Effective Information Processing and Search Techniques
Classified in Computers
Written on in 
English with a size of 2.94 KB
Information Processing
Companies collect data continuously from suppliers, clients, partners, etc., but this information is not very valuable unless it is properly classified and updated.
Information processing is a set of operations performed with the information obtained from different sources and includes the following stages:
Information Search > Classification > Selection > Interpretation & Presentation
Information Search
When collecting information, companies may choose to obtain it directly (called internal information) or from third parties (external information). In both cases, the source of information is primary when it is obtained first-hand from direct contact, or it can be secondary when it is collected from other sources.
Information Sources
| Internal Sources | External Sources |
|---|---|
| Internal databases | Websites and webpages |
| Financial statements | Official publications |
| Records (staff, sales, costs) | Magazines |
| Documentation from the company | Statistics |
| Data from suppliers and competitors |
| Primary Sources | Secondary Sources |
|---|---|
| Surveys, market research | Existing databases from the company |
| Interviews | External databases |
| Company staff | Chambers of commerce, city councils, etc. |
| Sales records | Books, magazines, etc. |
Finding Information on the Internet
We find information through browsers and search engines. A browser is a software program that allows you to get on the internet, e.g., Firefox, Google Chrome, Safari, etc.
A search engine is a website where you go to get information, but you need to have a browser to access a search engine, like Google.com, Yahoo.com, or Bing.com.
To get specific information or to narrow your searches, it is very useful to use the following search conditions:
- Specific keywords
- Words between quotation marks to find those exact words in that order.
- Advanced search
- Boolean operators:
- AND (between two words means results containing both words)
- OR (between two words means results containing any of those words)
- NOT (between two words means we don't want the first word connected to the second one)
- Proximity operators:
nearandadj. - Sign operators:
+and-meaning including a term or excluding a particular term.