Middlespot: Getting More Out of Search - Useful Tools
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Already I'm sure you can see the usefulness of Middlespot. But we're not quite done yet. The search engine also offers some handy tools to help expand its usefulness to researchers.
The first clever tool is a bookmarklet. It's a way to carry Middlespot's capabilities with you even when you aren't on the site. Firefox users simply drag the bookmarklet logo to their Firefox browser toolbar, while IE users will have to click on the bookmarklet logo and select “add to my favorites.” Then, whenever you come across a web page that would be a helpful addition to your research, all you need to do is click the “middlespot me” button in your browser toolbar. This will pop up a small window that will ask you to which workpad (if you have more than one) you would like to save the web page. The next time you open that workpad in Middlespot, you will see a screen shot and hyperlink of that web page.
The second tool offered by Middlespot shouldn't surprise anyone who's been online for almost any length of time. It's a full-fledged tool bar. It lets you begin a search on Middlespot directly from your browser. To add this tool bar, you simply click on the “add our search” button on the Tools page of Middlespot's web site and follow the instructions. The tool bar is not a homegrown creation; Middlespot notes that it was “generously provided by http://www.addoursearch.com.”
The third tool is an intelligent bow to the realities of the search engine market. Middlespot seems to realize that most people will prefer to search with Google. That's not a problem. With this Firefox-only tool, users initiate a search in Google, but their results page will display a “middlespot me” logo and hyperlink after each numbered result. Clicking the logo causes a small pop-up window to appear. It asks the user to which workpad they would like to save that Google result. The next time time they open that workpad in Middlespot, they'll see the screen shot and corresponding text of the search result they saved.
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