Refining a Web Search and Source Evaluation Fort Gibson High School Library Media Center

Refining a Web Search “_”, *, +, - Use of and, not, or And

Key Words Make a list of keywords. Be as specific as possible –but not so specific that your search will produce too few hits or responses.

Search Commands When performing a web search, most search engines or databases allow for the following commands to help in refining the search.

+ and Placing a plus sign in front of a keyword requires that the key word is in all search results. Examples: civil+war, civil and war. Search Commands

- not Placing a minus sign in front of a keyword requires that the keyword does not exist in any of the search results. Example: civil –war or civil not war. Search Commands

or Placing the word or between two words will search for both words independently. This is often the default on a multiple keyword search. Example: civil or war Search Commands

“___” Placing words between quotation marks will search for the keyword in the exact order. Example: “civil war” Search Commands

* Placing a * after a root word is a truncation which would include alternate word endings such as plurals and tense variations. Example: farm* Search Commands

Source Evaluation Who What When Where Why

Who: Who wrote the pages and are they an expert? Look for education, offices, jobs, etc. Is a biography of the author included? How can you find out more about the author? Find the author of a web site by right clicking on an empty spot on the website, then click on properties.

What: What does the author say is the purpose of the site? What else might the author have in mind for the site? What makes the site easy to use?

When: When was the site created? When was the site last updated?

Where: Where does the information come from? Where can I look to find out more about the producer/sponsor?

Why: Why is this information useful for my purpose? Why should I use this information? Why is this page/site better than another?