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Successful Searching OnlineMaking the Most of Your Time Online

D. Joshua Taylor, MA, MLS

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+Infoglut:

“an excess amount of information being provided, making processing and absorbing tasks very difficult for the individual because sometimes we cannot see the validity behind the information”

“Infoglut,” Wikipedia, accessed online <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Infoglut>, December 30, 2011.

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+How the Web Works…

Infoglut

Metadata “data about data”

Search engines

Digitized images

Social Networking Twitter

Facebook

WeRelate

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+Use a Research Log

Databases ScotlandsPeople

ArchiveFinder

Findmypast.com.au

Google Websites

Blog Postings

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+Use a Research Log

Avoid Duplication

Analyse Your Approach

Evaluate Progress

Create New Searches

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+Search Parameters

Domains

Website Subscription Level

Date

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+Search Phrases

Keywords

Quotations

Parenthesis

Asterisks

Auto-Corrections

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+Search Results

Quantity

Summarize

Returned vs. Examined

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+Your Research Log…

Did you miss something?

What didn’t you find?

What worked?

What didn’t work?

What other searches can I do?

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+Using the Cloud

Document Collaboration

Research Notes/Logs

Data Access

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+GoogleDrive

GoogleDocs Word Processing

Spreadsheets

Presentations

Collaborate: View

Share

Edit/Revise

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+Evernote

Cloud-Based System

Synch Between: Desktops/Laptops

Mobile Devices

OCR Capability

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+Evernote

E-mail Upload

Benefits: Central Location

Automated Synchronization

Tags

Cost: 60MB (free)

Paid Upgrades

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+Evernote

Possible Uses: Research Notes

Research Logs

Documents

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+Expand Your Search

Multiple Search Phrases Synonyms

Alternate Spellings

Abbreviations

Boolean Tools

Truncation

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+Synonyms…

“I want to find information about Thomas Allison, born 1798 in England, died 1862 in New Zealand.”

information = data, facts, statistics, research, source, details

Thomas Allison = Thos. Allison, Tom Allison, Thos. Allyson, Tom Allyson, Thomas Allyson

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+Synonyms…

“I want to discover how to research my Danish genealogy.”

discover = find out, learn, determine, search

how = guide, learn, tutorial, explain, process

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+Synonyms…

“I want to discover how to research my Danish genealogy.”

research = search, study, explore, seek

Danish = Denmark, Danmark, Danes

Genealogy = family history, family tree, ancestry, document, data This

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+Synonyms

“How many children did Franklin B. Smith have?”

Children Child

Male

Female

Boy

Girl

Infant

Unknown

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+Synonyms

“How many children did Franklin B. Smith have?”

Franklin B. Smith Frank B. Smith Franklin Smith F.B. Smith Frank Smith Franklin B. Smyth Frank B. Smyth Franklin Smyth F.B. Smyth Frank Smyth

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+Synonyms

“When and where did Mary A. Dennett marry Patrick Doughty?

Mary A. Dennett Mary A. Denet

Mary Denet

Mary Dennet

Mary A. Dennet

Mary A. Denett

Mary Denett

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+Synonyms

“When and where did Mary A. Dennett marry Patrick Doughty?

Patrick Doughty Pat Doughty

Patrick Dughty

Patrick Doghty

Patrick Doty

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+Finding Synonyms

Observe and Record

Ask Others

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+Applying Synonyms

Boolean Operations

Phrase Searching

Truncation

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+Boolean Operations

AND

OR

AND NOT

NOT

NEAR

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+Boolean Examples

(marry OR married OR intention OR spouse OR bann)

(married AND date AND place)

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+Phrase Searching

Phrases = “family history” OR (family history)

Places = “Trowbridge, England” OR (Trowbridge, England)

Names = “Thomas Allison” OR (Thomas Allison)

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+Truncation

Keywords = genealog* will return genealogy, genealogist, genealogies

Places = Eng* will return Eng., England

First Names = Thom* will return Thom, Thomas

Surnames = Thorn* will return Thorn, Throne, Thornapple

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+The Re-Approach

Consider a record… Locality

Record Type

Historical Significance

Repository

Consider a digitized record… What?

Why?

Who?

Where?

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+Localities

Countries / States / Counties / Towns

Other Jurisdictions

Broad Subject

Multi-Level Search Broad

Narrow

Narrower

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+Examples

Trowbridge, England

Genealogical/Historical Information

Search Phrase: (Trowbridge OR Wiltshire AND Eng*) AND (history OR family OR

genealogy OR “family history”)

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+Examples

Boston, Massachusetts

American Revolution

Search Phrase: (Boston AND Mass*) AND revolution*

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+Record Types

Digitized Images

Databases

Other Sources Historical Organization

Lineage Organization

Library/Archive

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+Examples

Tompkins, New York

Cemetery Records

Photographs OR Transcriptions

Search Phrase: Cemeter* AND Tompkin* AND (New York OR NY) * AND

(transcript* OR photo*)

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+Examples

Brede, Sussex, and England (Brede OR Sussex AND England)

Diaries or Letters (Diar* OR Letter*)

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+Yippy.com

Categorizes Titles

Abstracts

QualifiersConcise

Understandable

Accurate

Distinctive

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+Benefits of Yippy

Quantity

Quality

Additional Searches

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+Reverse Searching

Databases

Websites

Build Search Terms

Find Similar Resources

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+Framing the Search

Personal Websites

Digital Publications

Specialised Databases

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+Your New Strategy

Keep an Online Research Log

Search for: Localities

Records

Beyond Google Yippy.com

Reverse SearchingThis m

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+

Successful Searching OnlineMaking the Most of Your Time Online

D. Joshua Taylor, MA, MLS

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