Knock, Knock! Who's There?

Better Internet Research

By Amy Brozio-Andrews

Before the rise of the Internet, when you wanted to look something up, you went to the library. You could confidently search any book in the reference section because it had, in effect, already been vetted by a knowledgeable information professional, a librarian. If you had a question about what you read, or wanted more information, you just asked the librarian for help. Yes, it was time-consuming, and sort of inefficient at times if you didn't budget your time well, but it worked, and you could be reasonably sure that any information you gleaned from the reference materials was accurate.

And then came the Internet.

Rather than trek to the library, it became so easy to just boot up the computer and Google everything you needed to know. Or use Yahoo! or MSN or any of the other Internet search engines to do research for assignments, for characters, or other freelance projects. Why not? It's just as good as going to the library right? Well, not exactly. See, working from the comfort of your own home is indeed convenient, and yes, you can save yourself a lot of time by doing some basic legwork at home. But the downside is you don't have the security of knowing that what you're reading is good, credible information. There's no librarian right there if you have a question. At home, you have to decide for yourself if the information you find online is worth pursuing any further.

So, while no one expects you to give up doing online research, here are some basic pointers to keep in mind when you're trying to save yourself some time and effort and decide to start your research at home.

Authority

Before you take any information you find on a website as gospel truth, consider the source. Is this a personal website or is it the online presence of an established organization, university or government agency? Generally, you can put more confidence in the information you find on an "official" website than in what you'll find on a hobbyist's website. For example, hurricane statistics found on a NOAA website are much more likely to be factually accurate than those found on Happy Harry's Hurricane Site!!!!!!

Websites of record-- those belonging to well-known and official organizations and agencies-- have a vested interest in providing accurate information to online users. These people and organizations, like established experts, advocacy organizations, universities, government agencies, etc., have worked long and hard, investing time and money, in building their reputations. They're not going to risk those reputations by publishing erroneous information online carelessly

Timeliness

Another important factor to consider when doing online research is looking at when a website was last updated. A last-updated notation can usually be found on the bottom of the webpage. You don't want to take a chance relying on outdated facts. If a site hasn't been updated since 1998, you're probably better off finding another resource, or continuing to search in order to verify what you've found there. If a site doesn't show any last-updated date, it may be a reason for concern; in that situation, you can look for a news or press release section of the site. When was the last posting? That will give you an idea of when the last time the creator or webmaster updated the site.

Agenda

If the website you find presents only one point of view, the site owner may have his or her own agenda. Read the site content carefully; does the site owner have a vested interest in persuading you to see things his way? Ideally, you'd like to find a website that acknowledges alternative viewpoints. If arguments are made against these other ideas, they should be based on fact, not opinion. Read the information you find online with a critical eye. Try to look at the big picture of the site and it's creator overall, not just whatever paragraph you've found that seems to meet your information needs.

Contact

Most reputable websites offer users a way to contact the person or organization. Be wary of someone who isn't accountable for what he or she has written online. Tying a name to a website demonstrates that a person or organization is willing to take responsibility for his or her words. A person who's willing to put himself out there and stand behind what he's written is more likely to be a credible source.

Domain names

Take a good look at the URL of the site. Does it have its own domain name? It's a good sign if the person or organization has its own URL, rather than a free site with lots of ads and pop-ups and pop-unders. A specific URL tells you that the website owner takes this seriously enough to fork over money to register a domain name and pay for web hosting services. A domain name will also usually clue you in to who's behind the website. In general, a .com is a commercial site, .edu is for colleges and universities, .gov for government websites, and .org for organizations and agencies. Other common extensions are .net, .info, and .biz extensions. Non-U.S. websites can often be determined right away if the URLs end in .uk (Great Britain), .fr (France), and .au (Australia), for example.

The next step

David Runyon is quoted as having said, "Trust, but verify." And so last, but far from least, this is a key rule of thumb to keep in mind when using the Internet for any kind of research. Yes, the person who made up the website you're looking at may well be an expert in Middle English cooking. Or it may be your neighbor down the street who sends her kids to school with air sandwiches. Look at the information you're reading with a critical eye to determine if it makes sense based on what you already know about a topic.

If you've determined that the information you've found online is likely to be correct, then you can take your research to the next step, verifying it through other sources, whether it's at the library or consulting with experts, confident that you've made the most of the convenience of doing research online.

In addition to being Absolute Write's managing editor, Amy Brozio-Andrews has been a librarian. Visit http://www.amyba.com.

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