name________________________

Search and Sort Algorithms
Studies show that about 85% of all Internet searches begin with search engines. Search engine developers are hard-pressed to refine searching and sorting algorithms to buttress claims that their engines are "the biggest and the best." Business use of the Internet is still rising. Reflecting the critical roles that search engines play, a new, related industry has emerged -- companies that claim that (because they understand how search engines really work) they can improve ranking and retrieval rates for any specific Web page. For a fee, of course. WebGrip Inc, FirstPlaceRanking.com and MoreVisibility.com are examples.

Learning about search engines is both academic and practical. Search engines themselves, however, are commercial, competitive businesses, and their specific search and sort techniques are proprietary. Although much about search engines is in the category of trade secrets, you can still learn a great deal in general about search and sort algorithms.

Background Information -- Britannica Online

1. Go to the Cabrillo College Library homepage http://libwww.cabrillo.edu [If you are at an Information Workstation in the Library, click on HOME, towards the top of the screen.]
2. Click on Fulltext Articles
3. Click on Britannica Online Encyclopedia (over on the right)
4. Type in search algorithm as your search statement. Then, click on Data structures and algorithms
5. Scan the article. What are pointers?

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

____________________________________________________________________

Doing Focused Searching with Search Engines
Not all of the search engines index all of the Internet. Look at Search Engines -- How Well Do They Cover the Internet? You will want to know how to use several search engines.

T'o get to a list of Internet search engines

1. Go to the Cabrillo College Library homepage http://libwww.cabrillo.edu [If you are at an Information Workstation in the Library, click on HOME, towards the top of the screen.]
2. Click on Search the Internet
3. Click on Search Engines

Search engines will give you good, focused results if you tell them how to process your request. This table illustrates some basic strategies for doing focused searching.

Using the table for guidance, use the search engines to identify information about search and sort algorithms Web search engines use, and how they are designed and written. Make notes here about what you find. Note down the URLs for the Web sites from which you get your information.

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Since the early days of the Internet, librarians and information specialists have devoted much effort to trying to understand from an information access point of view how the search engines work. In general terms, they have looked both at how searches are processed, and how results are ranked. A good Web site for this kind of information is Danny Sullivan's SearchEngineWatch. Go there now. Click on Web Searching Tips, then scroll down towards the bottom of the page, and then click on How Search Engines Work. Scan through some of the material. You can see that this explanation is not technical, i.e., it is not written for discrete math scholars. Nevertheless, did you learn anything? What?

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Sorting Algorithms
Algorithm Animation Try the sorting or graph algorithms.
Algorithm Animation at SRC

Explore these animations, and make notes here:

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Internships -- Want to explore some internship possibilities?
Go to JobTrak.

1. Click where it says Search Jobs and Internships
2. From the college & university listing, scroll down and highlight Cabrillo College. Scroll down just a bit to enter cabrillo as the password.
3. Hit Search
4. Click on Jobs & Internships

If you are interested in exploring some possibilities in computer science, follow these steps:

1. Under Job Function, highlight Computer - Information Systems
2. Under Location, select California
3. Then click on Search

Once you have scanned several internship notices with this search, you'll know how to refine your next search by adding more variables, if that seems desirable.

Note information about internships you find:

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

_____________________________________________________________________

Programming Resources -- It's good to know where you can find good resources that support programming.
ACM   Association for Computing Machinery 
Programmer's Oasis 
WITI Campus - Women in Technology International 

Your notes: 

______________________________________________________________________ 
 
______________________________________________________________________ 

Major Companies -- Good places to explore job boards!
Borland  http://www.borland.com/ 
Intel  http://www.intel.com/ 
Microsoft  http://www.microsoft.com/ 
Motorola  http:///www.motorola.com/ 
RedHat.com: Your Online Linux Resource  http://www.redhat.com/ 
Tarantella   [used to be SCO] http://www.tarantella.com/

Your notes 

______________________________________________________________________ 
 
______________________________________________________________________ 

Online Math Help
Ask Dr. Math - College Level and Beyond
Graph Theory Tutorials 
Math Help Online 
Tools: Calculators, etc. Maths links: online tools 

Your notes 

______________________________________________________________________ 
 
______________________________________________________________________ 

Other Useful Sites to Explore for Discrete Math

Discrete Math software 
DIMACS Project: LINK   An example of a LINK image 
 
Interactive sites 
Object Server

Problems 
Elwood the Electronic Watchdog    Solution 
 
Simulations 
Puzzle creation page -- make your own! 

Enduring Problems 
Moat Crossing Optimization Problem 

How to Get to This Page on the Internet 

1. Be on the Cabrillo College Library homepage   http://libwww.cabrillo.edu
2. Click on Mathematics or Computer Information Systems
3. On either page, under Course-Related Materials, click on MATH 23 Discrete Math, or CIS 23, Discrete Mathematics, S. Nerton, Instruct