This summer, I attended the summer school of the Digital Methods Initiative at the University of Amsterdam. I can say that I have learned a lot there and I believe that anybody who does research on search engines will find some of the DMI tools useful. My comparative study of Google Autocomplete is one example for their application and you can find many more at the DMI wiki.

I should mention that the DMI team is not only professional but also really nice. Together with an extremely international and interdisciplinary group of participants, a great and productive working atmosphere was created. Therefore, I absolutely recommend attending one of their programs.

The next chance will be the winter school Data Sprint: The New Logistics of Short-form Method, 22-25 January 2013. It is addressed to “PhD candidates, advanced MA students and motivated scholars”. If you have no prior experience with digital methods, the more comprehensive 2-weeks summer school might suit you better. The winter school includes a workshop as well as a mini-conference with the opportunity to present and discuss research papers.