Tip: It may seem obvious, but it's always a good idea to start with the company’s web site. When you get there, poke around a bit and take a look at what information they offer, but pay special attention to listings of new products and job openings. New products listings can indicate growth and the employment listings can give you some idea about what is going on with the firm.
A search engine generally cannot find information located in a password-protected database, so you have to search them manually. To find out what database to look in, where it's located, or if it even exists, check out the Google Directory for a topical listing of databases on the Web.
Too good to be true? No way! This list of resources is good enough to cover the needs of most users in most situations. The fact is, even here at the Launchpad this set of tools covers the vast majority of our searches on a daily basis (shhhh! don't tell the hardcore users, they'll never respect us again!).
To search a broad sample of the Web in one stop go Google
To search multiple Web (and other) indices at one time visit Dogpile
