Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
What review process, if any, does the publisher go through before accepting and
printing/reporting/displaying a piece of information?
Some additional questions to ask if the information appears on an Internet site:
Does the page contain one or more easily found links for contacting the person or
group who put the page together (not just a generic link to a “Webmaster”)?
And, if you do contact the author of the page, do they respond fairly promptly? Do
they respond at all?
Does the Web page or site contain easily found information about who the author
(whether a person or an organization) is and what expertise they may have?
Does the article, book, news program, Internet site, etc. provide any of the above infor
mation to you? If not . . . why not?
Date of Publication (thanks to Joan Ormondroyd, Michael Engle, and Tony Cosgrave—
Cornell University Library):
When was this information published or last revised?
Is the publication or revision date of the information appropriate for your topic?
Depending on your topic, how current the information is may be of significance. Is a
publication/revision date or date of copyright easily findable?
Does the article, book, news program, Internet site, etc. provide any of the above infor
mation to you? If not . . . why not?
Content:
Is the information presented in such a way that it is, at least, relatively understand
able and easytofollow?
What audience is the information aimed at (scholars, the “average” person on the
street, undergraduates, children, etc.)?
Where did the information come from?
Is it original research, a review of research done by others, an overview of a topic
based on the work of others, is it strictly someone's opinion, an analysis of current
or past events, a mixture, etc.?
Does the publication contain a bibliography (a listing of articles, books, etc. from
which the information presented was partly or wholly derived)? A bibliography that
can be checked, if needed or desired?
If research or survey results are reported, how much information is given about how
those results were obtained?
Are the methods used to obtain the reported results valid?
Have those research or survey results been replicated by others?
An additional question to ask if the information appears on an Internet site:
Does the Web page or other Internet site appear to be regularly maintained (not all
Web pages/sites need frequent updating, but regular periodic maintenance is a good
sign that the page/site is still active and that things that don't work will get fixed . . .
or, at least, that someone still cares about the site and the information it presents)?
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