In this exercise, you will search the
Internet for information related to the FBI Uniform Crime Statistics (UCR) annual reports.
For more on using the Internet to search for criminal justice-related information, visit
the Allyn & Bacon website at this link.
The Internet includes a vast array of information. Search engines
are useful tools for researchers needing access to this information. Sometimes a search
engine's hierarchical structure does not include sufficient detail to access specific
websites. In these situations, a keyword search is useful.
Keyword searches are much more flexible than following the
hierarchical menus of web directories. With a keyword search, the researcher enters the
specific key words or plain English phrases for which he or she is searching. The key
words are submitted and searched for and all relevant Web Pages are then listed in order
of importance.
To be listed with a web directory, the user must submit their web
page to the search engine. If the page meets the engine's editorial standards, the page is
then listed with the search engine. Accordingly, a web directory search will only list the
relevant pages registered with the search engine.
In the following exercises you will search Alta Vista (see linked
image below) for web pages related to the FBI Uniform Crime Statistics annual reports. You
will use the quote operator (") to help restrict your search. Be aware that the
locations (URL) of web pages change occasionally. Also, new pages are added and old ones
deleted continuously. As a result, each search that you do will probably give you a
different list of websites.
Before completing any exercise, please 1) print out a copy of this
exercise as a reference or 2) open a new web browser by clicking on File from the
menu bar, then selecting New Web Browser from the menu list. Switch to the web
directory exercise in the new browser. You now have two copies of the same webpage on
screen. This will ensure that you will have instructions available as you complete the
exercise.
Step One: Click on the above "Alta Vista" icon. You
may also click on the Netscape Net Search Button, scroll down, then click on Alta Vista
from the list of search engines.
Step Two: Locate the text box in the middle of the Alta Vista
window. The text box is a long rectangular box, which is followed by the Submit button.
Step Three: Click in the middle of the text box. A flashing
cursor will appear in the text box. This means that you may type a request in the text
box.
Step Four: Type the following request exactly as it appears
below, including spaces.
"Uniform Crime Reports" FBI UCR "Final
Report" 1996
Be aware that the quote operator (") causes Alta Vista to
search for Uniform Crime Reports and Final Report as one item. Without the quote operator,
Alta Vista will search for every page with any of the words listed, in any order. Please
note that the quote operator is especially useful when searching for a proper noun
(person's name, company name, specific city, etc.).
Step Five: You should see a series of 10 links below the text
box. The top10 links or "hits" are listed first, with each subsequent 10 hits
accessible by clicking on the numbers at the bottom of the search page. Click on several
of the links to look at them for practice. Click on the Back button to return to the Alta
Vista search results.
Congratulations! You have conducted your first keyword search.
Practice more searches using your own key words. Try using the quote operator (") in
different positions to get different results. For more information on keyword searching,
look at Alta Vista's on-line help utility (click on the Help Button).
Return to Quick Guide Site
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