Using the library CSS101 - Part 2 Martin J. Crabtree MCCC Library March 2006

Agenda Review: so just what IS information literacy? Using the the Mercer Library’s catalog Searching electronic resources Databases and Web information Your turn to use the databases & the web

What is information literacy? Information literacy is the ability to: Realize that you need information to find something out/answer a question Know where to go to get the information you need Ask the right questions to get the information you need Put all the information you found together to answer your question

Using The MCCC Card Catalog to find books and more The catalog is available online. Used to find books, videos and other material both in the MCCC collection and the Mercer County Public (MCL) libraries. You can have materials from MCL brought to the college. Deliveries arrive Tuesday and Friday afternoons. (DVD’s not available from MCL) You will need to have your student ID card to borrow books or use the library’s computer lab

The link to the catalog is on the library’s web pages.

Let’s look at the Mercer Library’s Catalog…

Starting An Electronic Search Keywords Keywords are used when searching electronic databases and web search engines First step - Generate a list of words (keywords) often nouns that describes or is commonly used when discussing your topic. For example: Ozone Layer Depletion Atmosphere Hole

Starting An Electronic Search Boolean Searching/Logic Boolean searching - Connecting keywords with the terms and not or For example eagles NOT football (car or automobile) and exhaust More Terms = Fewer “Hits”

Searching More Than Just Keywords Phrases & Truncations To search for a phrase, use quotation marks “weapons of mass destruction” Truncations allow for searching related words all at once The * is usually used. For example: “child*” would include: child, children, childhood, childproof, etc.

Let’s take a quick look at how Boolean searching can help

Electronic Databases at the Mercer Library

Electronic Databases at MCCC In General Over 60 databases available Many contain periodical articles Some are useful for searching specific subjects like business, art, or criminal justice. Others are also useful tools like the Encyclopedia Britannica and the Oxford Dictionary

Electronic Databases In General Accessible at any computer on the MCCC/JKC campus network Most are available off campus, need to request a password. Can print/e-mail/download what you find

Let’s take a look a the databases…

Using the World Wide Web

Using the internet/world wide web Before using the web for most college research, try using databases first: You will have fewer hits to go through You’ll likely find some good information quickly The information is always high quality The internet & web are not the same thing

Some things to consider when searching the web Everything is NOT on the web and may never be No search engine covers the entire web The “invisible web” is huge! Though there has yet to be consensus, estimates put the size of the invisible web between 2 and 500 times bigger than the “visible” (or surface) web.

Searching the World Wide Web Search Strategy Searching the Web is much like database searching: Put together a list of keywords describing the information you desire Use Boolean logic (and, not, or) to better define your search, use double quotes for phrases, etc. When searching the web, also: Consider which search engines/sites may best suit your search needs. Different search engines yield different results. Use the search engine’s “advanced search” to select limiting parameters (language, date, domain, etc.)

Let’s pause for a bit for some TV

Is this stuff any good? Evaluating Web Sites

Evaluating Web Sites Quality varies greatly from site to site YOU are the sole evaluator of the quality of information a site provides

Five Web Info Evaluation Criteria Accuracy - is it reliable? Authority - is author qualified on subject? Objectivity - is the information biased? Currency - is the information “new” enough? Coverage - does the info completely cover the topic?

Buyer Beware The Bottom Line… The web contains a vast amount of information…but not everything Anyone can put information on the web, hence the quality of web information varies greatly YOU will often be the only person to decide if the quality of the info you find on the web is good

Now it’s your turn…