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Invisible Web's Worth 

                                       OR

                     How the Invisible Web Can Help You

     The worth of the Invisible Web is in the "size and nature of its content" (Egger-Sider and Devine 95).  Because it is agreed that the Invisible Web contains the highest quality of data and structure on the Web, so much so that it dwarfs the regular surface Web in size, one can only imagine the disproportionate ratio of bits of information one could find there than in the surface Web.

    For example, imagine you are working a reference desk at a library and an avid fisherman comes in wanting to find out how heavy the largest king salmon caught in Alaska was.  He explains that he is going up to Alaska the following week and would like to know where the largest king salmon was caught in an attempt to try and surpass that record.  Unless you are in Alaska, or have a resource like an almanac that lists specific information like biggest fish ever caught in one state, using Google to find an Invisible Web resource might be your best bet.

    Since we're speaking about fishing, here is an illustration that shows the differences between what is contained in the surface Web and that which is in the Invisible or Deep Web.  Notice how much more information is beneath the surface Web, but also that both boats (users) extend their lines (search strategies) into both depths in order to try and find the best answer to their inquiry.


                                                           Fishing the IW

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