Copied and pasted...
I might get around to elaborating at some point, but for now...
Patent searching:
www.freepatentsonline.com - slightly enhanced features compared to the USPTO's site.
www.sumobrain.com - I haven't used it but I believe it is the same as
www.freepatentsonline.com just slightly better.
Google Patents - Great for pre-lim searching or "back checking." Best when used in conjunction with another site.
www.delphion.com - The best site (and most convenient) in terms of features/advanced search capabilities. Not free.
www.espacenet.com - Good if you need to search foreign databases not searchable via the other free sites, or if you want to use ECLA classifications to search patents (the international classification system is different than the US one, and in some searches an ECLA subclass or two might be more pertinent to a search than any US subclass). freepatentsonline/SumoBrain allow you to search WO/EP/JP, though, and those are the databases you will usually be concerned about. Delphion offers broad access and enables searching by ECLA classes and more.
www.patentscourge.com - This is a Google Custom Search engine set up by Criterion Dynamics (really, set up by me). As a tool for searching patents/patent apps it is only so so. It is a respectable resource for searching certain sources of non-patent prior art.
Market data -
Google - Google actually deserves to be listed as a research tool, as obvious or as pointless as that may seem. I will not be providing a free (or paid, for that matter) tutorial on how to best use it, but Google provides strong advanced search capabilities and can at times be more useful than research databases that some pay good $$ for.
Ebscohost - Basically a database of news/magazine/trade publication/etc articles and is quite possibly accessible online for free through your local library.
Factiva - similar to Ebscohost, Lexis Nexis, etc. It is very useful however when you factor its advanced search capabilities and overall ease of use. It is not cheap but they sometimes offer a free trial.
Census Bureau - The Census Bureau's site is a good place to find basic industry/demographic statistics. For an easy way of searching the site (and other market data on the web) - check
tr.im/quickstatisticsDun & Bradstreet (Selectory.com) - The best company listing out there. It is not free but they offer a free semi-functional seven day trial.
Reference USA - A lesser version of D&B possibly accessible through your local library.
I forgot to add - while Biznar.com is nothing overly special per se - it is worth a mention here as a pretty decent and completely free resource for market/business data.
- Billbill@criteriondynamics.comwww.criteriondynamics.com