This page links to a variety of search engines. They include basic search engines, metasearch engines, search directories and both Australian and International search engines.

Search engines are the basic building blocks of searching the internet. Most use a single search engine. Some groups using a common search engine to power different search sites. Best known and most used is Google. It also has specific search engines to target areas such as Maps, Videos, News, Books, Earth, Scholar, … .

MetaSearch engines prove a more effecient search process. They work by using a variety of other search engines at the same time and give you one listing based on a combined result. One example is Dogpile.

The first search engines worked with directories, and a number still do. Best known is the Open Directory Project [DMOZ]. With search directories you start at very broad categories, then work down to narrower categories and sub-categories, e.g. Education - Distance Learning - Online Courses - Computers - Fee-Based. Some, such as DMOZ, are human rather than machine operated. Many sites use search directories such as DMOZ as their own search directory.

A small listing of portals provides the opportunity to find search engines not included on this page.

We have included some specific engines that are Australian and others specific to individual countries around the world.

Australian Search Engines

Australian [and New Zealand] sites recognised world wide. General and specialised sites.

• Access New Zealand
• Altavista Australia
  Allows bulk searching.
• Ansearch
  Search Australia or The World. News, images, etc.. Links to other Ansearch country search engines.
• Anzwers
  Allows fine tuning.
• Ask for Kids
  Suited to children under 14.
• Aussiedirectory
  ‘The Australian online web directory and search engine. Aussie Directory is a human edited, seo friendly, Australian internet directory providing safe, spam free indexed resources’.
• AussieSeek
• Bing
  Previously NineMSN, Live.
• City Search
  Major city information.
• Domain
  Housing.
• Fossick
  Australian and New Zealand Internet Resources.
• Google Australia
• Mooter - Web Search
  Personalise your search.
• Rob’s Australian Search Engines
  Single site with search engines, metasearches, directories, search portals, more.
• Search66
  Meta search engine.
• Search New Zealand
• Sensis
  Replaces Looksmart and Websearch.
• WebWombat
• Yahoo Australia

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International Search Engines

Besides English language and generic search engines, there are others in different languages and from different countries. Some are listed below. Most use the language of their home country and this is indicated.

• abcItaly [Italian]
• AllSearch
  International Search Engines, Foreign Search Engines. Good collection.
• Aport [Russian]
• Baidu [Chinese]
• Directory of Web Resources in Eastern Europe
  Many countries.
• European Search Engines
  By country from Albania to Vatican City
• EuroSeek [European]
  Multilingual.
• Fireball [German]
• Heuréka [Hungarian]
• Kagibi [French]
• Onet - Polski Portal [Polish]
• SearchDesk [Japanese]
• Tapuz [Israeli]
• Terra [Spanish]
• Web.De [German]
• Weblink - Linkgyüjtemény [Hungary]
• Welcome to Ayna [Arabic]
  Also in English.
• WideWeb.hu Hungarian Link Directory
  ‘Multilingual resources for non-Hungarian speakers about Hungary, Hungarians, the Hungarian web.’ In English.

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Search Engines

The most commonly used. Best used when after a specific response but you want a wide-ranging search. Hits normally presented as a list..

• accoona
  ‘Search engine, interactive tools that provide users with better web, business, news results.’
• All the Web
• Altavista
• Altavista Help Site
• AltSearchEngines
  Opens to the Top 100 page, where you access the latest listing. Download the list in PDF or Excel format. Updated monthly. Some interesting inclusions.
• Ask
  Popular, expert, topic group links.
• Bing
  Microsoft’s latest search process. Web, images, videos, news, Bing Maps to which you can also add Bing Maps 3D, shopping, more.
• Copernic
  Also a desktop search engine .
• DaGama
• DuckDuckGo
  ‘A new search engine with better results and less garbage. With less clicking forward and back between links, it is for anyone who wants to get information faster.’

Environmentally Friendly Search Engines

Designed to reduce the amount of energy used [may only be effective with CRT monitors because of the colours]. Uses Google custom search.

• Blackle
  ‘Created to remind us all of the need to take small steps in our everyday lives to save energy.’
• Jabago
  ‘Designed to reduce eye strain and save energy while conducting Google searches.’
• Ninja
  

• Exalead
• Excite
  Also access the Excite Help Site.
• Fast
• Google
  The most used and possibly the best.

• Google Books
  Directories, full and part text.
• Google Earth
  ‘3D interface to the planet.’ Broadband required.
• Google Earth Community
  Bulletin board listing already existing earth& views you can use, store.
• Google for Mac
• Google for Linux
• Google Help Centre
• Google Help Site : Search Help
• Google Language Tools
• Google Scholar Also access the Google Scholar Help Site.
• Google Services
• Google Talk
  Talk to each other using Google.
• Google Video
  Share videos with each other using Google.

• Hakia
  ‘Focused on bringing quality results via its semantic search technology. Popular results are not always quality results, searchers suffer in many ways ranging from wasted search time to using misleading information.’
• Kosmix
  ‘Offers you a new way to explore the Web. We’ll show you content you may never have discovered otherwise, we’ll give you an at-a-glance look at everything related to the topics that interest you most.’
• Lycos
• Mahalo
  ‘Human-powered search engine. Our search results only include great links.’ More than just a search engine.
• My Live Search
  ‘World’s first live search engine.’ You need to add a plug-in for IE or Firefox for this to operate. Looks interesting.

Natural Language Search Engines

• Lexxe
  ‘A third generation Internet search engine with advanced Natural Language Processing technologies.’
• Powerset
  ‘A transformative consumer search engine based on natural language processing. By making search more natural and intuitive, Powerset is fundamentally changing how we search the web, and delivering higher quality results.’

• Raging [Altavista]
• Secret Search Engine Labs^BETA
  ‘Alternative search results - Giving the little site a chance.’
• Snap
  ‘While Snap isn’t complicated, it is a different way of searching.’
• Soople
  ‘Soople is an early English dialect, which means ‘to soften, make supple’. That’s exactly what I envisioned for this site; a site that softens all the fantastic advanced functions Google offers.’
• Surfwax
• Turboscout
  Access the best engines without having to retype your query.
• Wikia Answers
  ‘Enables communities to create, share and discover content on any topic in any language’.
• Wisenut
  Bare bones search engine.
• Yahoo Australia
  Also access Yahoo [Australia] Help Central.
• Yahoo ! Search
  Also access Yahoo ! Shortcuts, features designed to find answers quickly.

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Search Directories

Consist of websites organised in directories and sub-directories, listed in hierarchies. Can be used to narrow your search to a specific area..

• About
• Answers
  Multi-directory search engine.
• Ask.com
• Alexa Web Search
  Web directories.
• Biotechnology Information Directory
• Digital Librarian
  ‘A librarian’s choice of the best of the Web.’
• DMOZ - Open Directory Project
• GoGuides.Org Directory & Search
• Hitch Hikers Guide to the Internet
• Intute
• ISYS 8
  Multi-faceted search suite.
• JoeAnt
• Librarians’ Index to the Internet [IPL2]
  The merger of IPL and Lii.
• PINAKES, A Subject Launchpad
  Gateway to directories.
• RingSurf
  Subject rings, directories.
• Super Searcher’s Web Pages
  Subject specific resources.
• The Internet Oracle
• Virtual Reference Shelf [Library of Congress]
  Directories, practical material.
• WebRing
  Web directories.
• Welcome to Net-Trace

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MetaSearch Engines

Access multiple search engines through one search. They provide broad searches. Many list results in priority order.

• Better Brain’s Metasearch
• Clusty
  ‘Clusty queries several top search engines, combines the results, and generates an ordered list based on comparative ranking. Our search engine groups similar results together into clusters. Clusters help you see your search results by topic so you can zero in on exactly what you’re looking for or discover unexpected relationships between items.’
• Dogpile
• Fazzle
• FirstStop WebSearch Free
  ‘An incredibly fast and easy to use software that uses multiple search engines to search a myriad of web sites simultaneously for a more comprehensive Internet experience.’ Downloadable software.
• Gigablast
• Ixquick
  Probably the best. Check their Help Site.
• Jux2
  ‘A comparative research tool.’
• KartOO Visual Meta Search Engine
  Very good ‘interlinked’ sets of responses to queries. Allow for further searching.
• Langenberg
  ‘Search and Get There Faster.’
• Mamma
  ‘The Mother of All Search Engines®.’
• Metacrawler
• PolyCola
• Power Search
• Quick Browse
  Single result page.
• Search.com
• SearchWolf
• The Info Com
  Metasearches of specialised engines.
• Vivisimo
• VROOSH ! [Canadian]
  Metacrawler, webcrawler.
• Webcrawler
• WebFerret
• Wormhole to the Rest of the Internet
  Not one engine, but access to a range of engines. Metasearches, specialist searches, more.

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Finding Search Engines

These provide help in finding search engines. The first is probably the best.

• All Search Engines
• Beaucoup
  In 6 languages.
• Find Spot
• FinderSeeker
• List of Search Engines
  By content, topic, information type, model, based on … , references, links. From Wikipedia.
• Pandia
  All about Search Engines, Searching, Ranking, Optimisation.
• Search Engine Colossus
  Engines from 149 countries.
• Search Engine Guide
  1 000s of engines.
• Search Engines : Refdesk.com
• Search Engines & Specialized Directories
  Huge listing, under topic and other headings.
• Search Engines Worldwide
  From more than 100 countries.
• Special Search Engines
• The Big Hub
• The Invisible Web
  10 000+ in categories.
• The Search Engine List
  Alphabetical Index or by types.

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© D & B Mann Webmasters. All rights reserved. Last updated - 19 April 2010.
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