Week 5

Task 1 - Four Strategies in Making an Efficient Search in a Search:

For Task 1 I visited the Monash University’s tutorial on search engines. I clicked on the link “Page Five--The Web Search Wizard” as it seemed the most appropriate for the task at hand. Several strategies to defining a good search includes to have a positive keyword, as this is what the internet will look up and it needs to be straight to the point of what you are looking for.

Depending on what you are looking for, there are many specific databases or directories for certain areas of subjects. Such as a Computer website like Apple McIntosh would be appropriate for looking for the latest Apple software but not to find a brand of car or television.

Another good way to do searching is to use the Boolean method where you get an exact phrase in what you are looking for by using quotation marks and the words “AND”, “OR” and/or “NOT.” For example: “Rainfall” AND “Climate.”

Another method is to use the "query by example," or "find similar sites” that are available on some search engines. This allows you to search around the topic if you like what you see.Before actually typing anything into the search engine visualize what you would like to see a result and try to look up the terms that may appear in the heading.

Task 2 - The Answering of the Online History Quiz:

I went onto the Online Internet Quiz and clicked on Enter to start the quiz. It was a History Quiz which I used Ask.com to find the answers.

For Question 1:
Which one of these famous people was born in 1879?
Albert Einstein

For Question 2:
Which of these religions is historically linked to the Indus Valley?
Hinduism

For Question 3:
In what year did the "Boston Tea Party" protest take place?
1773.

For Question 4:
On which of these did work first commence in 1859?
The Suez Canal

For Question 5:
Who were the first to use the Chinese invention "gunpowder" in firearms?
The Chinese

For Question 6:
Which of the famous people below died in 1939?
Sigmund Freud

For Question 7:
What piece of real estate did the US force the Spanish to sell them in 1818?
Florida.

For Question 8:
What year was the Red Cross Organisation founded by Henry Dunant?
1864.

For Question 9:
Who invented Dynamite?
Alfred Nobel

For Question 10:
Hitler's invasion plan "Barbarossa" was aimed at which country?
USSR

For Question 11:
The Fall of Constantinople was achieved by cannon fire in which year?
1453.

For Question 12:
On what date was the Atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima?
August 6, 1945.

For Question 13:
The "Holy Roman Empire" was ruled by which of these leaders?
Successive German kings

For Question 14:
The famous poet William Wordsworth was born in 1770, what age did he live to?
89.

After the last question was answered correctly a new page appeared congratulating me on answering all the questions correctly.

Task 3 Strategies in Finding Answers And Summary of Learning Process:

I’m not sure what strategy I used to find the answers but basically what I did in the Ask.com search engine was type in 1879 – testing all four names to see which one had association with the year. I typed 1879 - Albert Einstein and I found that he was the one that was born in this year.

Or when searching for the "Boston Tea Party", I typed Boston Tea Party – with a certain year. So I typed in Boston Tea Party – 1773 and it came up with what I was looking for. I think this method was quite effective as either in the title of the webpage or in the sub text summary of the webpage what I was looking for would appear. Using the Boolean method is probably the best way to find something without having to go through pages and pages of links that are of no use to you. From this exercise I have learnt how to use search engines more effectively.

Lecture:

This week’s lecture looked at using search engines. The questions that were asked of the class include:
1. List at least four search engines.
2. What are some of the problems you encounter using search engines?
3. What are some of the strategies you can use to overcome these problems?
4. What is meant by Boolean search?
5. What are some of the features of an advance search say in Google?

We discussed how databases should be the first place to look as students at university. There are three areas of the internet subscription, visible and invisible. Quality of results need to be carefully monitored as the same page can be brought back several times just different areas of that web site or broken links may appear which are of no use. Sometimes there is too many links to look through so the search needs to be narrowed down, then on other occasions there may be too little or nothing appear which is when you have put too much specificity in the search.

Different websites, journals, etc are meant for certain areas. Such as Emerald has different journals to ProQuest or The Chronical.com is a higher educational jobsite. Certain websites are not appropriate for the subject that you are trying to research. The reason behind this lecture was to broader our minds when it comes to search engines and the choosing of particular material.

Tutorial:
In out tutorial class this week we discussed a bit more of the technical side when it comes to Search Engines such as the parts that make up the internet. Like the protocol, the logic behind the URL, domain names and servers. Gary went into detail of what made up a URL and how a web server works. I knew a fair bit of the area but only the basics, I didn’t know about chips such as the one by Intel had different power sources. It was an interesting tutorial.

Readings of the Week:
Internet Search Tips and Strategies by Robert Harris describes all the basics about searching over the internet. On this webpage there is a brief summary of the internet, the types of information that is available such as Invisible/Visible information and Databases. Search engines and Directories are spoken of shortly. Examples are given to show what types of searching should be done when looking up certain topics as a short help guide. There is an explanation of using different types of word searching helps the efficiency of what you are looking for such as the Keyword Search, Phrase Search and Boolean Operators. And six points on how to make an effective search.

The History of the Internet: (Chapter 4 - Search Engines) by Richard T. Griffiths has six sections of information. The first part starts off with the origins of the search engine with where it was invented, who started it and the early developments of the system. The second part gives six steps on searching for data on the internet. The third speaks briefly about directories. The fourth section discusses Search engines about what information entered into the search bar will bring certain data results, statistics on how many WebPages there are and three examples of search engines. The last two sections talk about Databases and Library Catalogues. The Databases section has several links to electronic journals as examples.

Search Engine Optimisation by WebSight Australia is a very short page about helping small businesses to have more efficient web sites. This company looks to find out whether wording/keywords are effective so that the site can be found easily. Setting links on other websites so that people can find you from other means besides the search engines. This section of the website is based on helping smaller businesses to be more efficient so that they can find more customers in which ever area they work in.

Week 4

Task 1.1 Haggis Hunt Website:

The internet site http://www.haggishunt.scotsman.com/ has appeared to look authentic just by looking at the website address but upon opening the website I changed my mind quickly.

I found some sort of animal placed on the main page, from this I know perfectly well that haggis is a Scottish traditional dish and is not an actual animal.

There is a fair bit of data that can be picked up which is incorrect. The images of the supposed animal the ‘haggis’ on the website look more like a manipulated platypus.

If the website was actually a Scottish website it would have been http://www.haggishunt.scotsman.co.uk/ and not http://www.haggishunt.scotsman.com/. As most American websites end in .com and British websites end in .co.uk. On the Part 2: Facts section the ninth point reads “Haggis fur is waterproof but not showerproof.” This fact is faulty as water and showerproof are exactly the same, where they both protect from water. But in saying that “Haggis fur is waterproof but not showerproof” it shows how amateurish the website is.

If the habitat of the Haggis is only in Scotland, then why are there webcam images of England and United States which promote that the animal lives in these locations as well.

Also if this was an official and authentic site it would not have sections for “Jobs, Property, Motors, Dating and Money” at the top of the main page. As it would be only showing the topic that they are trying to get to the people who are interested in their product.

Task 1.2 Molossia Website:

Upon reading the website address of http://www.molossia.org/ I really didn’t have much of an idea what it was going to be about. Something about Moss or some sort of disease or plant.

I pasted the link in the address bar and pressed enter, a website of Republic of Molossia appeared and a Java Script popped after I had clicked on enter website. I clicked Okay and I was taken to the main website.

It did look like an official site but what struck me was the location of Molossia as it read 226 Mary Lane, Dayton, NV 89403. Dayton, Nevada is a real place but how is it possible for a nation to be located in another country’s state. Also by having an actual address I found a bit odd as well because a nation/country will only have a country name not a number and street name. By this false information I realized that the website was not at all authentic.

Underneath the wording “Republic of Molossia” there is foreign writing. If it was a place in America it would be an English speaking one or it would be close to the English language such as a Latin language not one that looks Greek.

Also in several photographs on the website it shows winter and it snowing but how is it possible for it to snow in the desert as that is pretty much where Nevada is located. Under the General Information when I was on the About Our Nation if it were a true website about the country it would be made easy to move back and forth between the different pages but all that is present at the bottom of the page is a way to go back to the main menu.

On the Visitors to Molossia page why would it say “We will give you directions to Molossia?” when the reader already has the directions of its location which are in Dayton, Nevada. This is another point that proves that it is a fake website. The military suit worn by an official to me looks very fake, one that could be hired or bought.

On several of the pages, the background of the webpage changes and I find this not very genuine for an official nation’s website.

A website for a country is usually a government run one which I can clearly see that this one isn’t.

Task 2 Expectations of Martin Luther King Website:

Before opening the website of http://www.martinlutherking.org/ the task asked me to think about what it would be about.

I believe that it contains information about Martin Luther King which should include that he was a leader for the black people notable for the famous “I Have A Dream” speech. It should also be noted that he was assassinated in the late 60s, and conspiracy claims have be made that his assassination as well as President John F. Kennedy and his brother are all some how related.

Task 3 First Impression of Martin Luther King Website:

The website looks quite genuine with the information present. As an .org website it should have authentic information about the subject but it does look amateurish of course as it is a non-profit website.

The item that put me off was the “Rap” lyric link, as I know perfectly well Martin Luther King was not around in the age when “Rap” music had been created. I was quite disturbed by this section as it had nothing to do with Martin Luther King and was promoting hate crime. As I’m sure Martin Luther King was not for but against the issue.

Other than that the website looked accurate overall without actually reading any data as I only have a very limited knowledge about the man.

Task 4 Examining Other Sources and Reflecting on the Website After Doing So:

By the looks of this website and glancing over several other Martin Luther King websites, this website has a sort of bias view. I would have to do more research but it looks like the creator of this website possibly dislikes the man or instead of showing all the positive parts of them man, they are showing several negative things. Such as Martin Luther King using plagiarism on his “I Have A Dream” speech. I am guessing that the writer wants to put across the two points of view and not just a bias one.

The screenshot here I found off a website with rumours about Martin Luther King, the part taht I wanted to capture was the copying of his "I Have A Dream" speech.

The one thing that does make this website credible is the use of references.

Lecture:

In today’s lecture the main point of discussion was the World Wide Web. It spoke about the internet, the history of the web and definitions of certain parts of the World Wide Web including networks, protocols and Domain Name Systems. The internet browser is explained with definitions, some examples of browsers, certain parts that make it up and a few shortcuts on the internet.

Seven questions were on the projector at the beginning of the class they were:
1. Who invented the internet?
2. What year was the first website constructed?
3. What does WWW stand for?
4. What are TCP and IP?
5. What is html and what does it do?
6. What does URL stand for?
7. List at least 3 domain endings other than “.com”

Tutorial:

A more in depth look at the internet in the areas of URL’s, protocol’s, servers and domain name systems were discussed.

Readings for the Week:

On the website Internet Society in the section; Origins of the Internet gives an overview of the beginning to the internet which the original idea was brought up in 1962 called the "Galactic Network".

The information on this website is quite complex unless you are able to understand a lot of computer terminology. In 1972 was the first time this new technology was released to the public and the same year the email or “electronic mail” was produced.

The website History of the Internet, Internet for Historians by Richard T. Griffiths from Leiden University has five chapters which speak of the internet and its development.

The first talks about what the internet is and the “development of the computer”. The second chapter deals with the development of ARPANET to internet and finally finishing with the World Wide Web. Chapter three looks at the history of the Electronic Mail or “Email”. In the fourth chapter, search engines are mentioned and how they can be used as well as directories, databases and library catalogues.

In the final chapter user internet data is present.