Peirce College Information Literacy Tutorial
Introduction | Module 1:Selecting | Module 2: Searching | Module 3: Evaluating | Glossary | FAQ | Site Map | Library Home
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In the future it will be even more difficult to distinguish between library databases and search engines. Even now, there is some crossover as library databases index Web-based journals and search engines include select library resources. While it is not yet possible to search both the library and the Web simultaneously, you can use metasearch engines such as Dogpile or Metacrawler to search many different search engines at the same time. These are helpful if you want to see a larger sample of information available on the Web or you are looking for a unique fact.
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Soon you may not even need to search for information. Intelligent agents will do much of the work. They will filter all available information and retrieve only the data that you need. The information they find will become increasingly tailored to your interests as they evolve to match what is important to you. For now though, without intelligent filtering software, we must wade through all available information to find those articles and websites that will be useful for our research. To do this successfully, we must be able to identify appropriate databases and search engines, understand how they are organized and search them effectively.
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Think of metasearch engines as the middleman between you and a large group of search engines. They interpret your search, gather results and report back to you with recommended Web pages. While they are not always perfect, they can make searching for information on the Web easier.
Unlike search engines, metasearch engines do not have their own database of Web pages. Instead, they transmit your search to a group of search engines simultaneously. Metasearch engines interpret the search you enter into a format that each search engine will understand. They retrieve results from the search engines and create a single list of sites. Some of the more advanced ones are able to eliminate duplicate pages and compile the results. Others rank sites to give you ones that best match your terms or they may organize the results into categories.
"Intelligent agents" are a type of software that uses artificial intelligence (AI) techniques to perform information filtering tasks for people
Intelligent agents may come in various shapes and forms such as knowbots, softbots, taskbots, personal agents, shop-bots, information agents, etc. For example, an information agent might analyze its owner's surfing patterns and crawl the Web in search of information that might be of interest to him or her. Shop-bots are currently already available and will search the Web for the best prices on items such as books, or CDs.
As intelligent agents become more advanced and prevalent in society, there will inevitably arise some interesting ethical and social aspects to their use. If you relinquish some responsibility to an intelligent agent, you will need to be aware of the authority that you are transferring to them.