How to differentiate between different information types.

1. Different Information
Sources

2. Books
provide an authoritative and in depth coverage of a subject
provide citations and bibliographies which can be used to
identify other resources
Due to the lengthy publication process, books can become
out of date. This is more important in some subjects than
others.

3. Journals
a collection of articles usually written by scholars in an
academic or professional field
usually ‘peer-reviewed’, i.e. they have been rigorously
assessed and evaluated by experts in the field to ensure
that the research and conclusions are valid
published regularly (e.g. weekly, monthly, and yearly)
Articles in journals can cover very specific topics or
narrow fields of research.

4. Newspapers
published regularly (usually daily)
contain articles on international, national and local news
events
Since there is at least one in every city, it
is a great source for local
information.They are useful for information
about current events and developments.

5. Reference material
Reference material consists of a range
of different types of material providing
background information such as facts,
definitions, figures, statistics, standards
and dates. This material can either be
general or related to specific subject
areas.

6. Reference material: dictionaries and encyclopaedias
Dictionaries are useful to find definitions of terms, subjects or
topics. Subject-specific dictionaries provide definitions of
specialist terms.
Encyclopedias provide a collection of concise overviews
often written by different contributors who are
knowledgeable about the topic. Subject encyclopedias
contain in-depth entries focusing on one field of study.