# Best search engine? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [August 2, 2000, 12:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774 "2000-08-02T00:10:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![MysteryFellow63427](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@MysteryFellow63427](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysteryFellow63427)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 4:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/21 "2000-11-25T04:24:09Z")
Dogpile! I was looking for this one, I had someone show it to me once, and I could not remember the name for the life of me. Glad to have another one in the arseneal. Does no one use [Hotbot](http://www.hotbot.com) ? I guess it sort of counts the same as Lycos, since Lycos purchased it awhile back. Hotbot is my first search engine of choice, because I like its advanced search options. Also, I read about 1.5 or 2 years ago in PC Magazine or somewhere that Hotbot covered **17% of the web** with its searches, more than any other search engine. (Shocking, eh? And the coverage percentages are dropping, I believe.) I use [Yahoo!](http://www.yahoo.com) second most. [Google](http://www.google.com) third. Hmm, I see that an ancient bookmark I had to **[The Open Text Index](http://index.opentext.net/)** is now some dastardly biz site. I am outraged. I am sure that this was a very useful and cool search engine (otherwise it wouldn’t have been in my Bookmarks.) I mean, the site that replaced the OTI sports this on its main page: > [@](#): > > [Dastardly biz site] provides you with access to our innovative online technology, by offering advanced business-to-business auctions through edeal’s AuctionEnabler trade application… Makes me want to retch. ---
**Author:** ![\_hijack](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/_/c0e974/32.png) [@\_hijack](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/_hijack)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/22 "2000-11-25T05:03:38Z")
\*\* [http://www.askjeeves.com](http://www.askjeeves.com) \*\* gives answers and also gives lists from other search engines. It has the most choices of ways to get the results. ---
**Author:** ![dropzone](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dropzone/32/7515_2.png) [@dropzone](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dropzone)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 5:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/23 "2000-11-25T05:35:23Z")
**Myrr21** , where you been, boy? Thought you’d died! I’ve given up on Lycos and Yahoo, which are easy to get to from my home ports. Just use Google now. I like how it sorts out some of the duplicates that clog up the others. AskJeeves typically gives me VERY bizzare and unrelated responses. And not enough of them! HotBot is better than Lycos but not as good as Google. Have to try the others. ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/24 "2000-11-25T06:28:18Z")
I agree with mattk about [http://www.alltheweb.com](http://www.alltheweb.com) because I don’t like to waste time. The sucker is superfast, and so far the most complete searcher I’ve ever used. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 2:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/25 "2000-11-25T14:40:23Z")
I used to use WebFerret, but it has been returning a lot of false hits over the last month or two. I am using [http://www.ixquick.com](http://www.ixquick.com) more often now. I am not fond of Google. ---
**Author:** ![London\_Calling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@London\_Calling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/London_Calling)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/26 "2000-11-25T15:16:15Z")
FWIW, thought I’d mention an important distinction between ‘Search Engines’ like Google and Northern Light and ‘Directories’ like Yahoo. The former returns the **pages** it has determined are the most relevant to a keyword / phrase using it’s own particular algorithm whereas Yahoo and the other Directories return **categories** containing web **sites**. Sometimes, those returned categories identify particular sites, that’s because your keyword is contained in the (up to 25 word) description of the web site that accompanies the listing. However, you still need to click on the category itself to see all the web sites in that category – just mentioning it because I’m still surprised at how many haven’t ‘twigged’ that yet. Just a quick promo for the web’s largest human edited Directory. Its index is 2 ½ times the size of Yahoo, quality controlled and non-corporate (all 25,000 editors are volunteers: **The Open Directory Project (ODP)** at: [http://www.dmoz.org](http://www.dmoz.org) ---
**Author:** ![London\_Calling](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/49beb7/32.png) [@London\_Calling](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/London_Calling)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 3:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/27 "2000-11-25T15:19:57Z")
Make that: 31, 797 editors…things change fast on the web. ---
**Author:** ![TomH](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/90db22/32.png) [@TomH](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TomH)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/28 "2000-11-25T15:24:53Z")
I almost always use [Fast Search](http://www.bos2.alltheweb.com/). I think it arranges the results with UK sites first, though, so it might not be much use to Americans. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/29 "2000-11-25T15:34:41Z")
Forget what I said about WebFerret. I was using an old version (2.71, I think.) I have just downloaded the new version (3.02) and it works much better. ---
**Author:** ![Gregor\_Samsa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@Gregor\_Samsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gregor_Samsa)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/30 "2000-11-25T16:04:31Z")
The fastest one I use is google, but I use metacrawler the most. One thing I really like metacrawler is its [metaspy](http://www.metaspy.com/) feature, where you can see what other people are searching for. It’s the voyeur in me, I guess. ---
**Author:** ![Nimue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d26b3c/32.png) [@Nimue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nimue)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/31 "2000-11-25T16:14:58Z")
Go Network Express Search is very good, although you have to download an installation program to use it (but it’s not too big a file). It uses a load of search engines simultaneously, and lets you preview pages without losing track of your list of results, adds its own permanent text box on your browser to enter your search words in (so you can use it immediately without having to go to any particular URL), and many other features. It’s very handy. Unfortunately I don’t have a URL on hand but it shouldn’t be hard to find. ---
**Author:** ![MysteryFellow63427](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e4f/32.png) [@MysteryFellow63427](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MysteryFellow63427)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/32 "2000-11-25T17:54:48Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Nimue \* > **Go Network Express Search is very good, although you have to download an installation program to use it.** Maybe the extra features it provides are useful, but I am very suspicious of any searcher that requires a separate file download. **Pipeliner** , the metaspy feature is pretty funny. Big Busted Women, blaxploitation music, Home Bomb Making, preteen thumbnails, restaurants for sale in kansas city are some of the searches I saw in just a minute or so. ---
**Author:** ![Gregor\_Samsa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a6a055/32.png) [@Gregor\_Samsa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gregor_Samsa)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 5:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/33 "2000-11-25T17:57:52Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by neuroman \* > **Pipeliner** , the metaspy feature is pretty funny. > Big Busted Women, blaxploitation music, Home Bomb Making, preteen thumbnails, restaurants for sale in kansas city > are some of the searches I saw in just a minute or so. \*\* I somethimes sit and watch this for hours (well, minutes, anyway.) During the day, things are mostly business, but in the evening and on weekends it’s sometimes almost exclusively porn. ---
**Author:** ![capacitor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/e47774/32.png) [@capacitor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/capacitor)\ **Post date:** [November 25, 2000, 8:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/34 "2000-11-25T20:18:48Z")
I go for [Google.com](http://Google.com) myself. I wonder what is running that search engine, a CRAY-5? ---
**Author:** ![Carina42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@Carina42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carina42)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2000, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/35 "2000-11-26T06:53:05Z")
Google is the only one I use. Fast & relevant. ---
**Author:** ![Carina42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/439d5e/32.png) [@Carina42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Carina42)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2000, 7:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/36 "2000-11-26T07:03:47Z")
Ha! Metaspy is pretty funny. Franchising in Malaysia, Alice Bloody Roar, Free lesbian sex videos, foot licking cheat, capacity signalized intersection, penis enlargement exercises, giant berg in antarctica, free rape pictures (sicko)… All I can say is there’s alot of lonely, horny people out there (I used the adult version.) ---
**Author:** ![Jophiel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jophiel/32/66_2.png) [@Jophiel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jophiel)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2000, 7:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/37 "2000-11-26T07:41:33Z")
First choice is Google for all the reasons stated above. If it’s not helping me, I’ll jump to Alta Vista. For directory style searches, I use DMOZ and occassionally use it even for basic searches. I hate Yahoo and refuse to use it. For one thing, it’s amazingly cluttered and has too much crap I don’t care about when I just want to find websites. For another, I have very little faith in how inclusive it is. I’ve run sites that were probably one of the best at what they were about and Yahoo would never accept them into submission. I never noticed it hurting my hit counts that they weren’t on Yahoo (compared to my sites that were), it makes me think that there’s no doubt a LOT of good information out there that Yahoo won’t ever direct me to. ---
**Author:** ![Nimue](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/d26b3c/32.png) [@Nimue](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nimue)\ **Post date:** [November 26, 2000, 12:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774/38 "2000-11-26T12:33:51Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by neuroman \* > \*\* > > > [@](#): > > > > \*Originally posted by Nimue \* > > **Go Network Express Search is very good, although you have to download an installation program to use it.** > > Maybe the extra features it provides are useful, but I am very suspicious of any searcher that requires a separate file download.\*\* The installation file you dowload sets up a small text box next the the URL address bar in your browser. You can enter your key words into that text box, press the new search button next to it, and it will carry out the search without you ever having to go visit the search engine’s home page first. It’s just that bit more convenient; it’s not a cause for distrust. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/best-search-engine/27774.md?page=1)