WebSearch University

I was lucky enough to attend the WebSearch University conference this past September in Washington D.C.

Websearch University draws from a broad cross-section of the library and information world. Most attendees come from the private sector, rather than the academic/public library community, but many of the resources discussed are useful for all types of online reference.

The conference provided information about Internet trends, specific search advice, and a look at alternative search engines and tools. To see the program, go to:
http://www.websearchu.com/2008/

The Future of Search—Danny Sullivan, SearchEngineland

The trend is ‘blended search,’ where search engines query many forms and formats. He pointed out that Google Universal Search queries books, image, news, video—no longer just page links and documents. Look for more use of personalized and social search. Google now has the capability to customize search results based on what “you personally do or visit.”

His prediction—Google will remain the dominant search engine for the next 3-5 years.

His website covers the trends: http://www.searchengineland.com/

News in Review, Ran Hock, Online Strategies

An overview of resources for finding national and international sources of information. Some are searchable by geographic location, others by subject. Here are a few to look at:

Kidon Medialink—information about and links to 19,000 sources: http://www.kidon.com/media-link

Metagrid—8,000 online magazines and newspapers: http://www.metagrid.com/

ABYZ News Links—newspapers, radio stations, Internet services, etc.: http://www.abyznewslinks.com/

Front pages for major dailies from the Newseum: http://www.newseum.org/todaysfrontpages

News Search Engines—multisource:
Yahoo news – http://news.yahoo.com/; Google – http://news.google.com/


Developments in International Search, Marydee Ojala, ONLINE

An overview of the complexities of searching across many languages, alphabets and cultures. Part of the presentation included some useful ready-reference tools:

International time: http://www.timeanddate.com/ ; http://www.worldtimeserver.com/
Currency values: http://www.oanda.com/
World Holidays: http://www.qppstudio.net/worldholidays.htm
Doing business elsewhere: (a World Bank site) http://www.doingbusiness.org/
Culture: Portal-- http://libguides.asu.edu/intletiq

Beverly Lehrer, Montgomery College