Professional Documents
Culture Documents
MODULE 10 3
10.0 Introduction: 3
10.1 Definitions 3
1
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
10.9 Using the Back and Forward Lists to Browse the Web 30
10.9.1 How to use the Back and Forward Lists: 30
10.9.2 Using the Address List 31
END-MOD.10 41
2
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Module 10
10.0 Introduction:
This course module covers web browsing and searching using IE7 and greater. Microsoft Internet
Explorer (IE) has become the overwhelming standard for browsing web pages online with 55%
usage. All Windows-based computers come pre-installed with Internet Explorer, and versions
appear on other platforms. This prevalence (along with speed, stability, and ease of use) is what
has led to IE being the preferred web browser for both creators and users of the World Wide Web
(WWW). However, there are other good alternative browsers out there too that you can equally
use to surf the web, e.g., Apple’s Safari (~7%), Mozilla Firefox (~23%), Opera (~3%), Google
Chrome (~1%) and many more.
Note: before you fire that browser, do ensure that you a good antivirus and firewall solutions on
your computer to protect yourself from viruses. Also be warned that the web is like a Wild West
– the bad guys (hackers & cyber-criminals) lie in waiting like a lethal venomous green snake in
the grass – and can hit any time while you’re out & about there!
10.1 Definitions
These are some terms commonly used to reference objects on the internet or within Internet
Explorer.
• URL: - Stands for Uniform Resource Locator. It is the address to a particular webpage.
For example, the URL to Google search: http://www.ggogle.com
• Homepage: - The homepage is the very first page that is displayed when Internet
Explorer launches.
• Address Bar: - The field that displays the URL of the current page. A user can type in a
desired URL to display a specific page.
• Shortcut: - A shortcut is a quick way to access a file or webpage. Usually a shortcut will
appear as an icon on the desktop or in a menu.
• Link: - A link is similar to a shortcut except links are objects within a webpage. This is
an example link to this page.
• Clipboard: - The clipboard is a temporary storage place for content. A user can copy to
the clipboard within one program and paste from the clipboard in another program.
• Cookies: Cookies are bits of information a website may store on a user's computer.
Typical information that is stored include, items in a shopping cart, what links a user has
followed, and other information the website may need in order to customize their site to a
particular user.
3
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
• Icon: An icon is a small picture associated with a program. Internet Explorer's icon
is
®
• Field: - A field is a place to type some information. Here is an example of a field:
4
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Figure 10.2 shows the screenshot of the Microsoft Internet Explorer browser window – the main
part of the window is taken up by the web page. If you wish to learn how to navigate around a
web page please visit the Navigation section of this lesson.
The web browser has various tools located above the displayed web page, these are known as
Toolbars, there are additional tools available on the left hand side of the browser called the
Explorer bar, and at the bottom of the web page is the status bar.
We will start by looking at the Toolbars, as you will see when looking at the toolbars there
operation is inter-linked with the Explorer bar.
5
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
actions as follows. (Note that not all functions are mentioned – some functions are not normally
required when navigating the World Wide Web - however the major functions are all discussed.)
• File - The file menu deals with the current open document, from here you can open a new
document such as another web page, save the web page, alter the page setup, print the web
page, send the web page by email and find out the properties of the web page.
• Edit - The edit page enables you to copy details from a web page to your clipboard (The
clipboard saves the details so you can paste the copied material into another document). The
edit section also allows you to find (on this page) - this allows you to look for a certain word
on a web page.
• View - The view section enables you to change some browser settings; you can select what
toolbars you wish to display. For example you can decide not to show the radio toolbar if you
don’t use it. From this section you can also amend the text size of the web page.
• Favorites - From here you can create a list of favorite web sites, the chances are that your
Internet Service Provider has already given you a starting list of web sites. If you wish to add
more to your favorites you can do it simply in this section.
• Tools - The tools section provides some other useful tools, one of the most important sections
here is the Internet Options - from this area you can control your security settings.
• Help - The help sections gives you various help functions and version details.
6
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
• New: - Opens a submenu with some items that can be created. A new window will open
another instance of Internet Explorer.
• Open: - Allows the user to view a website or a folder on the user's computer. This method
is identical to typing in the address in the address bar.
• Save As: -Allows a user to save the current page locally to the hard drive.
• Page Setup: - Opens up a setup window with options for customizing the look of a
printout of the page.
• Print: - Prints the current page with the constraints given in page setup. (Default settings
are usually fine)
• Print Preview: - Opens a window that will display what a printout will look like before a
user prints.
• Send: - Send is a submenu with options that allow a user to email the current page, a link
to the page, or create a shortcut on the desktop.
• Close: - Closes this instance of Internet Explorer.
7
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
The view menu has a number of functions tailored to the look of Internet Explorer.
• Toolbars: - A submenu with options for showing different toolbars. Experiment with the
different choices to see what each option does. Placing a check next to each option
enables them and makes them visible. Those options that are not checked are not enabled
and not visible. Just remember to re-check the options that were originally checked.
• Status Bar: - The status bar is at the bottom of the window. It displays information about
various aspects of Internet Explorer. For example, when a user clicks on a link, the
number of images left to download is displayed along with what page is loading.
• Explorer Bar: - A submenu with various explorer options. Search opens a search box to
search the internet. Favorites opens a window of all the user's saved favorites. History
opens a list of all the websites a user has visited in the last few weeks.
• Go to: - A submenu for jumping to a previously viewed page. Identical functions to the
back and forward buttons in the navigation bar.
• Stop: - Stops the current page from loading. Identical to the stop button in the navigation
bar.
• Refresh: - Reloads the current page. Identical to the refresh button on the navigation bar.
• Text Size: - Makes the size of the text on a current page larger or smaller. Experiment
with the different options to see their effects.
• Encoding: - Allows the user to pick a language that may be displayed on the page.
Usually the best option is auto select.
• Source: - Shows the source HTML code for the current page.
• Full Screen: - Puts Internet Explorer into kiosk mode. Try it now to see what it looks
like. Remember to press "F11" on your keyboard to return to normal mode. Sometimes
8
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
users accidentally hit the "F11" key just above the backspace button and are unable to get
Internet Explorer back to normal.
The favorites menu provides a means of saving websites that a user finds useful or interesting.
When the user wants to re-visit that site at a later date, they can simply click on the saved favorite
and it will go directly to the corresponding page.
• Add To Favorites: - Opens up a box asking where to save a favorite for the currently
displayed page. The user may opt to categorize their favorites into subfolders.
• Organize Favorites: - A box for moving favorites to various sub folders within the
favorites menu.
is another option on the content tab. Auto complete is designed to save information typed
in text fields like login information so that a user does not have to type it in every time.
To turn this feature on or off, check or uncheck the boxes for the different types of text
fields.
• Connections: - Stores information pertaining to how a computer connects to the internet.
• Programs: - Stores which programs Internet Explorer will use for each internet service.
• Advanced: Has settings pertaining to various aspects of the web. A good rule of thumb
here is the default settings.
10
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Add Favorite button - Allows you to add your favorite websites to your favorites.
History - Located under the Favorite button - will open the History of the browser in the
Explorer bar. It will include previously visited web sites to enable you to go back to
them
Go To button - The Go button is only displayed while you type a new URL in the Address
bar in place of the Refresh button in Internet Explorer. It allows you to jump to the
current URL displayed in the Address bar.
The Revolving Arrows (Refresh) button- This will download the current web page
again, in case it has not download properly or it may have been updated (EG A page
displaying latest sports scores)
The X button - This will stop the current web page from being loading or downloaded
Search button - When click – it allows you to search the web for the keyword(s)
entered in Google search bar.
The Picture of a House - This will take you to your home page.
Feeds – Allows you to link to your favorite web feed (or news feed). A web feed is a
data format used for providing users with frequently updated web contents.
11
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Page button - Allows you to manipulate the current web page e.g., email it friends etc.
Tools button - The tools section provides some other useful tools, one of the most
important sections here is the Internet Options - from this area you can control your
security settings.
Tab button - Allows you to quickly access another website on the current browser
without the need to open another separate web browser.
As shown above, the text links are usually underlined and colored. Each link gives Internet
Explorer the information needed to locate the page. When you activate a link, you jump to a new
location, called the target of the link. The target can be either another location on the active
Web page (for example, the bottom of a Web page often contains a link that targets the top), a
different document or file on your computer, or a Web page stored on a remote Web server
anywhere in the world. The amount of time necessary to link to the target, called the response
time, varies, depending upon the number of people trying to connect to the same site, the number
of people on the Internet at that time, speed of your internet connection and the site design.
Activating a link starts a multi-step process. Although Internet Explorer does the work for you,
following the sequence of events is important: it helps you recognize problems when they occur
and understand how to resolve them.
12
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Figure 10.13 illustrates the string of events that occur when you link to a site, e.g., click the
following link to: Global Open Versity home page. When you point to a link, the status bar
displays the address of the link's target. When you click a link, the activity indicator
animates, and the status bar displays a series of messages and progress bar indicating that Internet
Explorer is connecting to the file targeted by the link, is transferring data, and finally, is fully
done.
From Figure 10.13, you can observe how the Web page is build as Internet Explorer transfers
information to your screen in multiple passes as can visualized in the Status progress bar display.
The first wave brings a few pieces to the page; with each subsequent pass, Internet Explorer fills
in more details until the Web page is complete. The progress bar fills in to indicate how much of
the Web page has transferred. The vertical scroll box scrolls up as Internet Explorer adds more
information and detail to the page. Although you don't need to wait until the page is complete
before scrolling or clicking another link, it might be difficult to determine links and other
information until the page is mostly filled in.
13
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
2. From the Internet Options dialog box Fig. 10.14(b), click Use current button, and then click
OK to exit.
3. To go to your Home-page after a web surfing session, just click the Home icon .
1. Point to the “About Global Open Versity” link. Notice that the pointer changes shape from
to indicating that you are pointing to a hypertext link. The status bar shows the target for
that link, as shown in Fig. 10.15.
2. Click to activate the link. The status bar notes the progress of the link, although this might
happen so fast that you can't see it. When the status bar displays, "Done," the link is
complete and the Web page that is the target of the link appears.
If a message dialog box opens, the link was not successful. Click the OK button to close the dialog
box, and repeat Steps 1 and 2. After you click the hypertext link, be sure not to click anywhere
else on the page until Internet Explorer completes the link.
Note: You connected to a Web page with a single click. Using hypertext links is a simple way to
move from one Web page to another. Internet Explorer displays text links you've already visited,
or activated, in a different color so you know which links you've already tried.
When connecting from home, if you are prompted to choose whether or not to stay connected to
the Internet, click the Stay Connected button because if you don’t click that you will be
disconnected from the internet and you need to redial in again to be connected.
Web servers that serve Web pages, as shown in Fig. 10.16, use standardized procedures, called
protocols, to transmit files. Web documents travel between sites using HyperText Transfer
Protocol or HTTP, so the URL (address) for a Web page usually begins with "http://" to
15
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
identify its type. Another common protocol you might see is File Transfer Protocol, or FTP,
a protocol that facilitates transferring files over the Internet.
The server address contains the domain name and tells the exact location of the Internet server
and the type of organization that owns and operates it. For example, in the domain name
"www.greenafrica.org" the "www" indicates that the server is on the World Wide Web, "org"
indicates the name of the organization that owns the server (Assumption greenafrica), and "org"
indicates that it's an Not-for-profit site. The entire domain name tells you that
GREENAFRICAAFRICA is a non-governmental organization site on the Web. Outside the
United States, domain name types sometimes include a two-letter country code. For example,
".ke" identifies a server located in Kenya. Table 10.2 lists some common domain name types.
The filename extension for Web pages is usually ".html" (or just ".htm"), which stands for
hypertext markup language. The greeafrica file for the Partnerships program, for example, is
named "Partnerhsip_main.htm" and is located in the Partnerships folder on the www server.
Remembering two important facts about a URL makes using a URL to access an Internet site
significantly easier:
• Some servers are case-sensitive, and they might interpret the URL
http://www.mydomain.com differently from http://www.Mydomain.com. If the server
cannot interpret case-sensitive addresses, it cannot locate a URL whose characters' cases
have been incorrectly entered. Whether you copy a URL from a magazine article or
receive it from a friend, do ensure to copy and type the characters and their cases exactly
in the Address bar.
• Internet sites continuously undergo name and address changes. A network server might
have changed names, the previously visited webpage link might be stored in a different
folder, or the page you want may no longer be available. Remember no one person or
organization controls the Internet. Organizations and individuals can add, rename, and
delete folders and files at will. Often when a URL changes, you can find the forwarding
address (URL) at the old URL. Other sites will simply vanish from servers, leaving no
forwarding information.
For example, clicking the link shown in Fig. 10.17 leads to a page not found – indicating
a broken link, page moved or deleted – and is usually displayed with "HTTP Not Found"
page display, as shown in Fig. 10.18.
16
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Before you actually enter a URL in the Address bar, you should be aware of the Internet Explorer
AutoComplete feature, which remembers Web addresses and other information that you
previously entered. When you type a URL you've entered before, Internet Explorer attempts to
complete it for you. As you type, a list of suggested matches appears. If no suggestions match the
address you want to enter, for now simply ignore the suggestion list and continue typing the
URL.
Internet Explorer also attempts to complete URLs that you only partially type. For example, if
you type the incomplete URL "www.nasa.gov" Internet Explorer connects you to
http://www.nasa.gov/missions/index.html, the NASA- Missions page at the NASA Web
site.
Remember to access an Web site, ensure to enter the correct URL, i.e.,
• Type a URL into the Address box, and click the Go icon .
or
• Type a URL into the Address box, and press Enter key on your keyboard.
17
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
1. You successfully reach your target page. Internet Explorer contacts the server, locates the
file, transfers it from the server to your computer, and displays it on your screen.
2. The server is busy and perhaps overwhelmed with too many requests. You get a server
busy display alert page. You'll need to try again later.
3. The URL targets a file that doesn't exist or has been moved. Documents that become
obsolete are often removed from Web servers or moved to new locations. You get a
"HTTP Not Found" display on your screen. There are many reasons for this type of cases:
The links that point to those documents are not always updated. Web hosts are also
sometimes taken out of service. Some inactive sites supply an informational page that
tells you the site is no longer active; others let you know that the URL has changed and
provide the new URL; still others supply no forwarding information.
Like an expressway, the Internet sometimes becomes so congested that the paths cannot support
the number of users at peak times. When this happens, traffic backs up and slows to a halt, in
effect closing the road. In such cases, aborting, or interrupting, a connection is like taking
the next exit ramp on the Internet. When the response time seems too slow (longer than a few
minutes) or nothing seems to be happening, you have no way of knowing how long connection
will take. You can tell that a link is stalled when the activity indicator is animated, but the status
bar makes no progress. Rather than wait for a site that has a long queue or is so busy it cannot
respond to your request, you can abort the connection.
18
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
19
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
2. In the next example, enter the address http://www.greenafrica.com/. You should see an
error message stating that - The webpage "www.greenafrica.com" cannot be found.
This is an example of a nonexistent web site, see Fig. 10.20.
You can also quickly jump randomly to recently visited pages using the Recent Pages visited
drop-down button, . Or client the History button to access older previously visited site,
see Page 10.21.
20
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
To visit and then browse among visited Web pages, do the following:
1. Enter the address "www.nasa.gov, and then hit the Enter key to access "NASA - Home"
page.
2. Now click on the "MISSIONS" button on the top menu on the web page.
3. Next click on the "Current Mission" menu option on the left side of the web page.
4. Click the Back button to take you to the "NASA - Home" main page.
5. Now click the Forward button to take you back to the "Current Mission" page.
6. Click other links on the NASA’s website and browse around to check out what’s NASA
up to these days!
21
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Web pages can be any size; however, printers tend to use 8 1/2" X 11" or A4 paper. When you
print, Internet Explorer automatically reformats the Web page text to fit the page dimensions.
Because lines may break at different places or text size may change, the printed Web page may
be longer than you expect. You can specify the number of pages you want to print in the Print
dialog box, Fig. 10.25b.
You can also specify header text to appear at the top of the printed page or footer text to appear at
the bottom. The header and footer can contain information such as the URL, the date, the current
page number, the total pages number, and any text you want to add. You enter header and footer
text in the Page Setup dialog box. You indicate the text you want to include by typing codes like
those shown in Table 10.3.
Code Description
&w Window title
&u URL
&d Date
&t Time
&p Current page number
&P Total number of pages
&b Centers text immediately following these characters
Centers text immediately following the first three characters, and right-justifies
&b&b
text following the second &b.
Note: The Print dialog box also gives you the option to print all linked documents and a table of
links, which lists all links in the document.
1. Fire your browser and enter the following URL in the Address bar
http://www.greenafrica.org./Africa.htm, and hit Enter or click Go arrow
2. Next, chick File > Page Setup, to access the Page Setup dialog box. Notice whether
header and footer information appears in the Header and Footer boxes, see Fig. 10.26.
23
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
If not, type &w&bPage &p of &P in the Header box and &u&b&d in the Footer box. This
instructs Internet Explorer to print the window title, current page number, and
total pages number in the header, and the URL and date in the footer, see Fig. 10.26.
4. Click File >Print to access the Print dialog box, see Fig. 10.26. Notice the available
printing options, especially the Print Range default setting of All. If the Web page were
longer and you wanted to print only the first page, you could click the Pages option
button, and enter 1 in both the from and to boxes.
5. From Print dialog box, click the Options tab. Ensure that the Print all linked documents
and Print table of links check boxes are deselected, see Fig. 10.27.
24
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Fig. 10.27
You can also print a page quickly by clicking the Print button on the toolbar. However, the
Print button bypasses the Print dialog box and prints using default settings, so use the Print
button only when you don't need to limit the number of pages, choose a different printer, or
change any other print settings.
After you find the Help topic you want, it "floats" on top of the screen so you can refer to the
suggested steps as you work. You can click the Hide button on the Help toolbar to reduce the
Help window's size.
25
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
2. Click Help menu > Contents and Index (Fig.10.28) then click Contents tab and then Index.
The Help window opens.
Fig. 10.28
4. Type images in the box, a Topics Found dialog box pops dialog box with options topics
to choose from. Select "Saving pictures or text from a webpage" then click the
Display button, see Fig. 10.30.
26
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
5. Next, wait until you see the word "images" highlighted in the Index list. Notice that the
Help system scrolls to match the letters as you type them. Read the text to learn how to
“Save pictures from a webpage”, see Fig. 10.31.
27
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
6. Next type "get.. and select the desired topic from the matched topics that comes up, see
Fig. 10.32. Click the entry hiding to "getting started with Internet Explorer"
from the Index topics.
Now assume that we’re interested to dig more on the working security features available
in IE that we can use to protect ourselves hackers and ID theft cyber-criminals. In the
second listed topic on the right pane, just fits the bill – so go ahead click “Help protect
yourself from fraudulent websites (by using Phishing Filter)” link. Now take time to careful read
what is Phishing and how you can protect yourself against attacks, see Fig. 10.33.
28
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Fig. 10.33: Help topic on how to protect yourself against Phishing attacks.
7. Next the Options button. Notice that a menu appears, giving you the opportunity to print
the Help topic if so you wish.
8. Once you’re done browsing and reading the topics of interest then click the close button
in the help window to close Help dialog box.
29
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
10.9 Using the Back and Forward Lists to Browse the Web
Recall that the Back and Forward buttons each contain arrows that you can click to open Back and
Forward lists, which show all pages going back to a certain point in time and all pages going
forward to a certain point in time. This option lets you return randomly to pages you viewed
earlier in the session with a single click. Although you can click the Back button repeatedly to
return to a page, the Back or Forward list is usually quicker if you've navigated multiple Web
pages. If you haven't yet navigated any pages in the current session, however, the Back and
Forward buttons are gray, indicating they are unavailable.
1. Click the Recent Pages drop-down menu arrow con immediately to the right of the
Forward button. The Recent Pages visited are listed, as shown in Figs. 10.35. Your Recent
visited web-pages list will differ, depending on which sites you visited.
2. From the display list, click a site you visited to revisit it again, see Fig. 10.36. It will checked
market and highlighted to indicate that it’s your current page.
30
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Fig. 10.36
Fig. 10.37
31
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
1. On the Address Bar click the Address list arrow to open the Address list and click the
www.globalopenversity.org, see Fig.10.37.
2. Alternatively, you can enter in the Address bar www.globalopenversity.org and click
the Go button
• Click the History button on the Standard toolbar located under the Favorite icon, see Fig.
10.38.
Fig. 10.38: Shows the History button (a), and History drop down list (b)
• You can choose to view by: By Date, Site, By Most Visited, By Order Visited,
or Search History (b)
• Let’s select to view By Date, so go ahead and click it, which should result in Fig. 10.39.
You should see different display depending on your today’s-date.
Fig. 10.39
• Now click any of the desired listed days, and browse the sites and web-pages you visited
that day.
• Click the link you want to view. This will open the requested web site on the right side of
the history panel.
• You may now close the History panel by clicking on the Close button.
32
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Fig. 10.40: Click the Add to Favorites icon to access the Add a Favorite dialog box
3. From Add a Favorite dialog box you have the option to add it directly to Favorites folder,
under a different folder, which you can access by clicking the drop down arrow .
Alternatively, you can place your new favorite webpage under a new folder. To do this click
the New Folder button to access the Create a Folder dialog box (a), name the new folder say,
Assignment, then click the Create button. Next, from the Add a Favorite (b) click the Add
button to add it your Assignment folder, and that’s it, see Fig. 10.41.
33
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Fig. 10.41: Creating a new Favorite folder to organize our favorite’s sites.
Fig. 10.42
34
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
1. Click Favorites on the menu bar, and then click Organize Favorites (a), to access the Organize
Favorite dialog box (b), as shown in Fig. 10.43.
Fig. 10.43: Click Favorites > Organize Favorites... to manage your Favorites folders.
2. You can use this option to create folders, rename a link to be more descriptive, move a link
into a different folder, and delete folders or links.
3. Press Close when done.
as text (for example, on the Green Africa Network home page, by placing the cursor over the
words "Projects" in the "Site Info" section, you will see the link pointing to
"http://www.greenafrica.org./Projects/Projects_main.htm"). By clicking that link, the browser
will then open the file you have clicked.
Links that go to files with extensions such as .htm, .html, .shtml, .jhtml, .php, .asp and their
variants will bring you to another web page. Notice what the file extension of a link is before you
click it; any files can be linked to online.
Viruses Warning!
Note: While the vast majority of links will be other web pages (and images), you may come
across files such as .zip, and .exe. Hence, be aware of what it is, exactly, that you are clicking;
you might unintentionally click a link containing viruses which could harm your computer. For
more information, search the web on information relating with viruses, and how to defend against
them.
Search engines can help you find information on the World Wide Web, but you'll get more chaff
than wheat unless you learn general search strategies and the particular search syntax for your
36
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
favorite search engine. In this tutorial we’ll stick with Google Search Engine, which you can
access by typing: www.google.com in your browser Address bar, as shown in Fig. 10.47
So the next question you may ask is; how can I maximize my search results:
• Many people think that the value of a search engine is this: Put in a little information and
you get a lot in return.
• But the best searching is based on this principle: Put in a lot, and you might just get back
what you want.
• To learn the lingo for your favorite search tool, look for "Help" or "search tips" on its
main page.
images/pictures and text links for information on UFOs. Now browse the listed sites and enjoying
learning about UFOs.
1. Be Natural
Type in what you want to know, rather than a list of synonyms. Websites are written in
flowing language, and search engines are being taught to understand the same.
• If you would've asked a fellow human "is jogging and walking healthy?"
• Then query the search engine "jogging and walking" AND health rather than jogging walking healthy
38
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Note: For a few engines the word order is important, so always enter the rare word first. And
interchanging the order of keywords could lead to better or worse results!
3. Exclude Words
This can be achieved by using a "-" to filter out unnecessary hits.
Assume that you intend to visit London this summer. You also know that there’s a great Sharon Stone
hairdressing salon downtown. So you decide to search the homepage of Sharon Stone.
Keyword: Sharon Stone gives 14,400,000 hits; Sharon Stone Hairdressing (914,000);
Sharon Stone Hairdressing London (351,000)
Now let’s try be more specific to avoid all the millions of unnecessary pages dedicated to the American actress
film star, use this:
"Sharon Stone" hairdresser AND London -"Sharon Stone Actress" -movies -superstar –pictures
will result in a manageable 1,220 hits
Note: You can add or remove phrases to improve your search experience.
4. Spell It Right
Incorrect spelling can lead to tremendous loss of information and a waste of your precious
time. Assume you intend to head to the tropical equatorial heat of the coastal city of
Mombasa Kenya. So let’s search Mombassa instead
Note: It’s also important that you be aware of the difference between UK and American
English spelling, e.g., Program and Programme. This is very important when doing a job
search. In this case: Program Manager (American) and Programme Manager (UK) are but
the same thing. The only exception is in computer application where the spelling is the same.
In some cases, Google will prompt you for the correct spelling.
39
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
Note: Google will find complete phrases, including stop words, when the phrase is "within
quotes". However, a phrase without quotes will ignore the stop words
For example, "surf the web" contains two stop words: the & web.
- Consequently the search engine will only look for "surfing".
- If you are aware of this, you can add a more specific keyword to narrow your search, like: "surfing lessons"
Note: Google will let you know of any words it has excluded
6. Reverse Questions
In most cases, search engines will look for pieces of text that match your query. Web pages
are more likely to contain answers than questions - so search for the answer. Therefore, it is
important that you phrase your query how you would expect the answer to read - the
difference appears slight, but it makes a huge difference.
Note: Google has most of the web cached. If a link is dead, clicking on the Cached link will
bring up how it looked when it was indexed
You can also get help from: The Wayback Machine to find historical copies of web pages.
40
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada
• In general, the most useful pages will be between 10k and 80k
• To locate the text or phrase within a huge page, with IE browser click from menu "Edit >
Find on this page..." then enter the phrase to find.
Note: Google results list a maximum size of 101k. Many of such huge pages will be much,
much larger and take forever to download.
9. Boolean Algebra
Named after an Irishman tradesman George Boole; a man with great gifted studious character
and active mind. Boolean phrases (algebra) are a system of logical combinations, using words
like AND, OR & NOT. When used, it is best to always capitalize them.
Boolean Description
Orange AND Mangoes AND Quaver
AND or "+" Orange + Mangoes + Quaver
AND requires the word to be present
Cola OR Tea
OR
OR allows either word to be present
Cola NOT Juice
Cola – Juice
NOT or "-"
NOT excludes words. In this example results should display sites about
communism and not comedy.
NEST THEM You can nest the above Booleans to improve your web search experience!
Now you’re a fully equipped web surfing savvy whiz! And thanks for staying to the end.
Enjoy Web Browsing and take great precaution to surf the web carefully – the web is like a Wild
Wild West – the bad guys (hackers & cyber-criminals) lie in waiting like a lethal venomous green
snake in the green-grass – and can hit any time while you’re out & about there!
So to better protect yourself – do ensure that you have a good Antivirus and Firewall solutions on
your computer. You can buy one from any computer store, or you can opt to use the free personal
version of commercial ones, from the reputable vendors’ site. However, do a careful research as
to which one is good for you before you get one, commercial or free version!
END-MOD.10
41
April 2007, Kefa Rabah, Global Open Versity, Vancouver Canada