Seznam is a Czech Search Engine (in Czech it means "list"). To make full use of it you should really enter Czech text but vey often English search words will pick up page translations so you might still get what you are looking for. Use the "Slovnik" option first if you are not sure of the Czech word.
Go to the www.seznam.cz website.
The main page of the search engine has now opened and there are some things to explain. Under the large "Seznam" sign you will find four tabs called Internet-Firmy-Mapy-Slovnik that are explained below;
Slovnik
This is actually the last tab but it is useful for you to know it now. "Slovnik" means "Dictionary" in Czech. By clicking this tab it turns pink and you have a search box and two buttons.
Preloz z AJ do CJ = Translate from English to Czech
Preloz z CJ to AJ = Translate from Czech to English
Literally it means Anglicky Jazyk to Cesky Jazyk (English Language to Czech Language and vice-versa).
In the bottom right of the pink box is a red link "Dalsi jazyky" which means other languages. It is defaulted to Czech-English so if you want any other combination you must tick the associated circle and enter your word in the search box.
Internet
This is the default tab. You'll see the long search box close to the top. Next to it is a box with the word "Hledej" and then a smaller box with "v CR". Beneath the "v CR" box are two links in red. The "Nejhledanejsi slova" link takes you to a page showing the most searched for keywords. The "Pokrocile Hledani" is an advanced search facility.
The long box is where you put your search string. The smaller box gives you the option of searching within only Czech sites but, in the dropdown box you'll find an option for "v Svete" which means search the whole web. For this guide we will use the "v CR" search as it gives us further options later. When you have chosen your search string and search option, click "Hledej" (this means enter).
The next page shows your results and lists available links. On the right side of the page you will see a map of the Czech Republic with red dots corresponding to the links on the left of the screen. The map is divided into Regions and in Czech a Region is known as a "kraj". If you hover your mouse over one of the regions it will show you the name of that region. By clicking on that region, the links on the left will be refreshed to show only those in that region. For example if you click on "Praha" you will see the links from other regions will disappear.
The links on the left can be sorted. On the far left of the page under the big "Seznam" sign you will find the word "Zobrazit" which means "display" and next to it are four groups;
Vse - Default screen - displays all links, text and graphics
Pouze Firmy - Only company links
Pouze nefiremni - No company links
Pouze fulltext v CR - Full text description of link and no graphics.
Firmy
In Czech "Firmy" means companies. If you click on the tab the box goes yellow and you must enter a search criteria. It accepts English words but, if it cannot find an entry under "v CR" it will show all available entries on the web. You will find more accurate search results by using Czech words that you can find using the "Slovnik" explained in the first section.
Mapy
Mapy means maps. If you click on the tab it turns light green and you have only the long search box. You must enter a street name and click "Hledej" to get the best result. On the right of this box are two red links. "Planovac tras" is a route planner that requires you to know the name of the area/town for both start and finish. Click on the link and you get a search page. There are two boxes on this page marked with red exclamation marks and you must enter data in these boxes. "Vychozi" is your starting point and "Cilova" is the finish point. Example - if I wanted to know how to get from Dejvice in central Prague to Velke Popovice in the South of Prague I would enter this into the boxes. The small box on the left marked "Vyhledat xxxxx trasu" has options for quickest or shortest route and is defaulted to quickest. The box on the right that starts "Ignorovat jednosmerne....." should be left at "Ne" as this box asks you whether you want to ignore one-way streets. If the box "Zobrazit trasu na mape" has a green tick in it, click the button "Najit trasu"(generate route). If the address info was accurate, you will have been transferred to the www.mapy.cz website. Your route will be shown on a map and route details generated underneath. If the search box reappears it means that there are location options so, use the dropdown boxes to refine the search.
The "Jdi na Mapy" link takes to the main page of the Mapy.cz website. There is a How to... guide to using the Mapy.cz to generate interactive maps and aerial pictures.
