Hit: Elem. Engines/Directories

[Wanda Nall <wnall@new-murphey.tenet.edu>]

Several had asked for a post on these questions.

My origingal Post:
Subject: Elem:
>
> How do you describe the difference to children in a search engine and a
> directory?
> Which is your favorite search engine/directory for k-3?

THe Replies:

I tell kids that a directory is created by humans who decide what should be
included. I tell them that a search engine is a computer program that
follows our directions and that we need to very exact and descriptive when
typing in a keyword search. Basically I recommend using directores like
Yahooigans and Kids Click with younger students ( K-3). And keyword
searching for older kids using altavista search engine because it is the
best reviewed in comparison studies.

Wanda, I am taking an on-line class and this is the definition we received.
Search Engines vs. Subject Directories Subject directories (also called
catalogs or indexes) are created by human indexers or editors who think
about the theme of the page and create an organization. They retrieve
categories as well as web sites. Directories are sorted by subjects and
managed by people. Examples of directories: Yahoo, Yahooligans (for ages 7
to 12. Magellan, IPL, Cool School Tools, Berkeley Yahoo, and its younger
counterpart Yahooligans, is probably the most famous directory in the
world. It is one of the first, most impressive attempts to index the
Internet. Use it to drill down from larger to smaller menus--narrower and
narrower categories. Yahoo, and the subject directories are like trees with
large branches and smaller branches. They can be compared to traditional
outlines or book indexes. Yahoo, does have its own search engine too, but
it only searches the Yahoo catalog. Use a subject directory when browsing
for ideas, in searching general concepts, or getting a feel for what's
available on a topic. A 2nd grader looking for information on cats should
definitely start with a subject directory. A science teacher looking for an
overview of sites relating to chemistry would probably be better off in a
subject directory. Search engines use a keyword approach. Computers do not
organize information like people do. They do not make thoughtful decisions
about what documents fit in which categories--they merely match
characters--letters and numbers. Search engines use spiders to retrieve
information. Spiders are automatic computer programs that search the Web
looking for documents to add to a search engine database and retrieve
documents. Some spiders look only in document titles, others look through
the full text of a document for matches. The spiders really search
mindlessly. They look for matches. They don't think about synonyms or
related words. In a keyword search you need to do the thinking! Search
engines usually offer a high percentage of documents that are irrelevant.
To use them well you need to understand how they work and learn strategies.
You should learn the syntax of the search engine you are using. Use search
engines, when you have unique terms, when you are combining more than one
word, phrase or concept.

Hi, I liken a directory to the yellow pages in the phone book. Usually the
directory is set in categories as is the yellow pages. Benefit of the
directories is that usually the sites have all been evaluated for them My
two favorite sites for K-5 are the following: Kids Click! - maintained by
30 media specialists in California http://sunsite.berkeley.edu/KidsClick!/
great resource for teachers too since advanced search lets you choose
reading level. Yahooligans by Yahoo is also a good site where sites have
been evaluated. http://www.yahooligans.com/ Trust this is helpful. Would
love to have a hit on the sites for K-3.

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