Digital Investigator Training

Deep Web Sources

Search Strategy | Queries | Deep Web

Assignment: Beyond Google

There are parts of the Internet that even the most powerful search engines simply can't find. The search engine's robotic crawlers either miss or are locked out of these areas of the Internet. Behind "no robots" barriers lie treasure troves of useful information for research. This information is sometimes called the Deep Web (or Invisible Web). Expanding your ability to find resources online by using specialized databases makes you a more powerful researcher.

First, try this deep web challenge

Broadway ChallengeWhat is the name of the first show to open on Broadway after the American Revolution? If you get stuck, use the help tutorial that is part of the challenge.

Next, study this Keyword Micromodule

Deep Web Tutorial

An example

Archive.org has a website rich in audio resources. Start here and query the site for a reading of Billy Collins' The Man in the Moon, read by Falstaff. Listen to a portion of the audio, then try to find the same page using Google. Can't be done.

Find a Webpage about your selected author that Google can't find

The hardest part is thinking of a database that Google hasn't indexed. Fortunately, there are thousands of databases and some are dedicated to writers, including archive.org. See if you can find one of these databases, locate a page about your selected author's importance, then try to find the same information using Google. Even if a Google, Yahoo or Bing can retrieve it, the result is bound to be something buried many pages deep.

Search a variety of databases, especially subject-specific ones, when you gather resources.

Use the worksheet below to capture your work

Download the Worksheet

Write down the following:

The website address (URL)
The page or program title
The date of the page you selected
What is your Process? (1-2 sentences)
Explain how you located the author page on a site Google can't access.
Describe each step of your search--counting each mouse click as a new step

Try to find your author page using Google. Query as many clues as you want: filename, date, and program title. Using specific keywords could return the same page or document. If so, don't feel bad. You found a resource you wouldn't have retrieved using a standard query.

In what way does this new resource contribute to your research assignment?

Check Your Understanding

Next: Evaluating Results