As the number of sites on the web has grown, so have the number of sites designed to help you find other sites. Some of these are very general, and contain pages which link to many different categories of site. You will notice that they are dominated by sites from the USA, and even more strongly dominated by advertising, which is their primary source of income.
Open a second window in your browser, then go to the Google search engine. Type in your name (first name and last name) (e.g. Elvis Elderberry) in the box and then click on the Search button.You will get a list of sites in which your namesakes appear. Don't be surprised if the search engine tells you that there are many thousands of results. They will all be 'ranked'. Listed at the top will be those sites that include your name near the beginning of the page or in the title. As a general rule, when you use a search engine you get vast numbers of results, but the most useful are likely to be listed at the top. A large number of hits was returned because Google found every page that contained your first name and every page that included your last name, as well as sites with both. You can narrow your search down by using quotation marks.
Go to the Google search engine again. This time type in your name in quotes, for example "Elvis Elderberry", and then click Search.This time there will be a very much smaller number of hits, because Google has only searched for your complete name as a single phrase. It does not include sites with only your first name, or only your last name. However, the first few hits are likely to be the same as before.
Try to narrow the search down even further, by adding extra information such as "United States" or some interest or hobby of yours (for example, "Elvis Elderberry" "United States")You might find that the number of hits has increased, because the search engine will also include the large number of sites which contain "United States" but not your name.
You can also use Search Engines to translate from one language to another. Find a site that will translate the following sentence into Greek, Japanese, Russian and German. Copy the results and paste on your paper. Label each language translation.
Choose FOUR search engines from our Search Engine web page and compare what you find when you put in the term Podcasting. Copy the first two lines of what you find and paste it into your Word document. Make sure you label what you cut and paste from each search engine you used.
When you come to try other search engines you will find that all of them can be used simply by typing in a few words. Some of them use the same methods of narrowing searches as Google, but others use quite different methods. When trying a new search engine it is useful to look at their 'help' or 'tips' to see how they work.
There are many online newspapers and magazines on the web. Have a look at the International Herald Tribune and find out what today's leading headline is.
Create a bookmark or favourite in your browser for the International Herald Tribune web site.
Are you planning a train journey? Here is a database giving a complete listing of Amtrak train timetables. Find the times of the next few trains from your town to the next major city.
Create a Bookmark or Favorite in your browser for the Amtrak timetable site.
There are many sites that give weather forecasts from around the world. Have a look at the current forecast for your region for the next 24 hours from the Weather Channel.
Create a Bookmark or Favorite in your browser for the Weather Channel site.