About CI Search

Table of Contents

• General FAQ
• Web Developers FAQ

General FAQ

What is CI Search?

CI Search enables visitors to the CI web site to quickly locate official web sites and documents that exist within the csuci.edu internet domain.

CI Search is powered by Google hardware and software technology, and is hosted by the Chancellor's office of California State University. CI shares the use of CSU-leased Google hardware with the Chancellor's Office and the 22 other campuses in the CSU system.

How do I use CI Search?

To use CI search, simply type a word or phrase into the "Search" text box at the top of any official CI web page and click the "Search" button.This will return a list of pages which most closely match your search term.

I received too few/too many matches for a given search term. How do I expand/narrow my search results?

You can use the same search commands used by Google to narrow or refine a search.

By default, all of the words in your search query are combined using AND logic. For example, a search for "biology courses for 2009" would be interpreted by as a search for "biology AND courses AND 2009".

Common words like "the", "a" and "for" are usually ignored by CI search.

To expand your search results:

1. Add fewer terms to your search: for example, calendar 2009 will likely return more results than academic calendar fall 2009
2. Use "OR" in all-caps to find one of several words (e.g., annual report 2007 OR 2008 OR 2009)

To narrow your search results:

1. Use double quotes: double quotes around a set of words will search for exact matches of a specific phrase (e.g., "four score and seven years ago")
2. Add more terms to your search: for example, type: academic calendar for 2009 instead of calendar
3. Use the "site" attribute: this will limit search results to a specific web site domain (e.g., databases site:library.csuci.edu)
4. Use a minus sign in front of terms you want to exclude (e.g., calendar -academic -payroll)

More tips to improve your search queries can be found on the Google Help site.

What kinds of documents are indexed by CI Search?

CI Search indexes documents which end in the following file name extensions:

1. .htm/.html
2. .asp/.aspx
3. .doc
4. .xls
5. .ppt
6. .pdf

How frequently are web pages added (or re-checked) by CI Search?

The CI is re-indexed every 2-3 calendar days. New sites that have been added or changed will appear in the search results in that time frame. CI has no way to increase the frequency of re-indexing; this is a system setting of the Google search.

I sometimes see a "Keymatch" link at the top of a search results page. What is this?

"Keymatch" results are created from a list of the 250 most popular web site searches. The "Keymatch" list of search terms is maintained manually by Information Technology and Communication & Public Relations staff.

Are there any web sites that are not indexed by CI search?

In order to improve searchability of key pages and as well as systemwide limitations on the number of pages that can be searched, CI Search results do not include:

1. Any student web site (studentwebs.csuci.edu)
2. Student club web sites (studentclubs.csuci.edu)
3. Personal faculty or staff web sites (faculty.csuci.edu or staff.csuci.edu)

Where can I find directory information (i.e., campus contact information)?

Unfortunately, CI Search doesn't provide searchability for people on campus. Try using the CI Directory instead.

I'm still having problems finding the information I need. Who can I contact?

1. Change your search terms. You may need to add additional words, to take steps to narrow your search results.
2. Try the A-Z Index. The A-Z Index provides an alphabetical list of web sites for official campus organizations.
3. Fill out the Contact Us form to request information. This form will be directed electronically to the appropriate campus personnel to answert your question.

If these three steps don't help you locate the information you're looking for, contact the IT Solution Center. Your request will be reviewed by Information Technology staff and will be directed to appropriate campus personnel to assist you with locating information.

I have some other questions about search engine use or optimization. Who can I contact?

Please contact the IT Solution Center for further assistance.

Web Developers FAQ

This section addresses common questions for web site content editors, designers, and programmers.

DEVELOPERS NOTE: please read all of the information in the Search Users FAQ first, which answers many general questions about CI search.

What determines the ranking of my page in the CI Search results?

The exact algorithm used to determine the page rank of results pages is a closely-guarded secret for web search providers, including Google. A Google employee acknowledged in a 2007 NY Times article that there are over 200 criteria used to determine a page's rank.

Independent research has shown at least 7 known criteria impact the rank in search results:

1. Level of web page accessibility. Web pages that are accessible per CSU ATI requirements comply with modern web standards and format content using semantic HTML markup.
2. Number of meaningful keywords present in file name and URL.
3. Number of meaningful keywords in document "title" tag. The "title" is what is displayed as the main clickable link in search results.
4. Number of meaningful keywords in document metadata.
5. Number of meaningful keywords in the page body text.
6. Number of highly ranked page which link TO a document . Research has shown that pages that are already highly ranked (i.e., top 10) in search engine results for a given term will improve the rank of any pages they link to. This has lead to "link exchange" techniques practiced and used by SEO companies to improve search results.
7. Page does not contain search engine spamming/tricks. Modern search technology is very sophisticated, and may ignore documents that try to artificially improve ranking through spamming techniques or other tricks.

Why don't I see my web page listed in the search results?

Your web page probably hasn't been added to the search results for several reasons:

1. Your page is not linked from another official CI web page. Make sure that there is at least ONE page on the CI web site that has a link to your page.
2. Your page exists on an unsupported web domain. CI Search only can search specific domain names which end in csuci.edu. Certain domains within csuci.edu are also not indexed; click to read more.
3. Your new page hasn't been indexed yet. If it is a new page, it could take 2-3 days for it to appear in the general search results.
4. Your page uses an unsupported file type. Only a small set of text-based file types are indexed; these include pages that end in the following file extensions:
   1. .htm/.html
   2. .asp/.aspx
   3. .doc
   4. .xls
   5. .ppt
   6. .pdf
   7. .swf
5. CI Search has exceeded its document count limits. CI Search has limits for the total number of documents it can index. The service is meant to provide searchability to the most popular and frequently accessed pages. Please contact the IT Solution Center if you suspect this issue.

How do I improve my web site's position on the CI Search results?

The process of improving the searchability of a web site is called search engine optimization (or SEO for short).

Developers should take these 7 steps to optimize searchability and improve their rank in search results:

1. Make your web accessible. Web pages that are accessible per CSU ATI requirements comply with modern web standards and format content using semantic HTML markup.
2. Use good file names. A search-engine-friendly file name would have these characteristics:
   1. Doesn't contain spaces (e.g., "academiccalendar.htm" instead of "academic calendar.htm")
   2. Uses dashes instead of spaces, underscores or other separating characters (e.g., "events-calendar.htm" instead of "events_calendar.htm")
   3. Contains complete words that are relevant to the page content, not cryptic acronyms or abbreviations (e.g., "schedule-of-classes-2009.htm" instead of "schedclas09.htm"
3. Use good title information. On a web page, this means having meaningful keywords relating to your web page in the <title> element. In a Microsoft Office or Adobe Acrobat document, this means having a meaningful title in the "Title" document metadata.
4. Add metadata fields to your web documents. On a web page, this means adding <meta> elements for both "keywords" and "description" types, which respectively should contain meaningful keywords and a short description of your web site. In a Microsoft Office or Adobe Acrobat document, this means having a meaningful keywords in the "Keywords" and "Description" fields of the document metadata.
5. Link to your page from other high-ranked pages. Research has shown that pages that are already highly ranked (i.e., top 10) in search engine results for a given term will improve the rank of any pages they link to. This has lead to "link exchange" techniques practiced and used by SEO companies to improve search results.
6. Don't "overdo" or blatantly try to trick a search engine. Modern search technology is very sophisticated, and can detect pages that attempt to artificially improve their ranking through techniques such as metadata overload and overembedding of keywords in page body text.
7. If appropriate, request a Keymatch. Keymatch results will position your search result at the top of the list. Please note that new Keymatches will only be configured for extremely popular or timely content, and must be appropriate. Please contact the IT Solution Center to request a new Keymatch.

How do I get my web site listed by the public Google search?

If you are creating an official CI web site, as long as it is linked from one or more CI web pages, it will likely automatically appear within 15 days. Aside from paying for advertising, there is no way to improve the frequency of index of public web pages by Google.

How do I remove web content or a web site from CI Search?

Please contact the IT Solution Center for assistance.

How do I remove my web site from the Google public search?

How can I find out what keywords or phrases are most frequently searched through CI Search?

Please contact the IT Solution Center. Web Services staff can provide a list of the top search results for a given time period by request.

Why does my page not appear as a "Keymatch"?

The Keymatch results were initially populated through a manual review of the top 250 search terms of the CI web site. New keymatches are added by Information Technology and Communication and Public Relations staff as appropriate when new web sites are created or existing web sites are modified. Keymatch terms are are reviewed periodically for accuracy by IT and Communications & Marketing.

How do I add a new "Keymatch" link to CI Search?

Please contact the IT Solution Center. Information Technology staff will contact you about your requirements and evaluate your request. Addition of new Keymatches must be appropriate and are created at the discretion of the Supervisor of Web Services and the Director of Communication & Public Relations.

Why is the "Keymatch" link to my web site missing?

First, be sure that you had placed a request for a Keymatch to be added to CI Search; this should be done by contacting the Help Desk.

If a previous "Keymatch" link was working correctly and it is no longer functioning, please contact the IT Solution Center for further assistance.

Can I have my directory information (i.e., campus contact information) added to CI Search?

Unfortunately, CI Search doesn't provide searchability for people on campus. You will need to update your information in the CI Directory instead; please visit the CI Directory page for more information.

Some web sites provide contact information for their staff; while this is a good practice, providing and updating that information is up to the discretion of the web site owner.

I have some other questions about search engine use or optimization. Who can I contact?

Please contact the IT Solution Center for further assistance.