Inquiry into the Use of Google and Yahoo Search Engines in Retrieving Web Resources by Internet Users in Nigeria

Abstract

This paper investigated the use of Google and Yahoo search engines in retrieving relevant information resources by Nigerian internet users. It was found that Nigerians prefer the search services of Google to Yahoo. This is because with Google search engine, they are able to retrieve the exact information that they need; they obtain more relevant and adequate information resources than Yahoo; Google is easier to use than Yahoo; and Google retrieves faster than Yahoo. Most Nigerian internet users have personal access through their mobile devices such as mobile phones, lap tops, palm tops etc. It was therefore recommended that Google should incorporate more Nigerian content to their knowledge base as most Nigerians depend on it to meet their information needs; while Telecommunication companies (such as Etisalat, MTN, Globacom, Airtel, Starcoms etc.) that offer internet services to Nigerians should make their services more efficient as they have emerged as the major internet service providers to Nigerians in the 21st century. Nigerian internet users are expected to continually up-date their search engine skills as more and more advances are made in the field of information retrieval.