-Why use a Multi-search engine?

At the time of updating (February 2003) there are at least 150,000 different search engines (you can view the ones which I use most by visiting my search engine page) available which cover both general and specific subjects, or which search specific elements of the Internet such as Web pages or Usenet.While some of these are particularly effective and sophisticated none of them are entirely comprehensive. They may only use a small database from which to create your set of results (Yahoo for example only indexes a very small proportion of the 3 billion pages indexed by Google), or they may not be updated particuarly quickly (Alltheweb is updated every fortnight or so, while Google is updated monthly). Their spider programs may not be very fast, which means that their currency might not be a real reflection of the state of play on the Internet.Consequently, even if you have a favourite search engine, or even several of them, to ensure anything like a comprehensive search you may need to use several of them before you are satisfied that you have found everything you require on a particular topic. A Multi-search engine may save you the trouble of going to a variety of different sites in order to run your search, or it may suggest a search engine which you had not considered, or perhaps did not even know about!