This guide is a modified version
of an excellent resource tool prepared by Noodletools
supplemented by resources identified in the University of the South
Pacific's 'Recommended
Internet Links ' directory. This modified version omits some sources
that are specifically focussed on the U.S. and includes a number of
resources specific to the Pacific. The Internet search guide for the
Pacific islands is maintained by the Information Resource Centre of
the Secretariat of the Pacific Regional Environment Programme [SPREP].
Contents Defining the topic Finding quality results Doing research in a specific discipline News Facts Opinions and perspectives Specific types of media Special search requirements I am ...
I need to understand the scope of my topic
I need to see related topics
Google Uncover buried sites using "related searches" or "wonder wheel"
Bing Search for your topic, then drill down "Related Searches"
I need authoritative sites chosen by an expert researcher
INFOMINE Librarian-selected scholarly sites
LibGuides Librarian-created topic pathfinders
Infotopia Customized safe-search of educator-selected sites
I need personal help from experts
Ask
an ipl2 Librarian Get answers from volunteers and grad students in a week (K-12)
AllExperts Ask your question of a self-identified volunteer subject-expert
Ask
a Librarian Library research questions answered in five days (no homework
questions)
I need sites ranked or tagged as valuable or relevant
Google High PageRank means popular, relevant sites link to the page
Technorati Browse
or search user-identified subjects ("tags") for blog advice or
opinions
Ask.com High ExpertRank indicates subject-specific popularity
I need peer-reviewed journal articles
I need in-depth information about a country or
unrepresented territory
I need science, technology engineering and mathematics
(STEM) research or sources
Scirus Science-specific Web portals, reports, peer-reviewed articles,
patents, preprints and journals
National
Science Digital Library (NSDL) Search by grade level, subject (STEM) and resource format
Intute Use advanced search to limit search by science, technology,
or mathematics subject areas
today
Google
News Top news stories auto-generated every 15 minutes
NewsNow Worldwide news auto-generated every 5 minutes
10x10 Explore machine-compiled single image composed hourly of 100
words and pictures that "matter most" on a global scale
recent
Yahoo
News One month archive with editor-created "roundups" in Full
Coverage
World
News Network Click a category (below news item) to gather related news or
images, select Mon-Sun to track story's development
Google
News Click on "related" (below news item) to see story's development
a place
CIA
World Factbook Select country for basic profile and transnational issues
BBC
Country Profiles Full profiles provide an instant guide to history, politics
and economic background of countries and territories, and background
on key institutions. They also include audio and video clips from
BBC archives.
general reference answers
news background (facts, people, and documents)
I need news from other countries' perspectives
I want multiple perspectives on hot social and political
topics
I want to compare news treatment
maps
Google
Maps Search and view satellite and street-level maps (repeat in Yahoo
Maps )
MapMachine Search, browse and print country, physical and political maps
photographs and visual images
videos
Yahoo
Video Search Search by keyword or phrase, use advanced
search to limit by file format, size, duration and domain
Truveo Video-only search engine, advanced
search limits by title, description, actor, director, genre,
duration, quality
Internet
Archive: Moving Image Archive Search public domain films, newsreels, ads, documentaries, television
series and other “cultural artifacts”
radio
music
Google To find song lyrics, search (in quotes) title or performer (plus)
"song lyrics," to find information about the song's history search
title (in quotes) and "origin"
sounds
FindSounds Get sound effects and music samples: select a keyword or search
a term limited by file format, quality and size
Soundsnap Free, user-contributed sounds can be browsed or searched by
category, keyword or tag
quotations
statistical data
dictionary or thesaurus (for definitions, etymology, pronunciation,
synonyms)
encyclopedia
Columbia
Encyclopedia Factual information (updated 6/05)
Wikipedia Volunteer-created and collaboratively edited: valuable for current
topics (e.g., people in the news), technology (e.g., podcasting)
-- information quality uneven
almanac data
books and other printed works
WorldCat Search for books and reviews, options to refine results, check
your local library's holdings
Google
Scholar Search (free and fee) scholarly works, locate related information
using "cited by" links, use advanced
search to limit (author, date, phrase, in title, subject area)
A9
OpenSearch Search for books by keyword, then "Search Inside!" to see keyword-in-context
run my search periodically and be notified of new
results
Giga
Alert Run Google search of 3 interests and get e-mail or RSS notification
of new results
Google
Alerts Run periodic Google searches and get e-mail (no RSS) notification
of new results
specify a country where my search results are located
find sites organized by the Dewey Decimal System
or Library of Congress Classification
locate resources by file type
Google Limit
search by file type (.pdf, .ps, .doc, .xls, .ppt, .rtf)
Yahoo Limit
search by file type (.html, .pdf, .doc, .xls, .ppt, .xml,
.txt)
a kid
KidsClick! Find kid-friendly sites with educational content (grades K-7)
selected by librarians
Ask
Kids Search by keyword, then select the best-match question for answers
and links
Yahoo
Kids Select from kid-safe sites (grades 2- 7) organized by topic
pretty new to the Internet
Google Largest general purpose search engine
Yahoo Large, general purpose search engine
ipl2 Easy-to-navigate, well-annotated directory of librarian-selected
Web sites
an Internet wizard
Exalead Configure highly-specific searches including proximity ("folk
tales NEAR sun"), but smaller index than Google or Yahoo
INFOMINE Configure
a narrow search of a large, comprehensive academic virtual
library (Web sites, databases, electronic journals, electronic
books, bulletin boards, directories of researchers)
JUX2 Compare results to Identify the strengths of Google, Yahoo and
MSN for your search