How_to_do_a_bibliography

Referencing Guidelines for PHSC

 

 

INTERNET RESEARCH SKILLS

 

The Internet is a wonderful research tool, however researching the Internet should represent only part of your research resources. An excellent place to begin your research is using the library resources first!

Remember, when using the library catalogue, you can search by using the name of an author, the title of a book, or the topic you are researching.

 

WHY USE THE LIBRARY FIRST?

1. Not everything is on the Internet. It is a misconception that everything you needs to know can be found on the Internet.

2. Not everything on the Internet is free. Many of the reliable and well researched data bases require you to be registered, and pay a fee for their information. The Library pays for some data bases. Look under "Student Information" on the first page to find out what these data bases are.

3. The Internet is not very organised. How many times, and how much time have you wasted searching for a topic to find information that is irrelevant, and not meeting your research needs?

4. No quality control on the Internet. It is very difficult to tell what is a hoax site, or a site that is deliberately misleading and tries to change your opinion on a controversial topic. People who publish their own sites may not present factual information.

5. Internet sites are hard to verify. You don't really know where the information has come from. Who is the source, and how reliable is the information on the site?

6. The Internet is still "new" and not all web sites are kept up to date. There is still not complete data bases on many topics, and not all web sites are kept up to date by their provider. A good place to start any research is by using the encyclopaedias.

7. The same information many times over! You can look at 40 web sites on the same topic, and they will all give you the same base facts. For more detailed, varied and in-depth information, look at what the Library has to offer first on your chosen topic!

8. Your Library Resource Centre exists for YOU!!! Searching the Internet can take a lot of time, for poor results, take advantage of what your library has to offer, You maybe surprised at what you find...Need help??? ASK THE LIBRARIAN!!!


 

 

META-SEARCHERS:

Meta search engines differ from search engines in that they transmit your search simultaneously to several individual search engines and their database of web sites. They do not own a data base, they use the data bases of other search engine companies. Some examples of Meta-Searchers are:

http://www.vivisimo.com

http://www.metacrawler.com

http:/www./altavista.com

http://www.askjeeves.com

 

You may also find the following useful

 

http://www.webbrain.com

A smart way to search the Web, has a search interface based on graphic representation of automatic query expansion.

http://answers.com

Is an Australian and New Zealand search engine. You can search by categories, limit your search for regional content only, or, a world wide search.

http://www.alltheweb.com

A very fast search engine with a very large database.

 

http://www.dogpile.com

"All the best search engines piled into one." Incorporates Google, Yahoo, Search, MSN,

 

http://www.hotbot.com

Ranked results. Pull down windows to help define your research.

 

(TEOMA/ASK)

http://www.ask.com

Ranks pages based on the popularity of a site.

 

http://www.yahoo.com

A directory where your search categories are set out from the general to the specific.

 

FOR MORE INFORMATION ON USING THE INTERNET

GO TO

http://www.sofweb.vic.edu.au/internet

And select from the following:

 

 

 



 

 

SOME TIPS TO HELP YOU TO BECOME A MORE EFFECTIVE INTERNET RESEARCHER

Boolean Searching: Boolean searching is where you add the words "AND" "OR" and "NOT"
between your research words. It is a very effective way of reducing the number of "hits" you get on a research topic.
Define your research topic: What is your key focus? Don't make your search topic too wide. The World Wide Web (WWW) has no structure, and no quality controls. Search Engines such as Google compile data bases using robots, spiders or crawler. They look for key words that match your search request on single webs. Because of the large numbers of data bases you end up with a huge number of results. Your search is ranked i.e. listed in a hierarchical order with the first word of your search considered the most important. Use NOUNS rather than verbs. Use QUOTATION MARKS for phrases or sequences of words, and titles. Be aware that the top web sites listed for you topic may not be the best ones, often sites have paid for prominent placement
Look at the end of you URL address: The end of a URL address can tell you a lot about the site even before you open it, or choose to open it ".gov" is a government site. ".com" is a commercial site, and maybe geared to sell you something. ".org" is a non profit organisation such as the ABC.
and a ~ or % means you should be aware that they are unendorsed or personal sites. "edu" means schools and universities.

 

Search Engines:
The most popular of the of these is GOOGLE

You will notice that on the bottom of the search box there is a choice of searching on "the web" or from pages from Australia only. Another tool offered by Google is "Advanced Search" (right of search box ) this is a powerful way to eliminate many of your unwanted "hits" as it offers you multiple search boxes, where you can also select particular sites only, such as "gov" and choose the country you want by selecting nz, ca, uk etc, or can eliminate sites such as "com."

Tip:- Google does not recognise capital letters.

Tip:- If you are looking for a name, place or keyword on a page, go to "edit" "find on this page" and type in the word you are looking for. This word will then be highlighted.