Download Current Information

Current Information
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To help you find current news and
information, many search engines and
directories include a hyperlink to a "What's
new" page.
Many search engines allow you to choose a
date range when you enter a search
expression.
If you don't find what you are looking for with
one search tool, try your search again using
different tools until you are satisfied with your
results.
News
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Almost every search engine and directory
includes a list of current news hyperlinks.
The Internet Public Library site includes
hyperlinks to hundreds of international and
domestic newspapers.
News Tracker searches the contents of over 300
newspapers, magazines, and wire services.
After you have identified a useful item on a search
results page, the related articles hyperlink for that
item will provide a way to narrow your search.
Information
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Usually, weather-forecasting sites will report
slightly different forecasts for the same time
period in the same area.
You can obtain maps and city guides by
using online sites such as
Mapquest.com. This site will also give you a
map and directions from one point to another.
Finding People/Businesses
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There are a number of search engines on the
web that specialize in finding people and
businesses.
Big Yellow is a yellow pages site that stores
only information about businesses.
White pages are sites that let you search for
individuals' names, addresses, and telephone
numbers.
Most white pages sites offer individuals ways
to remove their listings.
Copyright Issues
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When you use your web browser to
access an image, sound, or video clip,
your browser downloads the element
into a temporary file on your computer.
Because computer files are easy to
copy, the potential for copyright
violations is great.
Public Domain
Public domain means you are free to
copy the files without requesting
permission from the source (check to
see how you should acknowledge the
source).
 Failure to cite the source of public
domain material that you use can be a
violation of your school's academic
honesty policy.
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Images and Graphics
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Most images on the Web are in either GIF or
JPEG format.
GIF (.gif) Graphics Interchange Format does
a good job of compressing files. GIF files can
store only up to 256 different
colors. Animated GIFs combine several
images into a single file that cycles through
the images.
JPEG (.jpg) Joint Photographic Experts
Group stores over 16 million more colors than
GIF and is useful for higher-quality
Compression
Both GIF and JPEG offer file
compression.
 The greater the compression, the
poorer the quality.
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Sounds, Music, and Video
Clips
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Sound and video files appear on the
web in many different formats and often
require that you add software. These
"plug-ins" are usually available as free
downloads.
Your computer must be equipped with a
should card and either a speaker or
earphones.
Sound Files
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Wave (WAV) flies digitize audio waveform
information at a user-specified sampling rate
and play on windows computers that support
sound. The size of WAV files limits their use
on the web.
MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface)
format is a standard adopted by the music
industry for controlling devices that create
and read musical information.
MIDI files are much smaller than WAV files
and are often used on the web.
Streaming transmission
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Streaming transmission is a new
technique for transferring sound and
video on the web. The server sends
one part of the file to the browser which
begins playing while other parts of the
file are sent to the browser.
Evaluating the Quality of Web
Research Resources
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Information on the web is seldom subjected
to the review and editing process that has
become standard practice in print publishing.
When you are searching the web for an
answer to a serious research question, you
can reduce your risks of using incorrect
information by evaluating the quality of any
web resource you plan to use.
Evaluate three major
components of any web page:
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Author identity and objectivity
Determine who authored the page.
Content
Look for some things in the web site's
presentation to help determine the quality of
information.
Form and Appearance
Sites that contain spelling errors, loud colors,
and graphics that serve no purpose may
indicate a low-quality resource.
Library Resources
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The web has made existing libraries
more accessible to more people.
As traditional libraries and online
collections or research works recognize
each other as complementary library
users should see many new research
resources.
Text on the Web
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The web contains a number of text
resources:
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Dictionaries
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Thesauri
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Encyclopedias
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Glossaries
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and other relevant works.
Citing Web Research
Resources
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In using web resources, collect
information about the sites so you can
include a proper reference to your
sources in any research report you
write.
Citing Formats
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The two most widely followed standards
for print citations are the American
Psychological Association (APA) and
the Modern Language Association
(MLA).
Future of Electronic Publishing
One of the changes that the internet has
brought to the world is that information
can now be disseminated more rapidly
than ever in very large quantities with a
very low investment.
 The costs of publishing a web page are
very low compared to printing
magazines or newspapers
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