One of the essential skills learners need is the ability to do effective Internet searches. An Internet search is a process of locating information on the Internet using what is called a search engine ? a website of its own that directs users to other websites that potentially contain the information they neeed.

It is increasingly rare not to see a window marked ?Search? on non-search-oriented websites, since many other websites now have their own, internal search engines, which allow users to explore the content of that specific site only. What this article is addressing is the use of search engines such as Google, Microsoft, and Yahoo! to search the entire Web for information.

On any of those search engines, look for the blank space to the right of the word Search. That is where your information search begins, by typing in the words naming the item(s) you are researching. Searching can be a highly advanced skill, and some Internet users have or need to develop complex searching skills. But some basic guidelines will be of help to all surfers of the Net.

First, make sure you spell correctly the thing(s) you are search for information about. Search engines do not think and cannot read your mind ? even though it sometimes seems that they can, since a word or sequence of words put in the Search box may result in a question to the effect of, ?Is ?X? what you meant to find, or were you looking for ?Y??? But you cannot assume that the search engine will help redirect your query.

Second, make your entry as specific as possible without being too long. Do not, for instance, enter all of a question that your have been asked to write about a paper about. Typing ?the effects of the e