Internet Search Tools

General Search Tools | Filtered Search Tools | Meta Search Tools | Specialized Search Tools | The Invisible Web | Improving Your Search Results

General Search Tools

  • AlltheWeb
    AlltheWeb combines one of the largest and freshest indices with the most powerful search features.
  • ALTAVISTA
    Searches 100 million web pages for the words that you request. It searches both the document titles and headings, as well as within the documents. Search in 25 languages. Translate in 6 languages. Use the "Family Filter" to reduce your chances of finding objectionable material.
  • Ask.com
    Uses the Teoma database to offer search for web sites, news, weather reports, pictures, stocks, people or products.
  • EXCITE
    Uses a combination of text and subject indices to search either by keyword or by concept. Concept searches, according to the Excite authors, find documents related to the idea of your search, and not just documents explicitly containing the search terms you enter.
  • Faganfinder
    Fagan Finder is a website designed as a tool, to help people find things, and it is meant to be a gateway to the Internet, a quality home page.
  • FAST Search
    Formerly called All The Web, FAST Search aims to index the entire web. It was the first search engine to break the 200 million web page index milestone. The Norwegian company behind FAST Search also powers the Lycos MP3 search engine. FAST Search launched in May 1999.
  • GOOGLE!
    Google crawls the Web scooping up hyperlinks and uses them to figure out how important a page is by who is using it. It draws on the Web itself to deliver more relevant answers to queries.
  • Google Gumshoe
    Google Gumshoe is a search tool that allows you to dig deep into the internet and find exactly what you are looking for and then some.
  • HOTBOT
    Includes the ability to limit searches to Web pages that contain specific technologies such as JavaScript or Shockwave.
  • INFOSEEK
    Searches not only the Web and Usenet, but also Web frequently asked questions (FAQs), e-mail addresses, current news, and company listings. Use the "GOguardian" to filter out inappropriate adult content.
  • LOOKSMART
    Select a specific category of information or type in your query and "Search" will first find sites selected and reviewed by the Look Smart editors and then it will hunt in AltaVista's index of over 30 million web sites.
  • LYCOS
    Offers both keyword and subject searching (the subject searches are called directory services), as well as a Point rating system which rates web pages.
  • Search Engines
    This is a comprehensive guide to individual search engines, meta search engines, search engine collections and specialty search engines. This list was updated in February 2007.
  • VIVISIMO
    Organized search results with document clustering.
  • WEBCRAWLER
    Does "natural language searching," so you can enter a search like "highest mountain in the world." It throws out the noise words, and does a fuzzy AND search on the others.
  • YAHOO
    Yahoo is not a search tool, but strictly a hierarchically arranged subject index. It has developed over a long time, with lots of editorial care, so the quality is very high. Browsing Yahoo is the best way to surf for good sites when you don't know (or perhaps care) where exactly you are going.

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Filtered Search Tools

Meta Search Tools (will send your query to multiple search tools at the same time)

  • IXQUICK
    Ixquick searches many prominent engines simultaneously (in parallel). It then translates your search into each search engine's syntax. You can perform natural language or complex boolean searches. It eliminates duplicates. It awards one star for each search engine that placed a site in its top ten. It prioritizes sites that appear earlier in the top ten rankings--and tells you the rankings. It lets you jump directly to the search engines when an engine's results seem particularly valuable to you.
  • MAMMA
    Mamma offers simultaneous coverage of the major search engines in one simple query. Mamma also allows users to use any type of search syntax so it's not necessary to master several different styles of syntax. Moreover, Mamma is capable of including special syntax by itself for queries that are not entered correctly by the user.
  • METACRAWLER
    MetaCrawler is part of Go2Net. Go2Net is a network of branded, technology- and community-driven Web sites focused on the following categories: personal finance, search, commerce, and games. In response to every user query, MetaCrawler incorporates from the top search engines on the Web. It collates results, eliminates duplication, scores the results and provides the user with a comprehensive list of relevant sites. MetaCrawler offers a low-bandwidth version, power-search options, and other customizable features.
  • Monster Crawler
    Monster Crawler combines the power of all the leading search engines together in one search box to deliver the best combined results.
  • SEARCH.COM
    A search system designed to query multiple Internet search tools simultaneously. It serves as the access point for over 1,000 search engines, guides, auctions, storefronts, Usenet and Netnews archives, and more, making it one of the most extensive data sources available.
  • Search Engines
    This is a comprehensive guide to individual search engines, meta search engines, search engine collections and specialty search engines. This list was updated in February 2007.

The Invisible Web (Finds files regular search engines can't index such as PDF, ASP, Flash, and Streaming Video)

  • CompletePlanet
    CompletePlanet is a complete source for search engines and databases. The site lets you explore the quantity and quality of thousands of searchable databases that other search engines cannot even find. The results from a CompletePlanet search take you to the front door of up to 20,000 such sites.
  • Librarians' Index to the Internet
    A searchable, annotated subject directory of more than 7,100 Internet resources selected and evaluated by librarians for their usefulness to users of public libraries. It's meant to be used by both librarians and non-librarians as a reliable and efficient guide to described and evaluated Internet resources.
  • Search Systems Public Records Database Collection
    One of the largest and most comprehensive collection of links to free public records databases on the internet. Almost 2,400 free searchable public record databases.
  • Search Engines
    This is a comprehensive guide to individual search engines, meta search engines, search engine collections and specialty search engines. This list was updated in February 2007.

Specialized Search Tools

 

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