2. 2
THE WEB: SEARCHING
When would you use the free
Web for research?
 To get started looking for information about a
topic that you know little about
Example: Social media
To find facts or statistics to support your writings
Example: Social networking

3. 3
THE WEB: TIPS FOR SEARCHING
 Use the Web to begin an exploration of your topic.
 Evaluate, evaluate, evaluate when using the Web for an academic
assignment. If in doubt, ASK your instructor.
 Get familiar with your search tools special features (field searching
and limiters).
 The free Web is NOT a library resource.
 The Web is a self-publishing resource! (Evaluate, evaluate, evaluate.)
 Google does not find “everything”. (Use other tools, i.e. Google
Scholar, OpenDOAR)
 Remember to ask yourself, „Where else can I look for information
about this topic‟?

4. BASIC TOOLS FOR ONLINE RESEARCH
There are three electronic tools used to locate information:
 Web Search Engines
Locate electronic websites, books, journals, magazines,
newspapers, videos, and audio materials. May or may not be free.

Catalogs
Provide the physical location of print books, journals,
magazines, newspapers, videos, and audio materials in a
collection. The material may or may not be electronic. Free to
members of the library.

Databases
Locate electronic websites, books, journals, magazines,
newspapers, videos, and audio materials. Free to members of
the library.
This module will discuss how what type of
information you can find on the free web using
search engines, and how to evaluate that
information.

5. THE WEB: DISORGANIZED BY DESIGN
The Internet is a network of networks connecting
many computers all over the world
 The World Wide Web is a component of the Internet
The Web is Dynamic and ever-changing
 Web sites and documents appear, are deleted, or are
moved to a different location each day

6. THE WEB: DISORGANIZED BY DESIGN
 The Web is not organized in any standard way
 Finding relevant information often seems
impossible/overwhelming
 Several basic types of tools used to find information on the
web:
 Search engines
 Meta-search engines
 Metasites
 Directories

7. THE WEB: SEARCHING
 Search engine
Software that searches the Internet websites for terms matching a
keyword that you have entered. There is no human analysis of
results. How do these work?
Google
Yahoo!
Bing
 Meta-search engine
Software that queries multiple search engines for your term and
combines the results. Again, no human analysis of results.
Dogpile
Clusty
Try a search or two in each of the search
(or meta search) engines, and see how
they differ. What results come up in both
searches?

8. THE WEB: SEARCHING
 Subject directory (academic and commercial; add human
element)
Search tool, usually a website, created by editors or
trained researchers who categorize or classify Web sites
by subject.
Sweet Search
IRSC LibGuides
InteYahoo Directory (lacks site evaluation)
About.com (subject guide owned by NYTimes)
Open Directory
These results are have a “human touch”,
in other words; they are evaluated before
you see them. Do the same search here
that you did on the previous slide. How
are these results different?

9. 9
THE WEB
What you DON’T find “free” on the Web:
 Publications from publishing companies and authors
Textbooks, best sellers
 Publications from field experts and scholars
Usually published in highly respected journals or university publications. Some
journals provide abstracts of articles and might even make an article or two freely
available online. The journal, Pediatrics, is one example. Usually, the library‟s
online databases are the most efficient way to find subscription articles.
 Print only materials
Not ALL Print materials are digitized
 Much historical information
Popular demand and digitization cost restrictions

10. 10
THE WEB: FREE RESOURCES
What do you find “free” on the Web?
 Refdesk.com
 Current news
 Government information
 Company and business resources
 Consumer medical information
 Demographics and statistics
 Opinions and views on current issues
The free web often provides the most
up-to-date governmental and corporate
results. You can also find
commentary, opinions, and current
news.

11. 11
THE WEB: SEARCHING
For more specific results, try
Google’s Advanced Search.
 Use phrase searching (i.e., quotations “”)
 Limit to a specific file type
(PDF, Excel, Word)
 Limit domain (site:.gov)
 Use in title searching (intitle:facebook)

12. THE WEB: RESOURCES
The Web will usually have the most current statistical information available.
Limit your search to site:.gov to find a government entity responsible for the
statistics you need. Add the word statistics to your keyword search to find
the information you need.





Bureau of Labor Statistics
American FactFinder: U S Census Bureau
NCES - National Center for Education Statistics
Florida Charts
National Center for Health Statistics
Example: “social media” statistics united states site:.gov
Remember, all web sources should be
evaluated before use.

13. 13
THE WEB: EVALUATING
Standard Web evaluation criteria:
1. States the author or source of the information (check domain)
2. Clearly indicates its purpose or point of view (Look at “About
Us”)
3. Posts the date the material was written and/or revised
4. Provides links to reputable web sites
5. Provides accurate data (compare with other sources)
6. Is well designed and organized
Quick Web evaluation criteria:
1. Check the top level domain.
2. Find and read “About Us”
3. Identify the author (credentials).
4. How current is the information?

14. 14
THE WEB: EVALUATING DOMAINS
.com
.edu
.gov
.org
.net
commercial for profit sites
Companies and individuals advertise, sell products, and
publish annual reports and other company information on
the Web. Many online newspapers or magazines are .com.
educational sites
Educational sites can be good sources of information, but
remember that institutions do not always endorse the
information published by faculty and students.
governmental sites
Federal and state government agencies use the Web to
publish legislation, census information, weather data, tax
forms and many other documents. These are free and
reliable sources of information.
organizations and association sites
network administrative site
.mil .museum .coop .int & more

15. THE WEB: EVALUATION ACTIVITY
Read these news reports and evaluate them
for:




Authority
Objectivity
Relevancy
Currency
 Website 1
 Website 2
 Website 3
1.
Check the top level domain.
2.
Find and read “About Us”
3.
Identify the author (credentials)
4.
How current is the information?

16. BRIDGING THE GAP: OPEN SOURCE/OPEN
ACCESS
Traditionally commercial resources provided for free on the web.
Open Source is Software
 Users often solve bugs to fix problems
 Often can be used as a substitute for more expensive
programs.
 Ex. Photoshop Vs. Gimp
Open Access is Content
 Educational Material (Scholarly Journals)
 Public Library of Science
Open access content can be peerreviewed and scholarly, but make sure
you evaluate it!