updating your digital toolkit
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Updating Your Digital ToolkitMichael HunterReference Librarian
Hobart and William Smith Colleges
forWestern New York Library Resources Council
Member Libraries’ Staff
Sponsored by the Western New York Library Resources Council
For today….. Perspectives on search:
Making the implicit explicit Sharpening our skills:
› Deep web niche engines › The social web
Search literacy lesson plans Search derby Raising the bar in web evaluation Free digital collections Future directions
Linklist:http://people.hws.edu/hunter/
toolkitlinks.htm
Searcher
Principles
ContextResources
Evaluation
How it really works…….
Searcher
Principles
ContextResources
Evaluation
USER
Making the implicit explicit
Most searches are….› Done by a unique searcher› Done in a unique context› Done for an information need unique
to the user
Strategies and TacticsDan Russell – searchresearch1.blogspot.com
Search Strategy › Overall plan to achieve your goal
Search Tactics › Specific actions taken as you follow the
strategy
Metatactics Know (or learn) the parameters and
capabilities of the resource.› What? Type of information or format› Who? Creator(s)› When? Recency or coverage dates› How? Can it be searched?› Why? Key factors for its credibility
Know (or discover) the most effective search term(s) for the resource you are using
Know (or learn) the user’s specific needs
Sources for the Hard-To-Find
Deep Web Niche Engines(aka Verticals)
Social Web Resources
Martindale Centerwww.martindalecenter.com
The Reference Desk› www.martindalecenter.com
Health Sciences Guide› www.martindalecenter.com/HSGuide.html
Calculators On-Line› www.martindalecenter.com/Calculators.html
Martindale Centerwww.martindalecenter.com
Extensive collection of deep web resources of high quality
37 broad categories Frequent updates Maintained by Jim Martindale Began in 1994 as project at UC-Irvine
Freealityfreeality.com
Gateway to over 500 niche engines and directories
18 broad categories New listings in most categories Created and maintained by Internet Oracle
of Littletown, New Hampshire, an enterprise search company
Freealityfreeality.com
E-mail & Reverse Look-up (17) Video & Image (13) Women’s Resources (19) Reference & Research
› Biographies (30)› Dictionaries & Encyclopedias (60)› Glossaries & Acronyms (24)› Homework Helpers (25)› Thesauri & Quotations (28)
Mining Today’s Social Web:The trust factors
People you don’t know› Wikipedia› Human-created databases, directories
“I need a few good sites on solar energy” Mahalo, Ipl2.org
› Q&A Services“How do I repair my garage door opener?” Yahoo Answers, Answers.com, Mahalo
Answers
Mining Today’s Social Web:The trust factors
People you follow› Twitter-human created Tweets“What’s the buzz on Beyonce?”
People you know› Post a question to friends and family“What type of Mac should I buy?”› Facebook, LinkedIn, Google+, Bing (login
via Facebook)
TwitterminingSome tweets are more “authoritative” than
others…
Access to unfiltered, real-time perspective on what people are thinking and doing
Authority (and usefulness) of a tweet depends on› Who sent it› The number and “authority” of their
followers› When it was sent› Documents/sites it refers to
Twittermining Public responses/attitudes
› Trending topics and people› Political candidates and issues› Companies and products› Colleges and universities
Locate individuals and their networks› Who they follow› Who follows them
Monitor collaborations
Twittermining Tools Twitter.com
› Requires a (free) account› Only the latest 2 weeks available› Searchable by hashtag (#)
Author-designated keyword or significant term or phrase #rochester #jobs #marketing
Twittermining Tools Search.twitter.com
› No account required› Only the latest 2 weeks available› Advanced search features
Booleans Hashtag Language limit Author search (tweets from or to) “Near this place” Attitude – positive, negative, question
Twittermining Tools Twitter Vennwww.neoformix.com/Projects/TwitterVenn/view.php
Venn diagrams illustrating the rate of tweets containing specific terms
Twitter StreamGraphwww.neoformix.com/Projects/TwitterStreamGraphs/view.php
Words most highly associated with a specified termLimited to the latest 1,000 tweets containing that term
Google’s Search Lesson Plans and Common Core Standards
Search Lesson Plans and Common Core Standards
google.com/insidesearch/searcheducation/lessons.html
Part of Google’s search education initiative 5 main topics with beginner, intermediate
and advanced levels› Picking the right search terms › Understanding search results › Narrowing a search to get the best results › Searching for evidence for research tasks › Evaluating credibility of sources
Search Lesson Plans Focus is using Google, but adaptable to
other sources Each plan lists Common Core
Standards addressed Include illustrative slides and
suggested assessments of student work
“A Google-a-day challenge” questions with answers
Good strategies for deep web searching in Advanced Level of Lesson #1
Web Evaluation Today:Raising the Bar
Web Evaluation Where we are and how we got here Checklists: what they do and don’t do Raising the bar beyond the basics Using the Social Web in evaluation Active learning applications
One of the basics….What’s in a web address?
Transfer protocol/Domain name/Directory & subdirectory/File name
TP- hpertext https-(http secure) Encrypts all traffic to and from that site
Domain nameName unique to the server where the site is located. Includes domain type and country if outside the US.
Transfer protocol/Domain name/Directory & subdirectory/File name
DirectorySpecific “folder” on the server where this file is found
File nameActual name and information about the file› Markup language used: html, htm, php› Dynamic content: shtml, asp› Format: pdf, docx, jpg, mpeg, mp3
Evaluative Checklists:Pro and Con
Pro› Structured approach to a complex process› Useful reminders of what to look for
Con› Many focus on potential flaws of a site rather
than its strengths› One checklist does not “fit all” types of sites› No substitute for critical investigation geared
to the specific site› Time-consuming and impractical
Raising the bar beyond the basics Berkman, Robert The Skeptical Business Searcher
Medford, NJ: Information Today, 2004
Pushing past superficial generalizations to think critically and deeply about the web site
Domain type is just the beginning of critical evaluation and analysis
Effective evaluation may call for an approach unique to that site
Degrees of confidence among all domain types
.com Very high› Articles from trusted magazines and other
news sources› Archives of public media sites (BBC, NPR,
etc.)High› Public-service organizations (many are .org)› Academic scholarly articles
Degrees of confidence .com
Medium› Advocacy groups/special interest sites› News wires› Company-issued white papers› Company home pagesLow› Personal pages› Marketing/sales pages› Bloggers I don’t know
Degrees of confidence .gov
Very high› Federal statistics sites› Recognized international organizations High› Federal government information
clearinghouses› Governmental public service pages
Degrees of confidence .gov
Medium› State/local public records information› Departmental/agency home pages (may
be subject to political pressure)› Embassies/consulates
Degrees of confidence .edu
High› University administration pages› Faculty home pages (publication links, syllabi)› Library guides› Research center findings and reportsMedium› Graduate papersLow› Undergraduate papers
Domain Registration Currently unrestricted:
› .com› .info› .net› .org
Currently require proof of eligibility› .edu .coop .mil› .gov .int .museum› .xxx .aero .asia
Using the Social Web in EvaluationInfluence Metrics
Many social media services offer data on the sites and topics their users are citing
Mining this data can be a measure of a site’s influence and popularity
Wheeler, Emily and Samara Ormundson “Evolution In Source Evaluation: Using Social Media Data” FUMSI Jan. 5, 2010
Influence Attributes within a website
Check for› Self-reported web traffic data› Number of comments (blog)› Intended audience› Audience profile› Incoming links (link:URL in Google)
A Site’s Influence Ranking AttributesAttribute Description Associated
MetricsReach Readership or
subscriber baseUnique visitors per monthTwitter followers
Buzz Secondary readership via social media channels
Popularity metricsInbound blog linksRetweets
Engagement Reader participation or dialogue with creators or other readers
Time spent on the siteNumber of comments or replies
Content Relevance of source content to topic
Frequency and depth of relevant content
Audience Reader groups targeted or reached by the site
Intended audience as per contentReader demographics
Sources for Influence Metrics Alexa
› Alexa traffic rank› Sites linking in› Time spent on site
Quantcast› Traffic frequency› Est. monthly US
visitors› Audience
demographics Technorati
› Authority
YouTube› Views› Star ratings› Comments
Twitter› Followers› Following
TwitterCounter› Twitter rank› Predicted followers
in 30 days
Team-based Web Evaluation Learning Goals
› Discern 4 key indicators of a website’s credibility
› Understand the complexity of these indicators by analyzing a given website and responding to questions using a 5-point scale
› As a team, agree to a common answer for each question
› As a team, articulate the rationales for these answers to the entire class
Subject-focused literature review workspace
http://tinyurl.com/refwhs2 Students work as individuals Everyone sees responses and progress Serves as springboard for discussion Encourages participation throughout
the class Adaptable to web evaluation
assignments
Free Digital CollectionsHunter’s Picks:
http://hwshunter.weebly.com
Directory of Open Access Bookswww.doabooks.org
Currently 1097 free, peer-reviewed books
27 international publishers Companion site to Directory of Open
Access Journals (www.doaj.org) with over 1231 scholarly and scientific journals worldwide
MITxhttp://mitx.mit.edu/
Portfolio of free MIT courses offered through an online learning platform
Features online laboratories and student-to-student communication
Certificate of completion awarded by MIT “for a modest fee”
MIT’s OpenCourseWare will continue “Circuits and Electronics” March-June
2012 More courses in Fall of 2012
Future Directions in Searching
Is a universal notion of relevancy possible for today’s web searchers?
What are searchers looking for and how do engines enable (or hinder) them?
Modalities of Search“Three Mindsets of Search” - About.com 2011
http://www.advertiseonabout.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/3-Mindsets-of-Search-PR.pdf
“Answer me” 48% › Give me exactly what I ask for…
“Educate me” 26%› Broad, contextual understanding, with
multiple perspectives “Inspire me” 28%
› Fun, “browsy” search; Looking for surprises, travel, etc.
Can any single search service based on full-text retrieval satisfy all these modalities, regardless of how many ranking algorithms come into play?
Social networks and Search“Three Mindsets of Search” - About.com 2011
How would you define “an expert”?› 96% include “self-taught “allies with
experience and motivation› 89% include the wisdom of crowds
in social or outside networks› 87% include traditional credentialed
experts
Growing Trends… Social networks as sources for
information and se ranking data Facebook as e-commerce hub (stores
and companies’ fanpages) Content packaged in video and audio Mobile search apps
› May only search for one thing but it does that very well
Development of niche engines for different search modalities (Return of vertical engines?)
Thank You and Enjoy Your Searching!!!
Michael HunterReference Librarian
Hobart and William Smith CollegesGeneva, NY 14456(315) 781-3014
hunter@hws.edu
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