Online Search Techniques

Some common online search techniques include:

1. Using Quotation Marks: When you want to find a specific phrase on the internet, like a song title or a famous quote, put it in quotation marks. This tells the search engine to look for that exact phrase, not just the individual words.

Example:  Imagine you want to find information about your favorite movie, "Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone." Instead of just typing the words separately, you can put them in quotation marks like this: "Paro and Punakha Dzongs". This tells the search engine to look for that exact movie title.

2. Searching on Specific Websites: Sometimes you only want information from certain websites, like educational ones. You can tell the search engine to only look there by using "site:" followed by the website's address.

For example: If you want to search for information about dinosaurs on educational websites only, you can type: dinosaurs site:.edu

Here are the most common domain name extensions:

1. .com: For commercial or general-purpose websites.

2. .org: For non-profit organizations and charities.

3. .net: For general use, often by network or tech-related sites.

4. .edu: For educational institutions.

5. .gov: For government entities.

6. .info: For informational websites.

7. .biz: For business-related websites.

8. Country Code: For country-specific websites.

   • .bt - Bhutan

   • .in - India

   • .uk - United Kingdom

   • .us - United States

3. Using Boolean Operators(AND, OR, and NOT): These are special words you can use to make your search more specific.

i. AND makes sure all the words you type in are included in the results.

1. • For example: You can search for: dogs AND cats.

ii. OR broadens your search by looking for any of the words you type in.

1. • For example: If you want to find information about pets, you can search for: dogs OR cats.

iii. NOT helps you exclude certain words from your results.

1. • For example: If you want to find information about dogs but not about cats, you can search for: dogs NOT cats.

4. Wildcard Searches: Sometimes you might not remember all the words in a phrase, or you want to find different versions of a word. You can use a * symbol as a placeholder to help you find what you're looking for.

For example: If you search for: bird *, the search engine will show you results about different types of birds, like robin, sparrow, or eagle.

5. Finding Definitions and Specific Types of Files: You can use specific commands like "define:" to find out what a word means, and "filetype:" to look for specific types of files like PDFs or images.

For example: If you want to know the meaning of the word "resilience," you can search for:  define:resilience or filetype:PDF.

6. Exclude Terms: If you want to exclude certain terms from your search results, use a minus sign (-) before the term. 

For Example: "fruits-apple" will exclude results related to the fruit.

7. Advanced Search Tools: Many search engines offer advanced search options that allow you to filter results by date, location, file type, etc. Take advantage of these tools to narrow down your results.

1. More Accurate Results: Techniques like using quotation marks or excluding terms help you find exactly what you're looking for, reducing unrelated results.

2. Saves Time: By filtering out irrelevant information, you can get to the right answers more quickly.

3. Trusted Sources: Searching specific sites (like using "site:.edu") ensures the information comes from reliable places, especially for research.

4. Broader Search: Using wildcards or OR helps you find different versions of words or similar topics, giving you more options.

5. More Specific Results: Advanced tools let you filter by date, location, or file type, so you can get just the information you need.

6. Avoids Unwanted Information: You can exclude unwanted topics from your search to avoid wasting time on irrelevant content.

7. Boosts Search Skills: These techniques help you become better at finding information online, making research easier in the future.