| Q: |
What is a meta-search engine and
how does it work? A meta-search engine
is a search tool that searches the databases of other search
engines and/or directories. Unlike individual search engines
and directories, meta-search engines do not maintain their
own database of web pages; they do not collect, crawl, or
index the web and they do not accept URL submissions. Instead,
search queries are sent simultaneously to several search
engines and/or directories.
With that in mind, let’s analyze how a meta-search engine
works:
Upon receiving a query, the meta-search engine translates
the syntax and sends it simultaneously to a set of multiple
search engines and/or directories. All results gathered
from the varied sources are then collated to remove duplicates
and ranked according to its algorithm. Finally, an organized
and sorted list of web pages is presented to the user. There
are many other details, but a thorough explanation of how
a meta-search engine works is beyond the scope of this page.
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| Q: |
What are the benefits of using a
meta-search engine? The extraordinary
growth of the internet has made it difficult, if not impossible,
for search engines to keep up with its immense size and
pace. Thus far, the major search engines have only been
able to index a fraction of all the data that is available
on the internet. Therefore, chances are you will occasionally
fail to find the desired result if you rely on only one
search engine. Thus, the key to effective internet searching
is not to rely on one, but rather on multiple search engines.
However, it can be time consuming and tedious to individually
visit and perform a search on multiple search engines. A
meta-search engine solves this problem by providing a central
place and interface where users can search several search
engines at once. This benefits users by saving them time
from having to individually learn and visit multiple search
engines.
Another benefit of a meta-search
engine is its ability to access a cross section of results
from several search engines. Rather than being tied to one
database, meta-search engines combine results from multiple
databases, thereby enhancing the coverage and relevancy
of your search. Additionally, the ability to access multiple
databases provides the most up-to-date results.
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| Q: |
When should I use a meta-search
engine? Whether you are a photographer
wanting to keep up with the latest trend in digital cameras.
Or a college student in need of research information about
molecules. Or maybe a mother looking for cake recipes to
prepare for her child's birthday party. Meta-search engines
can fulfill your desire for information in any kind of situation
For those of you who are extremely loyal to traditional
search engines and can not imagine switching to meta-search
engines. You should still considering using meta-search
engines as an alternate source for information for the following
reasons:
- Use a meta-search engine when you are not having any
luck pulling up results from your favorite search engine.
- A meta-search engine can be particularly beneficial when
you are in a hurry and do not have the time to visit several
search engines to obtain results.
- At times when you are not sure of what to search for,
meta-search engines can be a useful tool for obtaining an
overview of a specific keyword and/or subject.
- Meta-search engines are highly adept
at researching narrow or obscure topics. Since results are
gathered from the index of several search engines, a meta-search
engine is likely to yield more results for an obscure topic
than a single search engine.
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| Q: |
How are results ranked in a meta-search
engine? Depending on your search criteria
and the meta-search engine itself, results are ranked differently
by a variety of methods according to the engine’s algorithm.
The objective, of course, is to return results most relevant
to the user’s query first. Each meta-search engine has its
own method of ranking results. Most meta-search engines
rank web pages according to how popular that page is ranked
by its sources. If a page is ranked highly by its sources,
most likely it will also be regarded as relevant by meta-search
engines.
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| Q: |
Why is the search time of a meta-engine
usually longer than a traditional search engine? It requires more time mainly because a meta-search
engine must wait for results to arrive from all the queried
sources before they can be processed and ranked. Whereas,
results of a traditional search engine are stored in databases
of their servers and page rank is often pre-determined,
making retrieval time much quicker. Therefore, it can be
said that meta-search engines are only as fast as the search
engines and/or directory they search.
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| Q: |
What is a source engine or source
database? A source engine or source database is a resource
from which a meta-search engine retrieves results.
Meta-search engines usually declare where their results
originated at the bottom or somewhere near each listing.
Take Silverboxx as an example:
The sources are listed at the bottom of each listing.
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What does the number next to a source
represent? The number next to a source represents the site’s
ranking in that particular source engine.
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| Q: |
Do meta-search engines maintain
a database of web pages? Meta-search engines do not crawl the web or maintain
a database of web pages. Rather, results are retrieved from
a number of different source engines and then combined to
formulate a list of results.
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| Q: |
How do I submit my site? Since meta-search engines do not maintain a
database of web pages, URL submissions are not accepted.
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