a. What is the title and URL of the web page you are defaulted to?
The title of the web page I am defaulted to is "George Mason University | A Top 50 Public R1 Research University." The URL of the web page is https://www.gmu.edu/.
b. Why did this appear? How can you change this default setting so that another web page automatically loads when you launch the web browser?
This web page appeared because I set it as the default Home Page on my browser when I first transferred to GMU. I use FireFox as my default browser, so to change this setting, I...
I am able to change the appearances of web pages within FireFox by navigating into the Settings and scrolling down the "General" page until I reach the "Language and Appearance" section. There, I am able to change things like the color scheme (light/dark), contrast, font face and size, the default "zoom" setting, and site/text language or translations. I imagine that someone would want to do for Accessibility purposes, as well as ease of reading in different environments and personal contexts.
The default search engine associated with my instance of FireFox is Google. Due to how my browser is set up, I am able to type my search terms into the address bar and it automatically redirects to Google. However, I am also able to type the web address for Google and search through that; or use other search engines by utilizing shortcut commands such as "@bing" for Bing and "@duckduckgo" or "@ddg" for DuckDuckGo in the address bar.
a. In the search box, type learning to make web pages and click on the "Search" button. How many matches did you get? Visit a couple of the sites in the search results list. Can you estimate how many of the searches actually relate to learning to make web pages?
This first search culminated in 4,830,000,000 matches. The first four results were "Sponsored Results," meaning that the individuals/organizations behind these paid to have their pages promoted in ad space for search terms like the ones I used. The non-sponsored results varied more, from forums asking about website building to organizations that make website building easier, to other sites with different teaching methodologies for making web pages. I'm probably being very generous, but I'd guess only a tenth of these matches actually have to do with learning to make web pages.
b. Return to the front page of Google. In the search box, type "learning to make web pages" (with quotation marks) and click on the "Search" button. How many matches did you get? Link to a couple of the sites in the search results list. Can you estimate how many of the searches actually relate to learning to make web pages?
This second search culminated in 16,900 matches, which is a far cry from my initial guess! However, I'd hesitate to say that many of these fully relate to learning to make web pages. Some of the first page results include Practice Web Page by R. Craig Collins and a Final Paper/Project page from Washington State University - two very different sources with varying relation to the actual goals of the search terms. It really goes to show how much narrower search engine results become when you look for an exact match using quotations around your terms: a focus that can be both an aide and a detriment to one's research.
Repeat the same tasks for the following websites:
Disregarding Google's search numbers, Bing, Yahoo, and Duck Duck Go's search results did not seem to fluctuate too much, with the result count (other than ads or AI-assisted results) ranging from approximately 7 to 17. The number of matches seemed to be more consistent across the generalized searches, but the total results are concealed in the latest versions of the less popular engines. However, the results from Bing, Yahoo, and Duck Duck Go are generally more relevant to the search terms and the intent behind them. So I would use them at times when I'd be spending too long sifting through Google's results for assistance.
a. Is there a way to search specifically for multimedia?
I selected Bing for this portion of the assessment, and on the front page, there are indeed multimedia tabs I can select for specialized searches.
b. If yes, what specific elements can you search for? What are your options? (If not, try another site!)
The tabs available for me on Bing are (in order from left to right) Images, Videos, Shopping, Maps, and News. There are others in a drop-down menu beyond this point, but the primary multimedia options are Images and Videos.
c. Do a search for a specific media item (e.g., your favorite song, a picture of Britney Spears). How many matches do you get?
I performed a Video search for one of my favorite Lord Huron song, "Ancient Names." The song is split into two parts on the album, and the search results pulled both up, but Bing seemed to have a preference for Part I. Part II only came up a handful of times on the page. Only 20 or so of the videos actually correlated to this song before other related results started trickling in.
d. Are there any warnings, disclaimers, or other information provided about using the results of your multimedia searches embedded in the search interface?
No, there are no warnings, disclaimers, or other information provided about using the results of my multimedia searches embedded in the search interface. I'd likely have to go digging in the Privacy Settings for something like that.
a. What is creative commons? Why might you want to use this search engine for images and other media?
As described on the site, "Creative Commons is an international nonprofit organization that...Provide[s] CC licenses and public domain tools that give every person and organization in the world a free, simple, and standardized way to grant copyright permissions for creative and academic works; ensure proper attribution; and enable others to copy, distribute, and make use of those works." They also "work closely with major institutions and governments to create, adopt and implement open licensing and ensure the correct use of CC licenses and CC-licensed content" - in essence, they want to make it easier for people and organizations to utilize content with accessible and authentic copyright permissions. Using this search engine for images and other media ensures that nothing is plagiarized, creators are properly accredited, and content is repurposed in ways that are both ethical and lawful.
Firstly, I learned that any images or designs that I do not develop myself should be pulled from the Creative Commons wherever possible. Secondly, I learned that key term relevance is going to be a big deal when it comes to visibility on search engines. Unless someone does an exact search for something I write on my page, my web page will mostly likely be buried beneath other web pages that are sponsored, or at the very least powered by organizations with greater popularity or relevance than me. To combat this, factors like multimedia usage, title/heading tags, content relevance, and link functionality should be considered, as they can help them rank higher on search engines. Finally, I also learned that depending on what type of website I want to develop, I should consider focusing promotion on specific search engines, so that the purposes and function of my page aligns with the goals of those searching for it.