Navigation

Using Web Browsers

1. What is the title and URL of the web page you are defaulted to?

The title of the page Google Chrome defaults to is New Tab. The URL is chrome://newtab.

2. Why did this appear? How can you change this default setting so that another web page automatically loads when you launch the web browser?

The New Tab page appeared because it was the default selected in the Chrome settings. I can change the default setting by going to Settings>On Startup and selecting the option to open a specific page.

3. Can you change the appearance of web pages within your browser (e.g., the font face and size)? If so, how? Why would you want to?

No, you can't change the appearance of individual web pages within your browser. You can change the font size and style of the browser and search itself, but not on individual web pages. This is not the same as using the zoom function on the browser to enlarge the page. My first guess for why someone would want to change the appearance of a web page might be an accessibility issue, if text is too small to read or the color of text is too difficult to see because it was poorly designed.

4. What's the default search engine associated with your web browser? How do you get to it?

The default search engine for Chrome is the Google Search engine. You can get to in a few ways: you can open a new tab at the top of the browser, you can click on the home button, or you can use the search bar at the top of the web page you're currently on.

Searching the Web

1. In the search box, type in "learning to make web pages" and click on the SEARCH button. How many matches did you get?
   Can you estimate how many of the searches actually relate to learning to make web pages?

This search on Google Chrome gave me 3,150,000,000 results. I would estimate that 90% of the results relate to learning to make web pages in some way. A lot of results were businesses that build web pages for you, schools that offer classes on web design, sites that published lists of the best website builders or classes on web design, and website design programs. But of those results I would say only 25% were direct results with instructions or steps about how to build a website.

2. Return to the front page of Google. In the search box, type "learning to make web pages" with quotation marks and click the SEARCH button. How many matches did you get?
   Link to a couple of the sits in the search results list. Can you estimate how many of the searches actually relate to learning to make web pages?

This search on Google Chrome gave me 21,900 results. I would estimate that 40% of the results from this search actually relate to learning to make web pages.

Here are some of the links this search found:

www.web-site-building-tips.com/learning-to-make-web-pages.html
https://greengeeks.com/academy/
http://spencergnj4.weebly.com/

Repeat the same task for BING, YAHOO, DUCK DUCK GO and KARTOO.

3. Are the number of hits consistent across search engines? If not, what do you think accounts for the differences? After looking at each of the above search engines, in what cases would you use a search engine that is not your current default (most likely Google)?

The number of hits was consistent across Yahoo and Bing, with both of them finding 165,000,000 results without quotation marks and 105,000,000 with quotation marks. Meanwhile, Kartoo found less than 15 results. Results were more consistent when I searched for the specific phrase "learning to make web pages" but they also varied widely because it would pull pages that included that phrase whether or not the page itself related to making web pages. I think Kartoo found less results because the engine refined the results more closely. Every result was relevant. Duck Duck Go seemed to sort the pages for relevancy (i.e. whether the page was a class or specific instructions on web pages) but Duck Duck Go also didn't list the number of search results in total. Meanwhile Bing and Yahoo found anything remotely related to webpages, but not necessarily the most relevant options. I think I would use Duck Duck Go if I was shopping for an item (because this browser prevents extra targeted ads from following my search history all over the internet. I would use Kartoo if I was looking for a specific phrase or searching through smaller websites.

4. Take a look at Wolfram Alpha. Is this a search engine? If not, what would you call it? If you decide it is, list the reasons you would classify it as a search engine.

I would say that Wolfram Alpha is a highly refined version of a search engine in that it is more effective, but it doesn't function as one from the point of the user interface because it gives direct answers to direct questions from pre-curated data without showing separate web pages.

Using Metasearch Sites - Dogpile

Head to DOGPILE.

1. What is the main difference between a metasite and a regular search site?

Meta-sites are compiled by humans, their coverage is limited to a specific subject or file format, and you need to use keywords for precise searches. They are best for specific, focused searches on a particular topic.
Meta-Search engines search multiple databases generated by other search engines. To use, you would use keywords, but their is less search precision. You would use if you have a specific term or want to see a sample of what's available on a topic.

2. Do a search for learning to make web pages. How many matches did you get? How are the matches organized?

The matches are organized first by results that will build the website for you, then by results that include step by step guides on how to build it yourself.

3. Visit a couple of the sites in the search results list. Can you estimate how many of the searches actually relate to learning to make web pages?

I would estimate 80% of the results relate to learning to make web pages.

Finding Multimedia Elements

Either head to one of the search sites we've already used or head to one we haven't yet used and explore the front page of the site.

1. Is there a way to search specifically for multimedia?

Yes, on Chrome there are options to search for multimedia options.

2. If yes, what specific elements can you search for? What are your options?

You can search for vidoes, images, maps and news.

3. Do a search for a specific media item. How many matches do you get?

I searched for "videos of dogs" and got 4,770,000,000 results.

4. Are there any warnings, disclaimers or other information provided about using the results of your multimedia searches embedded in the search interface?

No.

Visit the CREATIVE COMMONS site.
5. What is creative commons? Why might you want to use this search engine for images and other media?

Creative commons is an international nonprofit organization that helps overcome legal obstacles to the sharing of knowledge. They provide creative commons licenses and public domain tools that give every person a free, simple and standardized way to grant copyright permissions for creative and academic works; ensure proper attribution; and allow others to copy, distribute and make use of those works.
Creative commons allows you to filter for media that can be used for commercial purposes, and media that can be modified. This makes it really useful for using media if you need it not just to look at but to redistribute or use professionally. You still have to verify the copyright permissions yourself, but CC looks for openly licensed media rather than all images available on the internet.

Put it all Together

1. Now that you have explored the world of search engines, reflect on the experience. What have you learned that might influence the choices you make as a web designer?

Knowing that the majority of large, widely used search engines depend on the strategic use of key words, it would make me consider what I think people would search for when looking for something like my website, and make sure I include those key words somewhere on the page, within content or in my title, so the website actually appears in searches.