Generalized Boussinesq type of equations with positive and negative exponents are examined. The analysis depends mainly on the sine-cosine ansatz. It is formally shown that these nonlinear models give rise to compactons, solitary patterns, solitons, and periodic solutions depending on the exponents and the coefficients of the derivatives of u(x, t). The presented scheme reveals quite a number of remarkable features that will be helpful for identical problems. (c) 2004 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.