Archive for the 'Browsing' Category
Even though we call it surfing the Internet, browsing or surfing the web is actually is done less often than searching. You may not have realized but when you use a search engine you need to know something about what you are looking for. When you are browsing or surfing you do not. Surfing is a time of discovery, like flipping through the channels on TV or browsing the shelves on a library and finding books you never would have thought to look up in the catalog. Scanning headlines is another form of surfing. RSS (Real Simple
Syndication) Readers are a good tool to use for scanning headlines. See Recommended
RSS Feeds for a list.
Unlike searching, surfing allows users to start broad then narrow down according to interests. StumbleUpon is a fun surf tool. It’s very similar to channel surfing on TV. Directories are another surfing tool. They start with broad prearranged categories. Users then drill down to narrower topics.
So the next time you are surfing the web ask yourself, “Am I searching or surfing.”