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Web Search and
Evaluation
How to find a web site
How to know it is useful
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World Wide Web
 Not the Internet
 Hyperlinks
 Text
 Graphics
 Sound
 Video
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Who builds the WWW?
ANYONE
with access
and
interest
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URL
Example - http://asu.edu/directory
 Uniform Resource Locator
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URL is like a card catalog
Naming scheme for resources
 URL has 4 components
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Protocol [http://]
Domain name [asu]
Domain designator [edu]
Suffix(es) [directory]
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URL Practice 1
 Find the components for this URL
[a = protocol, b = domain name,
c = domain designator,
d
= suffix(es)]
a
b
c
http://www.microsoft.com/
windows/ie/default.html
d
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URL Practice 2
 This is the URL for your web site
at ASU. [a = protocol, b = domain
name, c = domain designator,
d = suffix(es)]
a
b
c
http://www.public.asu.edu/~asurite
d
/index.html
d
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Domain Designator
 Common names
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.com
.gov
.net
.org
.edu
.mil
 Countries

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.cn (China)
.de (Germany)
.jp (Japan)
.uk (United
Kingdom)
 New names
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.biz
.museum
.info
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Common URL Errors
 5 Common errors when typing
URLs
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Leaving out a component
Incorrect domain designator
Punctuation errors
Missing punctuation
Misspelling words
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Finding Information
 Search Engines

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Google, AltaVista
Meta Search Engines
 Metacrawler, Dog Pile
 Subject Directories

Yahoo, LookSmart
 Specialized Databases
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Which Search Engine?
 Each engine returns different
results
 Different approaches for finding
and storing pages
 Check at least two search
engines
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Research Questions
 Define your question
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Find unique key words
Find phrases
Be prepared to find new words and
phrases
keyword
Where do echinoderms, or sea urchins, live?
phrase
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Search Techniques
 Word Searches
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Use specific key words
Not common words: the, an, a
Example: echinoderm
 Phrase Searches
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Phrases in quotes
Example: “sea urchin”
 Advanced search feature
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Search Operators
 Symbols can be useful
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Term is required ( + )
 Hair +red

Term is not wanted ( - )
 Rock -music

Wildcard for missing letters ( * )
 Vege*
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Boolean Searches
 Boolean Searches
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Use operator words
AND, OR, and NOT operators
 Jamaica AND geography
 French OR francaise
 sailboats NOT yachts

NEAR operator
 browser NEAR performance
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Reliability & Validity
 Reliability
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Can you get that same information again?
Is the information current?
Are there links to other pages, do other
pages link to this information?
 Validity
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Is the information about your topic?
Does the domain designator make sense
for the topic?
Is the author credible?
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Evaluate Information
 Critically evaluate web sources
 Assessment criteria

University of California Berkeley
evaluation form
 Spend enough time
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Activity
 Scavenger Hunt
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Use search techniques
 Web Evaluation

Use evaluation guidelines
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Google Search
Search phrase
in “quotes”
Number of
“hits”
Hyperlink
Web site to
research
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Evaluation Example 1
 1. Look at the URL before you go
to the page
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Personal page or site
Type of domain
Appropriate for content
Published by entity that makes
sense (corresponds to name of site)
www.stanford.edu/group/Urchin/
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Evaluation Example 2
 2. Scan the
edges of the
page
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Author
Date
Credentials
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Evaluation Example 3
 3. Indicators of
quality
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Well
documented
Complete
Links
Other viewpoints
or bias
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Evaluation Example 4
 4. What do
others say?
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Links to page
Rated in
directory
Author in
Google?
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Evaluation Example 5
 5. Does it all add up?
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Why is this page on web?
Was it meant to be humorous or
ironic?
 Bottom Line – as good as or
better than other resources?

YES
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Website
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/
TeachingLib/Guides/Internet/
FindInfo.html
Visit this site for the web evaluation checklist
and additional information about search engines
and web searching techniques
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