Search engines are programs that search documents for specified keywords and returns a list of the documents where the keywords were found.
A search engine is really a general class of programs, however, the term is often used to specifically describe systems like Google, Bing and Yahoo! Search that enable users to search for documents on the World Wide Web.
Web Search Engines
Typically, Web search engines work by sending out a spider to fetch as many documents as possible. Another program, called an indexer, then reads these documents and creates an index based on the words contained in each document.
Each search engine uses a proprietary algorithm to create its indices such that, ideally, only meaningful results are returned for each.
Search engines are the key to finding specific information on the vast expanse of the World Wide Web.
Without sophisticated search engines, it would be virtually impossible to locate anything on the Web without knowing a specific URL.
But do you know how search engines work? And do you know what makes some search engines more effective than others?
When people use the term search engine in relation to the Web, they are usually referring to the actual search forms that searches through databases.
