Google—Much More Than a Search Bar
Vince Gray
Many of you will have used Google to conduct searches for material on the Internet. It is a fast tool for finding information. On the Google Search bar (pictured above), there are options that allow you to find images; locate or create discussion groups; look at news articles; display maps (including finding directions); and use a service called Google Scholar—which looks at scholarly literature. If you look at the more » option, the entire panoply of Google features are displayed—including the ability to search university web sites, and to explore the new products which Google is working on (through the Labs link).
One feature, introduced on Wednesday, September 6, is a “News Archive” search news.google.com/archivesearch, which searches the archives of newspaper and magazines for relevant articles. Users are then directed to the service which provides access to the found articles, which may or may not be available without a paid subscription. The archive goes back to the 17th century for some resources.
We contacted a local Google expert, Western Libraries’ Walter Zimmerman (ext. 84764), about the News Archive service. In part, his reply included the comment that: “IF a user at Western sees that the article is from LexisNexis or the NY Times and realizes that we provide free access via one of our databases, then they won't have to pay $2.95 or $5.95, or whatever is charged”. It is possible to restrict searches on the Archive to free materials through the advanced search options.
Also from this web page:
Managing Editor
- .: Mary Van de Ven
