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Using the WWW Wisely

Just like their print cousins, some Internet resources are more reliable than others. Fortunately, there are ways to separate the wheat from the chaff. AIDS Facts [parody site]

Evaluating Internet Resources

Evaluating Web Pages: Techniques to Apply and Questions to Ask (from University of California Berkeley Library)  

10 Thing to Know about Evaluating Medical Resources on the Web

Yes. You will use the Internet to access article databases and library catalogs--most college-level research assignments require you to use books and articles.

But what about just using a search engine like Google? In short, this depends on your assignment. Here are a few ways to use the Web and get good results for research:

1. Start with the experts. Rather than just searching the web with keywords, Google a professional organization, like the American Psychological Association or the American Academy of Pediatrics, that is related to your topic.

• To find librarian recommended websites on a particular topic, go to a site such as Librarians Index to the Internet, or see the Nursing & Health on the Web section of this web guide for sites on health topics.
  

• Look in your course text or articles to find other reliable sources (look in the references or works cited). Many times your course readings will provide references to Internet sources, books, articles, research reports from reputable organizations and government documents.

2. Review your search results for relevance. If you do a web search, but none of the information looks important, you can change the results by structuring your search differently--try using new search terms or thinking of different words that mean the same thing.

3. Try using Google Scholar. Any citations you find will link back to FindIt!

Contact librarian specialists at the BSN@HOME library sites.