How do you find relevant and reliable information? What sources are available? Journals Magazines Experts The web How do you evaluate the source? How relevant and useful? ISE 412 - 3

What makes it a journal? CRITERIA POPULAR MAGAZINES TRADE MAGAZINES (source - http://lib.colostate.edu/ howto/poplr.html) CRITERIA POPULAR MAGAZINES TRADE MAGAZINES JOURNALS Appearance eye-catching cover glossy paper pictures and illustrations in color each issue starts with page 1 cover depicts industrial setting plain cover plain paper black/white graphics and illustrations pages consecutive throughout each volume Audience nonprofessionals members of a specific business, industry or organization researchers and professionals Content personalities, news, and general interest articles articles written by staff, may be unsigned industry trends, new products or techniques, and organizational news articles written by staff or contributing authors research projects, methodology, and theory articles written by contributing authors Accountability editorial review no bibliographies may have short bibliographies peer review/refereed has bibliographies Advertisements heavy moderate all or most are trade-related few or none ISE 412 - 3

What makes it reliable? Five traditional criteria for evaluating sources 1. Accuracy 2. Authority 3. Objectivity 4. Currency 5. Coverage 1. Accuracy How reliable and free from error is the information? Are there editors and fact checkers? 2. Authority What are the author’s qualifications for writing on the subject? How reputable is the publisher? 3. Objectivity Is the information presented with a minimum of bias? To what extent is the information trying to sway the opinion of the audience? 4. Currency Is the content of the work up-to-date? Is the publication date clearly indicated? 5. Coverage What topics are included in the work? To what depth are topics explored? ISE 412 - 3

What about web sources? Use the same criteria, but … 1. Accuracy 2. Authority 3. Objectivity 4. Currency 5. Coverage 1. Accuracy Almost anyone can publish on the Web Many Web resources not verified by editors and/or fact checkers Web standards to ensure accuracy not fully developed 2. Authority Often difficult to determine authorship of Web resources If author’s name listed, his/her qualifications frequently absent Publisher responsibility often not indicated 3. Objectivity Web often functions as a “virtual soapbox” Goals/aims of persons or groups presenting material often not clearly stated 4. Currency Dates not always included on Web pages If included, a date may have various meanings: Date first created Date placed on Web Date last revised 5. Coverage Web coverage may differ from print or other media coverage Often hard to determine extent of Web coverage ISE 412 - 3

“Clues” to look for … Does it look “real”? Is it easy to navigate? Do you know where you are? Can you get to the home page? Is the level of expertise apparent? Is it trustworthy? Are the sources of information obvious? Does it look professional? But not too commercial? When in doubt, leave it out! Physical address Employee photographs Accessibility to organization Author should be knowledgeable, experienced, and competent Content should be consistent (no conflicts) Content should be complete Author’s credentials Citations and references Link to outside materials & sources of high quality Statement of policy on content Unbiased content Truthful Professional look Avoid even small glitches No typographical errors No broken links ISE 412 - 3

Is the information relevant and useful? Parts of a Research Article Title Abstract Introduction Method Results Discussion Conclusion References ISE 412 - 3