Dig Deeper For A More Effective Internet Search

If you’re only using traditional internet search engines to look for specific information, you may just be scratching the surface. You can expand your search and get more of the information you need by accessing the “Deep Web,” a vast amount of content in searchable databases that can only be accessed by direct query. Here’s how to get to this data:

• Use a specific site’s search engine. Google, for example, will not find all the information in the Library of Congress web pages (and if it did, it would bog everyone down). Instead, do your search on the Library of Congress web site directly at: www.loc.gov.

• Add the word “database” to your regular search. For example, if you’re searching Yahoo for information on toxic chemicals, you may find more specifics by searching “toxic chemicals database.”

• Use a “Deep Web” subject-focused search engine or directory. Traditional search engines are working on accessing all this data (Google Scholar already searches scholarly literature, books and reports) but, in the meantime, try a site such as www.completeplanet.com, which captures more than 70,000 searchable databases.

There are many specialty search engines. To name a few, check out www.pubmed.gov for health and medical information; the Librarians' Internet Index at www.ipl.org, a collaborative research directory; or www.artcyclopedia.com, which lists 9,000 artists and 2,600 art sites.

• Get a library card. Many public libraries offer access to research databases for users with a library card (some of these databases are subscription only or password protected). Some city or county Public Libraries, for example, subscribe to services you can access through your home computer such as NetLibrary eAudiobooks, Film and Television Literature Index, Computer Source and Consumer Health Complete.