Week 5 Notes

Notes on Final Project

Title Selection: Make sure the title is an official title (from the Web page itself, or the title bar)

Multiple use of the same Site: Sometimes subparts of a site can be used in addition to the main site. Don't overdo this. Example: National Library of Medicine (http://www.nlm.nih.gov/); Pubmed (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/sites/entrez?db=pubmed); MeSH Database (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/mesh?itool=sidebar).

URL Selection: Generally prefer the shortest form of the URL. The Coca-Cola Web site initially comes up as http://www.coca-cola.com/index.jsp. But the URL you should give is: http://www.coca-cola.com/.

Annotations. Annotations are brief summaries, about 3-4 sentences. You do not need to write abstracts, which are longer descriptions that can be many paragraphs in length. You need to write informative annotations as opposed to evaluative annotations. You do not want to say things like, "this is the best web site...", or "I really like the search feature on the site". Keep your annotations objective and original (your own words, not copy and paste from the web site). Try to vary your writing style. Your writing needs attention if you find yourself starting every annotation like this, "This Web site ...". Pay attention to features available on the site: "The site offers both searching and browsing capabilities"; A database of available reports can be searched from the home page"; The topics are broken down by geographic areas".

Video: http://vodpod.com/watch/25484-the-machine-is-using-us-final-version?mp=1&pod=dymaxionq

Produced by Michael Wesch, Assistant Professor of Cultural Anthropology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, KS.

Google is always beta testing new ways to search Internet content. Here are some examples:

Evaluating Internet Resources

Criteria for Evaluation

Scope

Is the purpose of the resource clearly stated? A site's purpose should be clear and its content should reflect its purpose, whether it's to educate, persuade, entertain, or sell. Is the site appropriate for the intended audience? Is the site for a subject expert, a layperson, a school student? How does the site compare with other sites on the same subject?

What items are included in the resource? Is the scope only implied, or is it stated through metainformation such as an introduction? Does the actual scope of the resource match expectations? Aspects of the scope include:

Breadth: What aspects of the subject are covered? Is the resource focused on a narrow area or does it include related topics?

Depth: What is the level of detail provided about the subject? This is related to the level of audience for which the resource has been designed, mentioned below. Time: Is the information in the resource limited to certain time periods?

Format: A resource that provides links may restrict its scope to certain classes of resources. For example, Telnet, Gopher, or FTP (File Transfer Protocol) resources may be excluded from a WWW-oriented site.

Authority

Who (person or agency) is responsible for the content? What are their credentials? Why should we believe what they say?

What are the author's reputation and qualifications in the subject covered? Are sources of information stated? Can the author be contacted for clarification or to be informed of new information? Examining the URL can give clues as to the author's relationship to the organization. For instance, a tilde "~" often indicates a personal Web directory, rather than part of the organization's official Web site.

Here is Senator Edward M. Kennedy's Web site from 1997, as recovered from the Wayback Machine:

Many universities (such as DU) offer personal Web sites. These bear personal opinions of the authors, not the official representation of the University:

Content

If the resource is fee-based or selling a product, is there substantial content offered for free? Is the information on the site accurate? Is the information factual or opinion? Ask "why is the author placing this information on the Internet?" Frequently the answer is that the information is placed to advertise or support a particular point of view. Does the site contribute something unique to the subject? How current is the information? How frequently is the resource updated? Are dates of update stated? Browsers may allow you to view the date of creation and modification of a file [in Netscape View|Document Info]. Remember this may not be the date that the actual information was created or reviewed. If there are links to other sites, do they work? Are they appropriate? Is the content well-written (easy to read, correct spelling and grammar)?

Here is where you should pay attention to the TLD. Sites like .gov, .mil, state.co.us would likely represent official opinions of government agencies (but not necessarily in all cases!). Sites like .com, .co.jp, or .co.uk might be company sites, but might also be personal sites (as these can easily be purchased by individuals).

Is the writing logical? Is it written in bad style? Is it easy to read? Is the content repetitive?

What is the intended audience? Is the resource too elementary, too advanced or technical, or is it just right?

Does the site consist of internally maintained links or does it consist of external links over which there is no control?.

Currency

When was the Web item produced? When was the Web item mounted? When was the Web item last revised? How up to date are the links? How reliable are the links; are there blind links, or references to sites which have moved? Is contact information for the author or producer included in the document?

1. Go to official government Web site (such as epa.gov; commerce.gov; fema.gov; bls.gov, etc).

2. Look for press releases (sometimes labelled newsroom, releases, news, etc.) and retrieve the most recent one you can find.

3. Search for a phrase within the release with a site limit in place (ex: site:fema.gov "Payment of not less than 75 percent of the eligible costs for repairing or replacing damaged public facilities")

Example sites to evaluate:

Citation Verification

One of the most daunting aspects of librarianship is mastering the plethora of tools available for bibliographic verification. Bibliographic verification, the process of ensuring the accuracy and authenticity of bibliographic citations, is of great importance in the academic library. Academic reference departments deal with faculty and students in every discipline of the sciences, social sciences, and humanities. They must know how to verify everything from sixteenth century English books to physics pre-prints that may just recently have been posted on the Internet.

Freely Available Citation Verification Tools & Strategies

Union Databases

National Libraries

Union Lists of Periodicals

Tables of Contents Services

Google Scholar: http://scholar.google.com/

Citation Databases

It is becoming more popular for commercial content providers to link to other articles within their products.

These are not properly within the scope of this class, because they are fee-based resources (and will be covered in LIS4011), but I bring them up to illustrate the point.