However, once delivery costs are added in (and customs duty, for expensive items) the savings may disappear. It’s also far more trouble to deal with the supplier in the event of any problems. These activate searches on a number of other engines at once, combining the results on their own pages. If you’re having difficulty locating an obscure product, you could try using a meta search engine, such as Ask Jeeves ( www.askjeeves ). A longer-established brand of directory, Yellow Pages, is also on-line, where it’s known as Yell ( www.yell.co.uk).l Use quote marks to make search engines look for phrases, such as “Ford Focus”. While some will automatically treat the keywords “ford” and “focus” as a phrase, others will waste time serving up endless references to cameras and Indiana Jones.l Although search engines are being souped up all the time, even the most powerful of them only register a small proportion of sites on the Web.

As in a public library, categories are extensively sub-divided, making it easy to narrow a search down from, say, “food” to “cheese”. Strictly, it’s a directory combined with a search engine facility: this is also true of other “search engines”, such as Lycos. A Yahoo! search will thus typically deliver links to both individual Web pages and to categories. If that doesn’t work, try “.co.uk” instead of ” “.l If you aren’t looking for goods from one particular supplier, a directory may be more use than a search engine.

Web directories are lists of links to sites, compiled by humans and organised into subject categories. The oldest and most popular directory is Yahoo! Confusingly, it is usually described as a search engine. l Although you can use the Web to avoid a trip to Tesco, the Net comes into its own in its ability to provide access to smaller suppliers, who may be based the other side of town, or the other side of the country. These will typically be specialist outfits, such as The Teddington Cheese ( www.teddingtoncheese.co.uk).
l If you are looking for products made by a particular company, or you know the name of a supplier who is likely to sell those products, try putting ” www.” in front of the company’s name, and ” ” afterwards.

The Web can feel as big and crowded as a department store. But the advantage of the former is that you can speed things up with a few simple tricks and short cuts, turning the Net from a labyrinth into a fast lane. Nobody wanted to swap their brussels sprouts for a few Sydney rock oysters and a whole Tasmanian salmon with wasabi mayonnaise.This has all been very amusing, but I know you’re not listening. You’re going to carry on with your Bob Cratchit impersonation and put up with the tragedies, the disasters, the turkey and the family. As I am, too.All I can say is Merry Christmas and God help us, Every One..