include
local search tools. Searches largest search engines and Invisible Web
resources. Clusters results by topic. Preview feature, site information
from Alexa and translation. Other searches included encyclopedias, Google
Groups and downloads.
Fazzle (SearchOnline)
http://www.fazzle.com/
Sends your search to large search engines or directories.
Restrict your search to Canadian search engines, multimedia, health or
news. Register for advanced features including portable bookmarks (free).
Email results. Preview feature.
Ixquick
http://www.ixquick.com/
Top ten most relevant results from larger search
engines. Optional highlighting of search terms in Websites. Other searches:
news, MP3, pictures. European language versions. After first search, select
or de-select search engines you wish to use.
KartOO
http://www.kartoo.com/
A different way of seeing search results: clustered
results are displayed with an interactive map. The size of the ball suggests
the relevance of the site. Use mouse to see summary of Websites. Add topics
by clicking on the plus (+) sign or delete it with the minus (-) sign.
Flash plug-in required.
ProFusion
http://www.profusion.com/
Use search engines, subject directories or more than
1000 sources from the "Invisible Web". Format search results
to print or email them. Page Alerts track updated Websites. Use Advanced
to select search engines.
Queryserver
http://www.queryserver.com/
Results are grouped by topic. Easy to customize.
Merges results to eliminate duplicates. Other searches include health
and news.
SurfWax
http://www.surfwax.com/
Register to select personalized search engine list
and InfoCubby to save or share web resources (free). Click on the magnifying
glass icon in the results list to see page summaries displayed on the
right. Focus offers broader or narrower related terms; click to add them
to your search.
Virtual Learning Resources Center
http://www.virtuallrc.com/
Searches quality information web pages, all selected
by librarians and teachers. With this easy to use search tool you can
restrict your keyword search to a specific subject. Search tools page
has forms to search online magazines, photos and clipart, sounds, and
study guides.
Vivisimo
http://vivisimo.com/
Groups search results by topic. Choose Preview to
see first page of Websites. Search also news, health, and other specialized
resources.
Zapmeta
http://www.zapmeta.com/
Turn on Result Snapshots in Preferences to preview
pages. Search general or shopping sites. Includes Wayback Machine for
earlier versions of web sites.
French Language Directories and Search Engines
AltaVista Canada en francais
http://ca-fr.altavista.com/
Large index of Websites about Canada from Canada
and around the world. Family filtering available. Babelfish translation
tool.
Centre global d'information: les ressources Internet
http://www.library.on.ca/information/centreglobal.html
Small index of resources and gateways. Canadian focus.
Francite
http://www.francite.com/
French language search engine and directory. Covers
the whole francophone world, including Africa. Canadian coverage.
Fouillez-tout.com
http://www.fouillez-tout.com
Search for Websites organized by the seventeen regions
of Quebec.
Google Canada
http://www.google.ca/intl/fr/
French language Websites from Canada and France.
Choose Pages: Canada option for Canadian.
Information sur le Canada par matière
http://www.nlc-bnc.ca/caninfo/fcaninfo.htm
Information about Canada from Internet resources
around the world. Alphabetical list from the Bibliothèque nationale
du Canada.
Sympatico
http://www2.sympatico.ca/
Use Explorer Sympatico.ca to search for French language
or Quebec sites. Rechercher offers Quebec only, francophone or all the
Web. Advanced search (Recerche avancée) offers family filtering
and other options.
La Toile du Quebec
http://www.toile.qc.ca
Search Quebec or other francophone sites. Translation
function.
Yahoo Canada en français
http://cf.yahoo.com/
Browsable and searchable. Canadian focus.
Regional Directories and Search Engines
These search tools feature Websites outside North America. Some general search engines such as Yahoo and AltaVista have versions for individual countries and many allow you to choose results in a specific language.
For information about setting your browser to read Web pages in non Western scripts, visit the NewsConnect Languages Support page.
China Vista
http://www.chinavista.com/
English and Chinese.
Country Based Search Engines
http://www.philb.com/countryse.htm
Search engines covering more than 150 countries and
regions. The regional search engines section includes a Global/General
section as well.
European Search Engines, Directories and Lists
http://www.netmasters.co.uk/european_search_engines/
List includes Eastern Europe.
International Search Engines
http://www.vpl.vancouver.bc.ca/branches/LibrarySquare/multi/links.html/
International Internet search tools and language
sites compiled by Vancouver Public Library. Also lists translator sites.
Features resources in a wide variety of languages.
Open Directory World
http://dmoz.org/World/
Directory maintained by volunteers. Browse or search.
Portals to the World
http://www.loc.gov/rr/international/portals.html
Links to electronic resources around the world.
Search Engine Colossus
http://www.searchenginecolossus.com/
An international directory of search engines featuring
links to over 1500 search engines from over 221 countries around the world.
Search Engines Worldwide
http://www.twics.com/~takakuwa/search/
Large list of search engines around the world. Listed
for specific countries and regions.
Yahoo China
http://chinese.yahoo.com/
Zhongsou
http://www.twics.com/~takakuwa/search/
New search engine, China Search Online.
Choosing and Using Search Tools
Choose the Best Search Engine for Your Information
Needs
http://www.noodletools.com/debbie/literacies/information/5locate/adviceengine.html
A chart to help you match your information needs
to the right search tool.
Search the Internet
http://library.albany.edu/internet/searchnet.html
Tutorials and help with subject directories and search
engines. Includes chart for choosing a search tool, information about
the "invisible" Web and "Second Generation Searching".
Search Tools Chart
http://www.infopeople.org/search/chart.html
Tip sheet for major search engines and subject directories.
Visual Search Engines: Presenting search results
using graphical interfaces
http://www.infopeople.org/src/chart.html
More about visual search engines such as Atlas of
Cyberspace, KartOO and Web Brain.
The Invisible Web: database contents rarely found
in search engines
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/InvisibleWeb.html
Chart outlining features of some of the best known
search tools for the Invisible Web.
Those Dark Hiding Places: The Invisible Web Revealed
http://library.rider.edu/scholarly/rlackie/Invisible/Inv_Web.html
A guide to search tools for the Invisible Web.
Search Engine Showdown: The Users' Guide to Web
Searching
http://www.notess.com/search/
Features, evaluation, and other tips about search
engines.
Search Engine Watch: News, Tips and More About Search
Engines
http://www.searchenginewatch.com/
This site offers a wealth of information about search
engines.
Searchability
http://www.searchability.com/
Guides to specialized search engines.
Web Admin’s Guide to Site Search Tools
http://www.searchtools.com/
Aimed at Web administrators.
Web Search (About.com)
http://websearch.about.com/internet/websearch/
All about search tools.
Favourite Tools For Managing Online Information
http://www.freepint.com/gary/olafavtools.htm.
Search Utilities
http://searchenginewatch.com/links/Search_Utilities/
Software packages that let you search from your desktop.
Web Tools and Tutorials
http://astro.temple.edu/~psmith/biglist/tools.htm
Browsers, bookmark managers, search tools and more.
Karla's Guide to Citation Style Guides
http://bailiwick.lib.uiowa.edu/journalism/cite.html
ONLINE! Internet Sources: Citation Styles
http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/online/citex.html
Evaluating Information on the World Wide Web
Evaluating Web Resources
http://www2.widener.edu/Wolfgram-Memorial-Library/webevaluation/webeval.htm
Evaluating Web Pages: Techniques to Apply & Questions
to Ask
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/Evaluate.html
Internet Detective,
an interactive tutorial on evaluating the quality of Internet resources
http://sosig.ac.uk/desire/internet-detective.html
T is for Thinking:
The ICYouSee Guide to Critical Thinking About What You See on the Web
http://www.ithaca.edu/library/Training/hott.html
Virtual Chase:
Evaluating the Quality of Information on the Internet
http://www.virtualchase.com/quality/