Users should not simply abandon their searches because of the Web's growth. Instead, they should become more skilled in the proper selection and use of search engines and keep up with the latest news. The following sites are a good place to start learning how to use the Internet, improve Web searching skills, find search engines, and view technology news.
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Remember, the Web is just another manifestation of the real world. Both good and evil dwell there. Search engines cannot tell the difference , so users may find materials they deem offensive or worthless. On the other hand, users may find precisely the information they need. The strategies outlined in the pages above will help a great deal. So will using the internal search features found on many pages. Web pages that have internal search engines may allow users to find items that are not yet indexed on the major freestanding search engines.
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Marylaine Block ( http://www.marylaine.com/) edits Ex Libris, an e-zine for librarians. She recently interviewed Reva Basch ( Ex Libris #18, July 16, 1999), author of Researching Online for Dummies and Secrets of the Super Net Researchers. In that interview, Ms. Basch stated that one strategy she uses is to subscribe to a number of HTML publications like Wired News, C|Net News, and the New York Times Technology Update. She also subscribes to e-mail publications such as Edupage, NewsScan, and Online Insider among others. She too, uses Danny Sullivan's Search Engine Report. See the links above for the information services she uses.
Ms. Basch claimed that the most interesting thing she has discovered about finding information on the Web is that "...the skills required to be a successful researcher have not changed." She states that those skills are:
So, users should remember that there is more to searching than simply the newest and latest technology. Classical cognitive skills, like those listed above are more important than technical skills.
Users should be as critical in selecting Web pages as they are in selecting printed pages. Information must still be evaluated independent of its medium. Here are some common sense rules for evaluation:
Users need to avoid being seduced by the magic of the Web and to deal critically with the information in front of them. Users should not neglect the traditional media either. If nothing else, traditional media can serve as a check on information found on-line.
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Most users have had the here today gone tomorrow experience of finding a URL and discovering that it disappeared some time later. Unfortunately, that experience seems to be a property of the medium. Users are literally at the mercy of the authors of Web pages. In this guide, we have tried to select URLs that we believed would stand the test of time (at least, Internet time). But, we cannot guarantee that any of them will be working in a year or two. What we can do however, is to update the guide as authors of our own Web page. So, if URLs fail, look to the update page first. If there is not an update there, e-mail us and we will try to find the site in question. If we are successful, we will then add that site to the update page. Here is the URL for the update page:
Here is the e-mail address to send questions and corrections:
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Welcome to the new world of Web scholarship in economics. We believe that the Web brings more to the academy than it takes away. Both of us use the Web in class every day and we are excited about the opportunities it brings for learning. We hope users will find this guide useful to their studies and we welcome comments and suggestions. In the chapters that follow are the true value of this guide--a quick and easy road to the world of economics on the Web.
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