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Using the Internet as a Reference Tool: A How-To-Do-It Manual for Librarians
By Michael P. Sauers
1-55570-417-4 . 2001 . 8 1/2 x 11 . 105 pp.
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Can’t find the answers you’re looking for? Many librarians are frustrated both by the time it takes to find answers to reference questions online and by the lack of a comprehensive, practical method for quickly evaluating Web sites.

Here is the book that will answer your questions. This clear, easy to use manual shows how to integrate the Internet into day to day reference services with helpful explanations of available tools and evaluation methods, real life examples, and practice exercises.

You’ll learn:

  • How to dramatically extend your library’s ability to provide current, complete, and accurate answers to an amazing array of questions when print sources fail
  • When to use and how to evaluate both print and Internet sources
  • Strategies for quickly answering ready reference questions using the Internet
  • Tips for creating your own "Reference Web Page"
  • When to go to an Internet search engine or a directory site and strategies for using them effectively
  • How to handle more complex reference questions
To make the book even more useful, descriptions of sites the author has found useful in answering reference questions, including metasites and "online vertical files" are listed. A companion Web site keeps site information up to date.

If you work at a reference desk in any type of library in any capacity, this book is for you!

$59.95
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Reviews

"...this guide clearly reflects Sauers's experience and expertise as an Internet trainer for the Colorado-based Biographical Center for Research's Internet and Database Services programs, as well as the author of several training manuals and frequent presenter." Library Journal
"A practical, resourceful, highly recommended 'how to' guide." Bookwatch
"Presents both the challenge and the opportunity provided by the Internet as a reference tool....Chapter five can be adapted as a teaching tool for teachers and others who need to learn strategies for accessing Internet information." School Library Journal
“This highly practical books is strongly recommended for all libraries.” ARBA
“Though most useful for students or new librarians, this book is appropriate even for experienced librarians who can benefit from some of the suggested techniques. Recommended for libraries of all types, this book will also be useful as a text for courses in library schools.” Reference & User Services Quarterly
“Recommended for library science students and most library professional development collections.” Business Information Alert “An easy to follow, well-structured resource that librarians can use for both themselves, as a ‘tips and tricks’ resource, and for their patrons, as a teaching aid…a useful book for any librarian to have on hand (or library student)!” Bibliotheca Medica Canadiana
“Subtitled ‘a How-To-Do-It’ manual for librarians’, this is written by an Internet trainer who appreciates fully the need for clarity. The book includes the relatively simple, e.g. when and when not to use print and online sources, as well as the more complex, e.g. the construction of Web pages. An excellent guide for both beginners and would-be experts.” Introduction to Reference Work, Vol. 2, 8th Edition by William Katz


Table of Contents

List of Figures
List of Figures v
Preface vii
Acknowledgments xi
1 Assessing the Impact of the Internet on Reference Services 1
How the Internet Changes Reference Services 1
How Print Resources Can Fail 2
How the Internet Can Help 3
How the Internet Still Needs to Grow 5
2 Evaluating Internet-Based Reference Resources 7
Evaluating Print Resources 7
Evaluating Internet Resources 11
Examining Specific Items on a Web Site 14
Evaluation Exercises 27
Reviewing Your Evaluation Exercises 28
Teaching Evaluation Skills to Patrons 43
Evaluation Resources 43
Sites for Use in Evaluation Exercises 43
For Further Reading 43
3 Creating an Effective Ready Reference Strategy 47
Reviewing Your Current Print Strategy 47
Reviewing Your Current Internet Strategy 48
Creating an Effective New Internet Strategy 49
Implementing an Effective Internet Strategy 54
Bookmarks 54
The Problem with Bookmarks 54
The Solution: A Web-based Reference Desk 55
Reference Web Page Placement 60
Ready Reference Exercises 61
Ready Reference Questions 61
Ready Reference Answers 61
How to Choose the Best Type of Resource 72
Ready Reference Resources 73
4 Comparing Search Engines and Directories 79
Search Engines 79
Directories 80
Pointing Out the Similarities and Differences 80
Types of Search Engines 81
General 81
Subject Specific 82
Meta 82
Types of Directories 83
General 83
Subject Specific 83
Reviewed 83
How General Search Engines Fail 84
How Subject Specific Resources Fill the Gap 91
5 Creating a Complex Reference Strategy 93
Evaluating Your Print Strategy 93
Evaluating Your Current Internet Strategy 94
Creating an Effective Internet Strategy 95
Complex Reference Exercises 98
Complex Reference Questions 99
Complex Reference Answers 99
Complex Reference Search Engine Resources 110
General 110
Subject Specific 110
Meta 114
Directory Resources 115
General 115
Subject Specific 116
Reviewed 119
6 Exploring Larger Issues of Internet Reference 121
Surveying Professional Experiences of E-mail Reference 121
Investigating Competition to Traditional Library Reference 124
Appendix A: Ready Reference Meta Pages 129
Appendix B: Online Vertical Files 131
Notes and Credits 133
Index 139
About the Author 143




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