The table below shows the features and techniques of the most common Web search engines and how to use them. Definitions of the features listed in the table can be accessed by clicking on the column headings. Click on the name of the search engine to try a search!

Search Engine Features

Definitions of Features

• Combining Terms Using AND, OR, NOT: Terms can be linked with AND to show that all words must be present, with OR to search for either or both terms, and NOT to exclude words. Most search engines will default to the OR relationship between terms unless you specify otherwise. Most search engines present results in a ranked or weighted order that differs depending on the search engine used. [Table]

• Using + and - : Use + to precede terms that must be present in each retrieved item. Use - to precede terms that you do not want to retrieve. [Table]

• Truncation: Search multiple forms of a word. [Table]

• Adjacency: Specify that words must appear next to each other in retrieved items.[Table]

• Proximity: Use NEAR between terms or enclose terms in square brackets to ensure that words are within a specified distance of each other. That distance is determined by the search engine.[Table]

• Specify fields to search: Search one or more specific sections of documents. [Table]

NOTE: Yahoo! is not primarily a search engine, although it can function as one. To use this resource another way, browse its subject categories to locate the information you need. In a search, Yahoo! returns results along with possible relevant Yahoo! subject headings.