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On finding Finding DulcineaMarch 17, 2009 Call it a response or a backlash or an adjustment. Something is going on in the search world.There's a growing recognition that we need more than Google, we need to reach beyond the limits of keyword search to make sense of a crowded, media-rich information landscape. In several upcoming posts, I'll try to point to some of the newer kids on the block. We're seeing a flux of tools offering semantic results (see my post on the Horizon Report) Semantic-aware applications: Semantic-aware applications are tools designed to use the meaning, or semantics, of information on the Internet to make connections and provide answers that would otherwise entail a great deal of time and effort. These applications react against the limits of keyword searching and bring the promise of a better organized Web through used of structured data, meta-data tagging, and social networking. Early examples of semantic search tools include Twine, Hakia, TrueKnowledge, and SemantiFind . . . See this EDUCAUSE article and this ReadWriteWeb post to learn more.If FindingDulcinea is representative of search trends, we are also seeing renewed recognition of the need for human-aware tools, for tools that rely on judgment over, or in addition to, algorithm. FindingDulcinea, a human-based search tool, calls itself The Librarian of the Internet, though I am not sure any librarians are really on the team of around 30 expert researchers, writers and developers. Nevertheless, in addition to LII and other favorite directories, I find myself regularly exploiting FindingDulcinea's team, especially for their Web Guides (pathfinders in their own right) to help me build my own pathfinders. I find myself forwarding links and guides to members of our faculty. I cannibalize FD's discoveries to include in my own curricular guides. Their discoveries are timely and seem to continually attack those topics my students research. Reminiscent of the About.com search (which those of us who are old as dirt may remember as the Mining Company) with its human guides and structured, contextualized presentation of results, FindingDulcinea offers us more and far more attractively. What does FindingDulcinea do right? It organizes. It evaluates. It creates context. It is conscious of design. It gets media.
  The site delivers three major types of content:
In addition to the three main types of content, the site also offers:
Posted by Joyce Valenza Ph.D on March 17, 2009 | Comments (29)
March 17, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea LibraryLady51 commented: Joyce,
March 17, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Ursula commented: I see that fD has lots of general as well as curriculum guides in their Education channel, and is developing an educators' Web tool.
March 17, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Mark Moran commented: Thank you for your terrific review ! I am one of those "old as dirt" people who remembers the Mining Company, and was disappointed to see it falter in its mission when it became About.com. So we set out to create a site that consistently delivers on its mission to bring users credible, and comprehensive, information about any topic. We're thrilled to hear that you like what we've done so far, and the best is yet to come.
March 19, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Tim commented: I never heard of this site before, but it seems like a very informative website. Very unique concept executed very well.
March 19, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Brian Kenney commented: Great post, Joyce, I'm finding this tool fascinating.
March 22, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Justine commented: Joyce, thank you for bringing findingDulcinea to our attention. I've spent several hours a day on it, but unlike with most other sites, it's not time I've wasted because it helps me find information faster than I could on my own. And SweetSearch is an easy way to introduce kids to the content on findingDulcinea.
March 26, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Brian Sullivan commented: Let's hope the "growing recognition that we need more than Google" continues to grow ! I find it frightening that an organization wants to control the world's information, and that Internet users seem only so happy to let them do it. Thank you for finding findingDulcinea - what a terrific Website! I could read its news stories all day long, particularly its On This Day in History feature.
March 27, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea PCFriar99 commented: Joyce, thank you for all the work you put into your reviews - so many and yet thorough ! I love findingDulcinea - so well written and organized. Keep them coming.
March 31, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Diane Danahy commented: Very nice find, Joyce. I directed students to the Health Web Guide for research on health conditions, and so far they have come back only with terrific results. It is a much different story when they go to Google.
April 2, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Laura Curley commented: It's nice to see that at least one Website still believes in the ascendancy of the human mind over algorithms. And it's also heartening to see one with a well articulated mission that it actually accomplishes.
April 7, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Christina commented: findingDulcinea sounds like a great way to introduce my special education students to the Internet. Thanks for the tip.
April 10, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Mary Hope commented: I'm loving the Sweet Search search engine. I searched on 20 historical figures and get some great results. How refreshing that it does not index Wikipedia. My students are now using Sweet Search as well and coming up with much better sources than they used to.
April 14, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Kevin Maroney commented: This is a terrific find. The neutrality of the news articles is really interesting
April 15, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Bob Dolan commented: This Never Ending Search blog is so useful during these stressful times where we are seeing more people using our libraries even as our resources are being cut. Every post is a great read. Finding Dulcinea looks like a great site that
April 23, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Susie Donoghue commented: Thanks for this, Joyce, you unearth the best sites and tools. I found FindingDulcinea really helpful for Holocaust Remembrance Day. It spotlighted some fascinating people.
April 29, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Paul French commented: It's terrific to see a leader like you Joyce, speaking about a Google backlash. The teens I teach all want to rely entirely on Google, Wikipedia, and nothing else. It is heartening to me that there are sites like Finding Dulcinea and some of the other ones you mentioned that give me hope that my students may one day actually be able to differentiate between good and bad information on the Internet.
April 29, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Tammy P. commented: Thanks for this post Joyce, although I see I discovered it some time after you wrote it. I agree with Paul above, many of my students are completely oblivious to the fact that they have no idea how to do proper internet research, thanks for passing along this gem.
June 15, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Kevin Faughey commented: Thanks for this, Joyce. I checked it out today and found a nice mix of well-written stories with great reference links.
July 21, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Ted LeTure commented: The On This Day feature of this site almost never fails to inform and entertain me. Such nice topic selection, and always well researched and well written.
July 28, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Joseph Davey commented: I'm ashamed to say I haven't gotten very serious about Internet research until recently, and this site explains how it works and how to find information on it as well as anything I've come across.
August 10, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Jill Mahony commented: I love the reference guides Finding Dulcinea has created about many of the complex topics in the news today. I find they are a great place for students to begin their research.
August 22, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Olivia commented: Great find ! It seems to me the search engines' results pages are getting more cluttered, not less, as they continue to plow money into making them "better." I think sites like Finding Dulcinea are here to stay.
August 31, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Mary Arent commented: The SweetSearch.com search engine looks really helpful for students. It seems to exclude the harmful sites that invade our school's system with viruses every day.
September 12, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Theo York commented: This site is a terrific find. I've spent 3 hours on it today and found stuff that would have taken me all week to find on Google.
September 18, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Bill Toomey commented: Joyce, I think that "backlash" against Google may become a revolution. People depend entirely too much on a few organizations to tell us what's important. I am thankful for tools like Finding Dulcinea that effectively serve as a "check" on Google's power.
September 30, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Helen Flugman commented: This company has now come out with a new product they call Finding Education. It helps me find good web sites to include as resources in an assignment. A very useful tool to integrate the web into the classroom.
October 9, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Mary Beth commented: Sweet Search is starting to become quite popular in our community. I've been pointing my students to it and it works well for them. I'm also starting to see links to it on a lot of other school library sites.
October 26, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Margaret Anderson commented: Joyce, once again you were ahead of the crowd. The ALA's Points of Reference blog on Booklist Online just named FindingDulcinea its Website of the Week.
November 10, 2009
In response to: On finding Finding Dulcinea Patty Crinnion commented: They've added a pretty neat feature to SweetSearch. Lists of top quality links for every school subject, by school level, for teachers and students. As a librarian, I love it !
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