How to do research on the internet

How can I improve my search results?

Your initial searches may not be successful, or might return too much information. Some ways of refining or improving your search include:

• use more search terms to get fewer, more relevant records
• use fewer search terms to get more records
• search for phrases (i.e. words next to each other in the order you specified) by enclosing search terms in inverted commas (e.g. "robert menzies")
• choose search engines that allow you to refine your search results (e.g. AltaVista)
• limit your searches to Australian or national sites:
  • by using local search engines, or local versions of international search engines (e.g. Anzwers, or AltaVista)
  • by limiting your searches to sites with .au (or the code of the country you seek) at the end of their domain name
• use Boolean operators or '+' (an essential term) and '-' symbol (for a term that should be excluded) to refine your search