Tips for using Yahoo! Search effectively
ID: SLN2242
Refers to:
Search
Description
Advice and techniques on how to ensure relevant search results when using Yahoo! Search.
Resolution
To improve your results, try these guidelines when searching on Yahoo! Search:
- Specific keywords: Use specific keywords to describe exactly what you're looking for. For example:
- Try 19th century chairs instead of old furniture.
- Use digital camera reviews instead of electronics.
- Watch for words with more than one meaning.
- If you're looking for information on modeling, make sure you specify fashion modeling or clay modeling or mathematical modeling.
- Requiring or excluding words: Know when to require or exclude words. You can indicate words that must be in each search result or words that cannot be in each search result:
- To require words, type + (plus) in front of each word that must be in the search results.
- If you want to see pages about health issues surrounding blackberries, and you mean the BlackBerry hand-held device, search for blackberry health +device. - To exclude words, type - (hyphen or dash for minus) in front of each word that cannot be in the search results.
- If you want to see pages about health issues around blackberries with no mention of the hand-held device, search for blackberries health -device.
- To require words, type + (plus) in front of each word that must be in the search results.
- Exact phrases: Know how and when to search for exact phrases.
- To search for an exact phrase, put quotation marks around two or more words.
- For example, a search for "to be or not to be" returns only results containing the exact phrase inside the quotation marks.
- Simultaneous multiple searching: Know how to perform multiple searches simultaneously.
- If you're equally interested in two or more alternatives, use OR in capital letters.
- For example, if you are interested in seeing results for both kayaking and biking in New Zealand, search for new zealand kayaking OR biking.
- Search types: Focus the types of results to return.
- Select the links over the "Search" box to limit your search specifically to images, video, news, answers, or other search types.
- Search Direct: Take advantage of Search Direct suggestions.
- If other people using Yahoo! Search have performed searches similar to yours, search suggestions will appear under the "Search" box.
- Select a suggestion to use it for your search.
- Learn more, see our help article about Search Direct.
- : Save time with .
- are keywords and symbols that you use to get specialized answers right on your search results page.
- You can save time by using to locate specific details such as flight information and package tracking status.
- Learn more, see our help article about using .
- Meta Words: Use Search Meta Words. Enter the following keywords into the "Search" box returns special results:
- site: finds all documents within a particular domain and all its subdomains.Example: site:yahoo.com
- url: finds a specific document in our index. Example: url:http://edit.autos.yahoo.com/repair/tree/0.html
- intitle: finds a specific keyword as part of the indexed titles. Example: intitle:Bulgarian