Search Engines and Directories are like the library's index card catalog and can get you pointed in the right direction quickly. Use keywords and phrases to narrow your search and find exactly what you are looking for. Select a search engine or directory from the long list below. Type your request in the box and see what comes up!

Search Engines actually go out and find and catalog sites. Directories, on the other hand, are massive classified listings of web sites. Both are useful for finding the desired information. The web sites and pages that come up first on your searches actively WORK at promoting their web sites, assuring that they are nearest the front of the list for important keywords.

Each search engine and directory has its own logic and plenty of quirks. Some specialize in 'consumer inquiries' while others may cater to business, education, or a special interest. Please observe the notes and hints presented with each selection. For example, as search at Yahoo! for Erosion Control (without quotation marks) will render all documents with EITHER the word EROSION OR the word CONTROL, or both. As a result, you are likely to see listing for pages including Weight CONTROL, Mind CONTROL, and so forth. In this case, "quotation marks" turns the request into a phrase that must somehow match!

When searching, be sure to leave a "bookmark" at sites you think you'd like to visit again in more depth. The most common complaint of both new and experienced users is that they saw something interesting but can't remeber how they found it or where it is!

Search results are several pages long, depending on the word or phrase you requested. The list is always displayed in hypertext and a single click on the title will transport the viewer instantly to that page or pages. Search results may contain descriptions of the site or pages, or it may be a simple listing. You can print a copy of the search results a page at a time, but beware, a "bare bones" listing will have no more information on it than what you saw on the screen! (ie. No addresses) You can also 'save' a search and return to it and take up where you left off.

Use the "BACK" button on your browser to return to my search page to initiate another search. Try the exact same search at 2 or more locations to see how vastly different the results can be!

EXPRESS LANE

Select a search tool from the list below to jump to that location on my page. This list is large, but far from complete. Enjoy!