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

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

3. 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.

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

5. + 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

6. - 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

7. 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

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

9. * 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

10. Source Evaluation Who What When Where Why

11. 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.

12. 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?

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

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

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