Tips and Tricks to Reducing Research Time

March 7, 2011 by Leave a Comment

If you are a student, the internet is potentially your most important source of information for assignments and projects.  Much time and effort is spent searching for suitable and reliable material.  There are plenty of tips and tricks to finding the best information on the internet for a project.   These techniques can help reduce the amount of search time you need to allocate as you research your work and which will help guide you to appropriate and dependable information.

Some of the more useful methods of conducting a search for information on the internet include Internet

  1. Research with a purpose in mind, to ensure that you focus your search words to the exact topic you are studying.  Too broad a key word use will provide results that may not necessarily provide you with the information you require.
  2. Be specific in your search request. Use keywords that exactly reflect the information you are requesting.  In the past people would use only single words to search for information on a topic, today web page designs and search engines allow you to search for key phrases to improve your relevant search results.
  3. Check the source of the information you find during a search.  Be aware that some web sites that provide general information enable readers to edit the information provided on them. They may prove a useful guide, but it is also important to compare the information they provide with other information sources dedicated to the subject you are researching.
  4. Ensure you check the status of the information you source during an internet search.  Some information you may access may not be the most currently relevant information available.
  5. Maintain a directory of resources you use to enable you to easily revisit them during the course of your research and to assist you to write your bibliography once your work is completed.
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Basic Rules For Internet Forum Posting

December 17, 2010 by Leave a Comment

Discussion forums are a great way for a community of people to share ideas and common interests. Some consist of people passionate about their hobbies or beliefs, and some serve as support groups for medical, financial or family problems. Unfortunately, nearly every forum has a user who makes things difficult because they don’t understand the basic rules. Good internet citizens make sure to follow these basic forum courtesies.

Read the forum for a while to get an idea of what is acceptable. Some groups encourage heated and controversial debates, while others keep it toned-down and civil. Understanding what is expected, and which topics are off-limits will keep you from being banned.

Don’t type in all CAPS. Aside from being considered rude, it is very difficult to read. At the same time, don’t post huge blocks of text. If you are writing more than four or five sentences, break it up into paragraphs. The small area of a forum post also makes solid blocks of text difficult to read. If most posts are pretty short, keep yours in line with the rest.

Don’t use text-speak. Keep abbreviations and acronyms to a minimum. While these work fine for text messaging, they are distracting in a discussion forum. Terms like ok and LOL are universal, but people may not understand what you are saying when every word is abbreviated. On global forums, there are many members who may not understand English colloquialisms or expressions.

Don’t swear, use profanity or other off-color language. Forums often use filters to eliminate these words or parts of words. Posts that have every other word blanked out are painful to read, and you may get warnings from the moderators.

Don’t be afraid to get involved with a new forum, but always remember that rules are in place for everyone’s benefit. Forum moderators have the right to impose and enforce their own rules to keep things running smoothly.

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How Did Search Engines Come Into Existence?

December 13, 2010 by Leave a Comment

It’s hard to believe, but in the very early days of the internet, there were no search engines. You had to know exactly where you wanted to go, and there was nothing to help you find any information.

Websites as we know them today did not exist either. Instead, there were simply computer networks. In order to make sense of these networks and enable people to find them, early internet pioneers decide there should be an index and created lists of all the existing networks.

The worked for a while, but you still had to know how to find the lists. The earliest versions of these indexes were actually stored on disks that had to be inserted into the computer. Eventually, the number of networks grew so fast that it became nearly impossible to keep the lists current.

By the early 1990 s, the first searching utility was created. The technology of the time let users search a database of static sites and text documents. A few years later, the first web robot created lists of websites now in the familiar URL format.

The next few years saw improvements in search technology, enabling users to see both lists of sites organized by category and brief descriptions of the sites. Rather than providing simple lists, search methods focused on relevancy and contextual relationships to find appropriate sites. Competition of hundreds of companies contributed to the development of search engines as they attempted to outperform each other by providing improved results.

When home internet access soared in 1996, search technology became even more sophisticated and competitive. Search companies sought to capitalize on the vast number of people on the internet, and began charging sites to be listed as well as selling advertising. The money-making ability of search engines attracted investors and speculators, creating the dot-com boom and the efficient and accurate search engines that we know today.

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Microsoft Expands into European Grid

November 29, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Diagram showing overview of cloud computing in...
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A move by Microsoft to expand cloud computing resources into the European grid may be one of the largest programs anticipated to strengthen the European research community. The announcement of the expansion came during Dan Reed’s keynote address at the Open Grid Forum. According to the announcement, researchers will be able to access resources in the cloud and get technical support when needed.

Cloud computing is a process in which companies convert the software from a computer to a server. This allows anyone with access to the cloud to be able to use the applications, tools, and software programs rather than having to install each one on multiple computers. Using cloud computing will allow researchers across the globe the opportunity to pool resources, including research notes, files, and other data, should they choose to do so.

This online collaboration will allow researchers to share information faster and reduce the expense of doing so. With cloud computing, it will be possible for researchers in France to collaborate with researchers in Scotland in order to complete a project.

To expand its cloud computing services into the European Grid, Microsoft will be working with three partners: the National Institute for Research in Computer Science and Control in France, the University of Nottingham Horizon Institute in the U.K., and the Virutal Multidisciplinary EnviroNments Using Cloud Infrastructures in Europe (VENUS-C).

Microsoft helped co-fund VENUS-C consortium under the 7th Framework Programme with the European Commission as a way to expand cloud computing into the European grid. Researchers can begin applying for funding to export research once the consortium makes an open call for applications.

If the cloud computing system works well for researchers using the European grid, the consortium will look for other ways to deploy the system. Microsoft will currently contribute Windows Azure data and help oversee the deployment of the cloud.

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Google Takes Second Spot for Internet Carriers

October 22, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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If you’ve been using the Internet for any amount of time, you probably know some of Google’s great features. It offers search engines, analytical tools, even books. Its popularity has even jumped the grammatical track creating a verb from a noun. Case in point, you can Google whatever you need to find the answer.

As if this weren’t enough for most people to realize the giant Google has become in the Internet world, Arbor Networks recently made an announcement that started the virtual world chattering. Google is now the second-largest carrier of traffic on the web. While some of you may be wondering why it’s only second, others will see exactly what this means.

Google is the only company on the list that isn’t an ISP. That’s right. It has managed to capture the second spot for all traffic as the only content provider on the list. When looking at the lists, analyst Craig Labovitz reported that only one wholesaler tops Google, and it carries Google’s content itself.

The data also shows that Internet use is still on the rise, making the virtual world a place where advertisers and businesses can still find new clients. And, Google’s positioning is something corporations may want to consider. Is there a shift coming in networking? Should businesses strive to offer more content rather than more connections?

Those businesses that follow Google’s lead and become more focused on content may have a better chance to become an industry giant, similar to the way Google has achieved its success, than if they do not strive to provide better products, services, and contents.

Of course, it’s important to note, too, that Google is constantly evolving. When it seems something it likes, it tries to work it into the Google family as quickly as possible. This helps Google appeal to a wider audience. Google real power is its ability to pull people from all walks of life together in one centrally located spot.

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Tips for Using the Internet

October 9, 2010 by Leave a Comment
The office tower in Marina Del Rey which is ho...
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Using the Internet can be an enjoyable and rewarding experience if you know what you are doing, and how to keep yourself safe for that matter. Staying secure and protected on the Internet is an important part of taking advantage of all the benefits that it has to offer without being taken advantage of by it. Here are some tips for using the Internet safely and securely.

Tip #1: Try to spend your time on trusted websites. Trusted websites are sites that you can rely on, sites that have spent a long time developing a positive reputation. You can generally trust these websites, such as ecommerce sites and top affiliate programs, to protect your information and identity, and only to provide you with true, factual information. Trusted websites are worth your time, as they work hard to be trusted and reputable on the Internet.

Tip #2: Avoid misinformation on the Internet. Chain letters are a good example of what happens when misinformation spreads on the Internet. Trust but verify. If you are unsure about the legitimacy of information that you find on the Internet, verify it by visiting trusted websites to fact check. Verifying information that you read on the Internet is the best way to make sure that you are not misled online.

Tip #3: Be careful who you share your information with. Sharing your personal information freely on the Internet can hurt you if it falls into the wrong hands. Only give personal and billing details to websites that you know you can trust. This will help you keep your personal information safe, by limiting who gets a hold of your personal details and is allowed to use them with or without your knowledge.

These simple tips can go a long way in ensuring that you are safe and protected when you use the Internet.

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Internet Research

September 24, 2010 by Leave a Comment
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The internet has opened a means to research in an esoteric array of subjects for people everywhere. Libraries, though still beneficial, are essentially on their way out as more and more books are scanned and put online and others have online ebooks often sold secondarily to their primary titles. Further, in the past, researchers would often collect cards for a particular newspaper clipping or journal article for which they were searching. All of these things are available to the modern scholar at a mere click of a button or a few keyboard strokes.

This has been primarily the result of the growing role of search engines. Popular search engines today, such as Google, Bing, and Yahoo, have collected data, and even caches, on websites everywhere. This data is than indexed with pointers allowing users to visit the respective sites and find exactly the information that they were looking for. And the process is so much shorter than that of looking around for the correct number at a library.

Libraries of course are not yet outdated. Much of the material available at a good library can’t be found online, and other works can’t be published online (legally) as the publisher retains their products’ rights. However, for the academic, the internet has opened up a wealth of previously unavailable material. Whereas once, the researcher may not even have known of a relevant text in his or her field, he can now find it online. And if he can’t find it online, he can find the link to a reseller online and than find a way to contact them and purchase a hard copy. All of this has paved the way for advancements in science, in a better understanding of history, and many other subjects, unlike ever before. It comes as no surprise, therefore, that schools and individuals are taking great care to avail of these benefits.

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Internet Telephony

August 16, 2010 by Leave a Comment
Voice over Internet Protocol, how it works
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Making calls overseas or just next door couldn’t be much cheaper with the introduction of Internet Telephony, also known as VOIP i.e Voice over Internet Protocol. Internet Telephony has basically made the cost of calling overseas and next door the same. It is a combination of hardware and software that helps in transmitting and receiving voice over the internet. All you need is a less than average internet connection, a computer or a PC and a headset. If you have these few things you are all set to make calls anywhere over the world. Software’s such as Action VoIP, Skype offer PC to phone calling facility around the world with you paying a certain amount. Applications such as Yahoo Messenger, Gtalk, MSN Live, and many more provide internet telephony services PC to PC completely free of cost. The condition is that on the other side too all these facilities need to be available, which makes it a little less convenient.

If you are uncomfortable with computer interface, then there is a solution. You can opt for the MagicJack’s USB VoIP dongle or NetTalk Voip boxes. These will connect you old telephone to the internet through your laptop and configure everything so that you use your landline the way you are comfortable.

You can also avail the Internet Telephony facilities on you smart phone by installing applications such as Google Voice, and Skype among many others, which charge you only for data usage and not for the minutes. There run on the Mobile phone’s 3G connection or the Wi-Fi connection. With the advent of Google into Internet Telephony space, things are about to get much cheaper. Many paid internet telephony providers have made their facilities completely free. Many mobile companies believe that internet telephony will replace the traditional means of calling completely. This will mean that phone manufacturers will only have to charge based on the data usage and application downloads.

Some sites provide this facility for free and some provide it completely free of cost. Some sites provide worldwide calling facility completely free.

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