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Beyond Point and Click: Diane Dates Casey Presently, training to search the World Wide Web for information may be a minor, if not non-existent, component of instruction provided to library patrons. However, libraries are slowly adding computer terminals for public use with direct access to the World Wide Web. Additionally, in the not-too-distant future online library catalogs will become gateways to the Web, as vendors create new integrated library catalogs that enable the hypertext links already appearing in the 856 field of an increasing number of MARC bibliographic records. Whether through workshops, bibliographic instruction sessions, one-on-one assistance, interactive tutorials at information kiosks or library workstations, librarians will need to provide assistance to patrons who want help locating relevant, reliable information concerning a broad spectrum of subjects on the World Wide Web. A recent advertisement televised nationally implied that all information was only a point and click away from the viewer with access to the Internet and the Web. Information professionals know this claim is untrue, but many library patrons do not. Once patrons learn that the Web is available at the library, they will flock to their local librarians eager to learn how to navigate the software they assume will put the information located on the Web at their fingertips. Librarians will need to listen closely and carefully to discern the patron's request for help with the Web browser from the much larger and more complex need for instruction concerning information literacy on the Web. In order to accomplish this challenging task, librarians will need to offer guidance more comprehensive than merely how to use the library's Web browser. Not only will patrons need instruction on how to navigate the software, but they will require an understanding of the nature of the Internet, the ability to identify and focus the information query, the skills to determine the type of Web searching, which is appropriate for their information question, the proficiency to critically evaluate information retrieved in Web searching, and knowledge of conventions for citing electronic resources in their subject discipline. Navigating the Browser While many patrons have heard of the World Wide Web, those who require assistance from library staff may have little experience with either Web browsers or the Windows operating system in general. For patrons unfamiliar with the Windows environment, an orientation in mouse manipulation, point-and-click navigation, placement of the cursor in dialogue boxes and movement of the screen are absolutely essential. In order to effectively maneuver a Web browser, the patron will need to know how to enter a Web address in the open box, move back and forth from a current Web site to a previous Web site, view the current search history, make and access bookmarks, locate subject search directories and keyword search engines, print and save information to a floppy disk. Nature of the Internet Even with a basic understanding of how to manipulate the Web browser, patrons will encounter a variety of frustrations inherent to the current realities of the Internet. While a little knowledge about the Internet will not eliminate the problems, it may lower the number of requests for help. The World Wide Web runs on the network of mainframe computers known as the Internet; Web sites, hypertext directories of documents, images and programs, reside on these mainframe computers. Currently, this infrastructure cannot accommodate the number of people desiring to use it. Patrons will find, consequently, that later in the day and during the evening travel to Web sites takes longer or may become impossible because increased numbers of people are actively using the Web as the day progresses. Libraries have no control over how the patron's Web request is routed to the host mainframe computer where the sought Web site resides. If a mainframe is down or experiencing problems on the route, patrons will not be able to access the Web site. Even so, some times just clicking on the hypertext link a second time
88 will retrieve the sought Web site. Also, patrons need to know that retrieval time is influenced by the size of the file they are trying to access. Images and programs can increase file size exponentially and make retrieval difficult, particularly if the terminal being used is not very powerful. When searching the Web, patrons will need to understand the nature of Web addresses. Web addresses typed into the open box must be absolutely precise; they are case-sensitive and have no spaces. When the patron activates a Web address that retrieves an error message and does not connect, the first step is to check for accuracy. Sometimes patrons will inadvertently put a period where a slash belongs, double a letter, omit a letter or fail to follow the case of a letter. If the typing is accurate, patrons may have obtained Web addresses that are incorrect. Perhaps their source made a typographical error or the file name was changed by the Web site owner. Nevertheless, they may still be able to access their desired information by starting on the right side of the address in the open box and eliminating the letters or numbers to the prior slash and hitting the enter key. If they still are unable to access the Web document, they can continue eliminating sections of the Web address until they are able to access the site. However, if the mistake is in the first section of the address, which is the location of the Web server on which the site resides, this process will not work. Once patrons arrive at a Web site using this procedure, they can move to the desired document from within the hierarchy of the Web site. Unless, of course, the document was removed from the Web site. Information Query Traditionally, when patrons approach librarians with a request to find information, the librarians conduct a reference interview to determine what information the patron actually is seeking. When searching for information on the Web, patrons will need to determine for themselves or with the assistance of an information professional what information is truly sought. Patrons may need assistance in identifying, clarifying or focusing their information need. Perhaps their topic is too narrow or too broad. The terms they are using may be jargon or too specific to a discipline. Patrons may need help identifying synonyms that will access the desired information.
Library staff may need to help patrons determine whether the Web is the best tool to locate desired information. Ready-reference information may be located on the Web, but may be more easily accessible in the reference section of the library. While many literary classics are available on the Web, most patrons are not going to read several hundred pages at a terminal. Lengthy in-depth studies of a particular subject are still best sought in books. The Web is better suited to article-length documents. Additionally, while tremendous amounts of information are available on the Web for free, many databases are only available to patrons whose library has paid the appropriate proprietary fee. Web Search Strategies The nature of the focused query often determines the search strategy the patron will want to use. If the desired information is on a broad, general topic, the patron will want to begin by searching a subject directory, such as Yahoo (http://www.yahoo.com/) or Infomine (http://lib-www.ucr.edu/). Subject directories provide access to Web sites by providing some subject analysis of the materials mounted at the site and grouping the site with sites containing similar subject matter. Through subject directories patrons can obtain an overview of the breadth of materials available on broad topics, such as psychology, cancer, music, etc. Most subject directories also provide keyword searching of their sites, so more narrow subject access is possible. However, if patrons are seeking information on a specific, narrow topic, they will want to use one of the many keyword search engines available on the Web. To date no single search engine keyword searches the text of every Web site on the World Wide Web. The Web sites indexed and searched by a particular search engine depend upon the interests of the owner, the sophistication of the software and the opportunity to register Web sites with the search engine. For example, some search engines only keyword search titles and Web addresses, while others do full-text searching of Web sites. Some search engine owners pick the Web sites indexed themselves, while others invite site owners and users to add sites to the engine. Metacrawler http://metacrawler.cs.Washington.edu:8080/ does integrate the searching of a number of the large search engines, but the results are not as comprehensive as searching each engine individually. Keyword search engines use Boolean logic to search terms. Most engines provide an "OR" search with multiple terms. When the phrase, "multicultural education research," is entered as an "OR" search, all documents with "multicultural," "education," "research," and "multicultural education research" are retrieved. Obviously, many of the documents retrieved will be irrelevant to the information question. A few search engines, such as Alta Vista Advanced, InfoSeek, Lycos and Open Text, now allow advanced Web searching that permits patrons to use other Boolean operators, such as "AND," "NOT," "NEAR" and "ADJ." [See Appendix 1.] These operators enable patrons to 89 narrow their search and retrieve only documents that more closely reflect the information being sought. The challenge for information professionals seeking to help patrons is that each of these four search engines uses different terms to describe this advanced Web searching option and the Boolean operators. Often, this option is buried in the Web site of the search engine and difficult to find, unless the patron is aware of its presence. Creation of a special advanced Web searching page as an option on library online catalogs, with direct links to the advanced search options at these different sites, guides patrons precisely and eliminates confusion. Evaluating Information Unlike many library information resources that have been evaluated by peer review, editors, and librarians before being added to the collection, information resources on the Web may or may not have experienced any review process. Just because information is located on the Web does not mean that the information is accurate or reliable. Consequently, patrons must learn to evaluate the information they find on the Web in light of their own information needs. Typical facets evaluated for reliability and suitability of information include accuracy, completeness, audience, date, scope and purpose. Other questions that help in the evaluative process include:
• Has this information been revised or updated?
If the desired information will be used in a research project or paper, patrons will be concerned about the volatility of the Web document. In other words, will this information still be available at this Web site in a week, a month, a year? Information mounted and maintained by a college or university department, a business or an organization will probably have more longevity than information at a personal Web site. Citation of Electronic Resources Some patrons seek information on the Web for scholarly or business research. In such cases they will want to consult the style manual targeted to their discipline to ensure they are properly citing the information obtained from the Web. The Chicago Manual of Style 14th edition [1], as well as the most recent editions of the Modern Language Association and the American Psychological Association style manuals [2] have sections devoted to citations for electronic resources. Li and Crane also provide a more general style manual for electronic resources. [3] Patrons will want to consult the appropriate style manual before beginning the search process to avoid retracing Web searches to recapture that small detail needed for the citation. Summary As Web access grows in libraries through direct Internet connections and library online catalogs, patrons will turn to their information professionals for assistance in finding the information they need. Librarians are honing their own Web abilities in order to help patrons understand and navigate the Internet and manipulate the Web software. Nevertheless, many of the skills essential for retrieving reliable, useful information from the Web remain talents traditional to librarians,such as identifying, clarifying, and focusing the information query, constructing a search strategy, evaluating information, and identifying the elements of a complete citation. Not surprisingly, these traditional skills, once acquired, will move library patrons beyond point and click to information literacy on the Web. Notes 1. The Chicago Manual of Style, 14th edition, (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993). 2. Gibaldi, Joseph, The MLA Handbook for Writers of Research Papers, 4th edition, (New York: Modern Language Association, 1995), p. 151-167. Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association, 4th edition. (Washington, D.C.: American Psychological Association, 1994), p. 218-222. 3. Li, Xia and Nancy B. Crane, Electronic Style: A Guide to Citing Electronic Information, 2nd edition, (Westport, CT: Meckler, 1996). *Diane Dates Casey, Head of Cataloging, University Library, Governors State University, University Park. Ms. Dates also chairs the Association for Library Collections & Technical Services' Cataloging and Classification Section's Subject Analysis Committee. Since 1995 she has taught students, faculty and librarians in the Chicago south suburbs how to search the Web for research information. 90 Appendix 1
BOOLEAN OPERATORS IN ADVANCED WEB SEARCHING
* = exact match; $ = explodes stem 91 |
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