Internet Research Tips Daniel Fack

Internet Research Tips The internet is a self publishing medium. It must be be analyzed for appropriateness of research use. Always look at a diversity of sites when researching on a topic. There are three resources for locating internet materials, which are subject directory, search engine and databases called “invisible web.”

Subject Directory A collection of links to Internet resources submitted by the site creators and organized into subject categories. There are two basic types of directories: academic and professional created to support the needs of researchers. Don’t overlook directories when on the internet. Yahoo is an example of a subject directory.

Search Engine Definition- A database of internet files collected by a computer program. Spider: Program that traverses the Web from link to link. Index: Database containing a copy of each Web page gathered by the the spider Search engine mechanism: Software that allows users results to be in ranked order.

Deep Web Information stored in searchable databases. The database searches for a topic and all the web sites contained within that database. Having a good directory will link to good databases. Information changing rampantly will appear on the invisible web.

Watch Out For Converging Content Information can come from a large array of sources, but can cause confusion in terms of the source. Many search engines offer a directory, which allow searches to be separately. Specialty databases: search services allowing specific content from databases.

Performing Research on the Internet Anthony Clayburg

Performing Research on the Internet Access Protocols- , FTP, http, Telnet, Usenet Accessing info.: Discussion Groups Direct Address Browse Explore Subject Directory Search Engines

Performing Research on the Internet Discussion Groups Like receiving a daily newspaper Daily s giving updates Likely linked to institutions Managed by software programs Ex: Listserv, Majordomo, Listproc

Performing Research on the Internet Direct Address URL= Uniform Resource Locator Go directly to the desired site using the correct web address May use Hypertext- http May use FTP site May use Telnet connection

Performing Research on the Internet Browse Very unpredictable Never know what site will appear next Higher quality sites have better links

Performing Research on the Internet Explore Subject Directory 2 Types: Academic- usually used in institutions Professional- Ex: yahoo Notes: Yahoo type engine are very vague which indicates they are not a good source for doing research. A more reliable site which reviews and rates its own recommendations is a more valuable source.

Performing Research on the Internet Web Search Engine 3 Components Spider-connects link to link looking at sites Index- copies each site gathered by spider Search Engine Mechanism- relays info to user based on relevancy in ranked order Note: Spiders can be vague. More reliable engines are Google, Direct Hit, Northern Light, MetaCrawler

Performing Research on the Internet Tips for successful search Read directions of each search engine before using Check for correct spelling Use alternate terms if necessary Use different search engines

A Basic Guide to the Internet & Understanding the World Wide Web Erin S. Cleary

No one is in charge of the Internet. Organizations develop technical aspects of Network. Internet Traffic Flows are Owned by Private Companies. All Computers Communicate by Using TCP/IP: Transmission Control Protocol / Internet Protocol Internet: A Computer Network Made up of Thousands of Networks World Wide.

Electronic Mail File Transfer Vast Information Resources Interest Group Membership Interactive Collaboration Multimedia Displays Real-Time Broadcasting Shopping Opportunities Much More… Services Available on the Internet :

WORLD WIDE WEB (WWW): A system of Internet servers that supports hypertext to access several Internet protocols on a single interface. Electronic mail allows computer users locally and worldwide to exchange messages. TELNET: Program that allows you to log into computers on the Internet and use online databases, library catalogs, chat services, and more. Components of the Internet:

FTP: (File Transfer Protocol) A program and the method used to transfer files between computers. DISCUSSION GROUPS: Active discussions organized around topic- oriented forums distributed by . USERNET NEWS: A global electronic bulletin board system in which millions of computer users exchange information. Components of the Internet:

FAQ: (Frequently Asked Questions) Periodic postings to Usenet newsgroups that contain a wealth of information. RFC: (Request for Comments) Documents created by and distributed to the Internet community to help define the nuts and bolts of the Internet. FYI: (For Your Information) These notes are a subset of RFCs and contain information of interest to new Internet users. Components of the Internet:

A system of Internet servers that supports hypertext to access several Internet protocols on a single interface. The World Wide Web was developed in 1989 by Tim Berners-Lee of the European Particle Physics Lab (CERN) in Switzerland. Initial purpose was for its members to facilitate communication, which were located in different countries. WORLD WIDE WEB (WWW):

(Simple Mail Transport Protocol or SMTP) Distributes electronic messages and files to one or more electronic mailboxes. Telnet: (Telnet Protocol) Facilitates login to a computer host to execute commands. FTP: (File Transport Protocol) Transfers text or binary files between an FTP server and client. Usenet: (Network News Transfer Protocol or NNTP) Distributes Usenet news articles derived from topical discussions on newsgroups. HTTP: (HyperText Transfer Protocol) Transmits hypertext over networks. This is the protocol of the WWW. Major Protocols Accessible on the Web:

1.Enter an Internet Address and retrieve a page directly. 2. Browsing through pages and selecting links to move from one page to another. 3.Searching through subject directories linked to organized collections of Web pages. 4.Entering a search statement at a search engine to retrieve pages on the topic of your choice. How to Access Web Pages:

Uniform Resource Locator: (URL) The URL specifies the Internet address of a file stored on a host computer connected to the Internet. Every file on the Internet has a unique URL URLs are translated into numeric addresses using the Internet Domain Name System (DNS). Example: dule.htm Retrieving Documents on the Web: