Download Portals, Ready Reference, and Libraries

Portals, Ready
Reference, and
Libraries
Access
Evaluation
Organization
Access
Search industry and libraries facilitate
access to online information.
 Portals are the search industry’s answer
library collections
 Libraries use, organize, and collect web
information too. Portals are usually just
called “library home pages.” Or
sometimes “ready reference collections.”

Portals
Sites that contain a search function, but
also services such as free email, free
home pages, maps, phone books, email,
directories, news, and company
information, etc. ("sticky" features)
 They want to be your entry to
EVERYTHING on the Web, not just
searching

Portals
Examples:
 Yahoo
 Myway.com
 msn.com
 Aol.com
Library homepages
Provide access to a number of resources,
too…more than just the free web!:
 Example UC-Berkeley Libraries
http://www.lib.berkeley.edu/
 A hybrid: Refdesk.com
http://www.refdesk.com/

Ready Reference Collections
Collection of online ready reference sources also facilitate
access:
 City College of San Francisco
http://www.ccsf.org/Library/readyref.html
 Wilton Library http://www.wiltonlibrary.org/ref.asp
 Loyola University
http://www.loyno.edu/~hobbs/readyreference.html
 University of Oklahoma http://www.ou.edu/webhelp/rr/
 DeskRef http://www.rcls.org/deskref/
Librarians
And then, of course, we have the living,
breathing, walking, INTELLIGENT guide to
all the Web…and more!:
Organizing
Use these pre-made resources (portals,
library home pages, ready reference
collections) or organize your own
 Useful for personal reference
 Useful when compiling a collection for
patrons/customers

Organizing
Finding sites
 Bookmark sites you find as you are
searching
 Search the invisible web
 Look for meta sites or other authorities on
your topic
 Evaluate all sites for yourself
How to Evaluate a Web Page
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Evaluating content from the user's perspective, not
design principles, but authority/accuracy
Who maintains the content?
What is the content provider’s authority?
Is there bias?
Examine the URL (who owns the URL?)
Examine outbound links
Examine who links to it
Is the information current?
Use common sense