Internet Search Tools

Search:
I visited all the search tools in the first list and chose to explore "Gigablast" since it's boasting a 90% greenness. You have to try and be environmentally conscious these days right? Anyway, it's a very clean and simple layout which I like. It's not full of ad banners like some of the others. I tried the [mullet] search and didn't get one hit on the first page referring to fish. I then tried [mullet and fish -hair*] and really narrowed it down. This engine seems to work like Google or Yahoo in terms of boolean operators. I would have to say its advanced features are not quite what Google has but will do the job especially if you already know your boolean operators. I would use it again for research or casual use and I bookmarked it so I can.

Review 5 Features:
1. Supports Boolean Operators
2. Has an advanced search feature with drop-down boxes.
3. Customized Tool Bar with restricted searches to designated url's.
4. Did I mention it's Green?
5. Number five is extraneous because it's just that simple. I'm struggling for unique features at this point. Let's move on.

Meta:
From the second list I chose the "Ixquick" metasearch tool. It has a fancy streamlined look just like Gigablast. Some just have too many links and stuff all over the place! So this one produced some articles about fish on my first try with just [mullet]. That seems like a pretty good start. I tried [mullet -hair] and it produced similar results to Gigablast. You can also filter by category such as pictures or video. I don't see a major difference between the first two search tool lists.

Review 5 Features:

1. Supports Boolean Operators similar to above

2. Has an advanced search feature with drop-down boxes.

3. Filter by domain type

4. Filter your search by "host" or "hosts" of specific computers( this seems kind of unique)

5. Use boolean to search titles and links etc..

Subject Directory:

And the last list is the one I was most curious about. I chose "Infomine" because I liked the way it is categorized on the homepage. The overall look is a little shabby though. You won't get many hits for [mullet] here however(sad). Looks like the regular search engines are best for that kind of stuff. I really like the searching power of the subject directories. You have more versatility with boolean operators. For academic purposes this seems to be the best option once you know what your looking for. Very similar to Proquest or Ebsco in features. I'm not sure why I just wouldn't stick to our library resources. I suppose if I was researching something that was really specific and was having a hard time finding anything in our databases. 

5 Features:

1. Supports Complex Boolean Operators

2. Has an advanced search feature with MANY drop-down box options

3. Filter your searches in many ways such as "access"(free or not) and "type"(journals, books etc..)

4. Limit your searches to a specific category such as "medical" or "arts"

5. Limit your search to specific fields such as "title"

Periodical Indexes

First off I just want to clarify that I modified my statement entirely. My search results were not very productive and I thought I could make this entry more relevant to a current project in another class. I hope this is ok. Here's the new question:

Is domestic violence more prevalent among Native American communities?

Here was my search statement:


"domestic violence" or "family violence" and "native american*" or "american indian" and prevalen*

I got quite a few more results by adding "american indian" than I expected. I sometimes forget that what seems to be the norm here (or PC) is not necessarily the norm everywhere else. I needed to broaden my search however to get an article from a popular magazine. Not sure how popular Peacework is but it will work. I used the "refine search" option and at the bottom you can limit your search to "publication type". I selected "magazine" and got a few results. I also simplified my search statement to the following:


domestic or violence and "native american*" or "american indian "and prevalen*

Annotated Bibliography
David G Fairchild, Molly Wilson Fairchild, and Shirley Stoner. "Prevalence of adult domestic violence among women seeking routine care in a Native American health care facility. " American Journal of Public Health  88.10 (1998): 1515-1517. Platinum Periodicals, ProQuest. Web.  20 Feb. 2011.
This article looked relevant and appropriate due to its title and the fact that its the American Journal of Public Health. It's older but there's not really an abundance of empirical studies conducted on this topic.


Anonymous, . "Northern Michigan event to benefit Rosebud shelter. " News from Indian Country  10  Dec. 2007,Ethnic NewsWatch (ENW), ProQuest. Web.  20 Feb. 2011
This news story didn't tell me too much from the title but the fact that it had "shelter" in it told me enough. The title of the paper tells me it's culturally relevant as well. It is also quite current. 


"Maze of Injustice: Native American and Alaska Native Women Work to Stop the Violence. " Peacework  1 Sep. 2007: Platinum Periodicals, ProQuest. Web.  20 Feb. 2011.
This was tough to find but perfect. The title says it all. Not sure how popular the magazine is but it's in a reliable database. 

Boolean Operators

1. Will presidential election reform solve the issues with the electoral college and the popular vote?

president* and elect* and reform and "electoral college" and "popular vote"

2. Does anti-smoking advertising by the tobacco industry lead to increased smoking among youth?

"anti-smoking" and advertis* and  "tobacco industry" and youth

3. Target often forces musicians to alter lyrics in order to have their CDs sold in Target stores. Is this censorship?

target or musician* or lyric* CD* and censorship

4. Debate the pros and cons of fish farming

pros and cons  "fish farming"

5. Has the U.S. trade and globalization policy hurt the middle class?

U.S. and trade and global* and policy and "middle class")

Does too much family privacy permit domestic violence?

famil* and priva* and "domestic violence"

Google Books and Summary

Search Terms:

Domestic Violence

Summers, Randal W., Hoffman, Allan Michael. "Domestic Violence: A Global View". Westport: Greenwood Press, 2002.

It looks like the publishing company does encyclopedias and academic type things. Also, a quick search for the author(s) turns up several scholarly type books so I believe this is a reliable source.

All in all these four ways of getting information are very good. I had the hardest time with the library and the easiest with Google Books. Books 24x7 was cool but limited in respect to genre and Summit was probably the best of both, ease of use and search capability. The library has some issues with links that could be more efficient. It seemed to be a vicious cycle of links that would direct you back to where you started. It would be useful to have links that take you directly to the resource, even if it's kept on an outside website. With that said, I now have more than enough choices to get the information I need for my research.

Books 24x7

Very cool site! I must admit, when I first arrived I thought it was ALL book genres. On the other hand, the library's main site has tons of resources for all kinds of books. The IT Pro site has more computer related books than I could ever want. I've attempted to dabble in programming and now I have another powerful resource. Lots of cool ways to refine your searches to get exactly what you want. So I searched for "mac" since that's what I'm using these days and refined my search using the advanced features to include "snow leopard". This turned up a bunch of books relative to my computer's operating system. I'll book mark this site too.

Summit Catalog

Search Terms: Domestic Violence

Citation:


Nicky Ali Jackson. Encyclopedia of Domestic Violence. New York: Routledge, 2007.

Related Subjects:


Family violence -- Encyclopedias
Domestic Violence -- Encyclopedias -- English

Location: Internet or Wilson W. Clark Memorial Library (Reference)
Call Number: HV6626 .E534 2007

First off this search went WAY smoother than the library. The first search turned up a list of results that could easily be referenced and found at various locations. The author is likely trustworthy being that this is a relatively new one and it includes bibliographical references. Not sure if Routledge is an academic publisher but considering the material there's a good chance it is.

Library Catalog

Search Terms:

domestic violence and family privacy
domestic violence

Citation:

Wilson, Mike. "Domestic Violence". Detroit : Greenhaven Press, c2009.

Subject Headings: Family Violence -- Prevention

This is a circulating book.

Location: Cannel Second Floor
Call Number: HV6626 .D634 2009

First I just need to say that the search results from the library catalog and the links do not always follow through to the book or document you're searching for. This can be extremely frustrating. The book appears to be a collection of essays written by various authors so I'm not sure about the credibility although everything seems to be cited. Anyway, so the search leads me to the Gale Opposing Viewpoints site which returns nothing. I had a little better luck with circulating books for finding a title. Maybe I need a new topic (or more patience) or maybe I'll have better luck with google. This was a frustrating experience.