As the name implies, you would use a video search engine to specifically search for videos. We will now look at various video search engines and their features to get a feel for how they work.
As before, remember keywords play an important part in getting relevant results.
Google Video Search
There are two video search engines associated with Google:- In New Zealand (under the .nz domain) we have access only to the YouTube search engine. (Google owns YouTube.)
- Google’s other video search engine (Google Video search) is available in some of the other country domains. You can access it by searching http://video.google.com/ or http://www.google.com.au/.
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Hands-on Demonstration
- Right click on YouTube and select open in new window
- Search for Reference Interview - have a quick look at your results
- Click on Search Options - note the options, particularly Duration
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Other Video Search Engines
The other general web search engines we looked at in Module 5 also have video search:
They all work on the same principles and have most features in common.Another video search engine worth exploring is blinkx. It has a very interesting Advanced search where you can select the source of video through removing the source button from the list displayed. The Advanced search link is not obvious on the home page, to get there you will need to click on Browse blinkx (top right) and scroll down to select Advanced search.
Not surprisingly, YouTube sourced videos dominate the search results because of their immense database of videos. There is some duplication in the result lists because videos can be uploaded to multiple websites.
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DISCOVERY EXERCISES
- Use YouTube to search for two of the topics listed below.
- A teacher is looking for DVD video of Othello performed at the Globe theatre.
- Look for a video that demonstrates how to tie knots to make a rope ladder.
- A mother is looking for ideas on wearable art using recycled materials for a group of year 5 & 6 students. Can you find a video on a wearable art show?
- Repeat the searches using one of the other video search engines. Compare your results - did you get different videos?
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Updated: September 2010
