Best book so far I read on online research I have read , Information Trapping by Tara Calishain(read my review), Mastering Online Research by Maura Shaw and now, Find it Online.
In my opinion , Find it Online is the best. I learned so much more about online research from it then the previous 2 books. That not say, that I didnt learn anything for Information Trapping, it is great for information that need constant updating and Online Research, I learned to use advanced searching more effectively.
But Find it now , gave me a plan, even before you begin to search online, that will in the long run save you time. And it convinced me that for real important research, a combination of a fee based service with free online searches are the only way to go. I have and still do have an aversion to paying for anything that could be had for free but Alan Schlein makes a good argument to use it when there is a lot at stake.
Now, for my negatives, although the book indicated that it was revised 2006, a lot of the information is dated and has not be revised. The book still talks about ICQ, and he never talks about You Tube even though that has revolutionized the internet, not one word and this was revised last year? And how about myspace and facebook? Looking for someone in their 20 or so age, that is the first place to look. Not one word, revised last year? But the great information makes up for this,and some typos. It is worth the price and I look forward to the next revision but before buying I will check to see if he included all of the lastest web advances. I hope Alan and his people do not get lazy and do minor changes , that will be a shame.
The Researcher This book is just Fantastic, it provides in detail all you want to know about Researching. It's very up to date.
unlimited I explored the guide at a friend's house and was astounded by the number of references available to anyone who wants to know all there is to know. I work at a newspaper, take foreign language classes and am interested in fine arts.... Just to read the titles of websites is fun.
for general purpose online research Ignore "Complete" in the title. No book can hope to match the breadth of the Web. But Schlein does a commendable job in succinctly describing several hundred websites. The value in this book is in his selection. The websites typically have reliable content and lots of it.
In terms of doing online research, it's mostly at a high school or undergraduate level. If you are a grad student or a professional researcher, then the websites covered here are typically too broad for your needs.
Schlein also advises the reader on how to guard against various online perils like spam and phishing. Well, ok, for the latter, he really doesn't offer much except warning you to be on guard. Partly a reflection of the lack of a good programmatic defense against phishing.
Easiest read reference for online resources Of the many books I have read and own on this subject, this one flows the best and is the easiest to read. That said, this book does not speak to the technical in terms the hows/whys of resources.
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