Web Simple

I hate doing searches. This is because I usually spend a ton of time searching through junk to find the one nugget I need. Don’t get me wrong, search engines have done a lot to help you filter out the junk you don’t want. Still, I inevitably get lost on “Los Links!.”

Google Scholar helps cut through some of that clutter. It is part of Google Labs (a sort of playground where Google let’s users play with tools that they are still building). Google Scholar is a subset of the Google universe that delivers just articles and books published in reputable journals. What you won’t find in Google Scholar are newspaper articles, magazine articles and popular websites. It basically gets you to the source material meat of topics, so you can quickly beef up your research on a topic.

It’s built for academics, but it’s more than just a homework helper. I use it to do all kinds of research – from client projects, to industry research, to family debates. Some of the info seems like you need several PHD’s to understand it, but I’d rather search through information that’s too deep than the flubber links I get in most normal searches.

Be aware that these are academics, so a lot of the links lead to places where you need to pay for information. Still, there is plenty of free info, and there are some  very handy features:

• Filter by year – You can set parameters to return results since a particular year – handy for finding the latest stuff.
• Filter by type – Google Scholar covers articles, patents, legal opinions and several other kinds of source materials. You can weed out some of those in your searches.
• Advanced Search – You can get really specific (such as subject areas and states).
• Download link – When there is a PDF or other download they have a convenient link next to the search result.
• Related articles – Want to see more results like the listed article? Just click on the link.
• Versions Link – These articles often get published in several places. With a click, you can see all the places it has been listed.
• Cited – This is a new function. Basically, it lists where an article has been cited in other works – useful if you’re trying to find related work or see how people are using the information.

The bottom line is that Google Scholar is a quick way to make you look smart. It isn’t the end-all and be-all of searches, but can be a handy way of boosting your research, sales call, project or argument.

© 2010, Ian Bramson. All rights reserved.

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Tags: Google Labs, Search

This entry was posted on Wednesday, July 14th, 2010 at 8:22 am and is filed under Tools. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.