Cite! Cite!

The chances are that, at some point, you are going to become involved in a discussion where facts and statistics are being bandied about. Before you leap into the fray and add a few of your own, a word of caution - be prepared to back up your quoted 'facts' with hard references. Given that AFP appears to be populated by some very knowledgable people and that most AFPers have access to web browsers, the best method of referencing your comments is by including URIs (web site addresses). If you don't happen to have such URIs handy, then learn how to use search engines effectively.

Ditto for any questions you might have. At least try and search for the answers yourself before foisting the question onto AFP.

Some of the tips listed below might help you narrow down your searches.

Quick Search Tip

The following are applicable to most search engines:

• Use the correct case for search keywords.
  Eg. byron isn't the same as Byron

• Use '+' to include multiple keywords in your search.
  Eg. robot+short+story

• Use '-' to specifically exclude words from your search.
  Eg. bread+products-bagels

• Use quotes to search for names or phrases.
  Eg. "Isaac Asimov" or "one small step for man"

• Use '*' to broaden a search for all the combinations of a word.
  Eg. tall* will search for:
  tall
  taller
  tallest

• Most search engines have an Advanced Search facility. Use this to narrow down your, more complex, searches.

Yahoo! Specific Search Tips

• Put t: before a keyword in to restrict your search to those websites with your keyword in their title.

• Put u: before a keyword to restrict your search to those sites with your keyword in their URI (address)

© esmi 2006