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Title:
Searching CD-Rom and Online Information Sources
Review:
Searching CD-ROM and online information sources begins with an introduction to basic information skills. These include the reference interview, where the information intermediary needs to consider what kind of information is needed; how much is needed; how is the information going to be used; what degree of sophistication is needed; how much time does the user wish to spend; and what are the constraints.
The book then goes on to look at common reference sources such as dictionaries, encyclopedias, almanacs, biographical sources or indexes and abstracts. The authors consider when it is appropriate to use these sources, and how such sources should be evaluated using the following criteria as a checklist: authority, purpose, physical production, arrangement, recency, accuracy, treatment, users and scope.
There is a general overview of searching different types of database: OPACS (online public access catalogues); CD-ROMs; and online databases. This is then followed by separate chapters on searching information sources by subject: science and technology; social sciences; business information; legal information; health information; standards and patents; and government, institutional and miscellaneous information sources.
A considerable amount of work has clearly gone into researching this publication. It runs to 324 pages, including seven appendices of select lists of sources by subject, and an index. The work is illustrated throughout and includes plenty of screen shots. There are also tables giving detailed information about searching the sources such as the boolean search operators, truncation search operators, proximity search operators, or free text search options available for specific sources.
When I saw the title of the book it immediately made me think that it sounded rather old fashioned. CD-ROMs have been around for many years, and the phrase online information sources conjures up an image of the traditional online hosts. But the authors do include web-based searching in their definition of online information sources, and I don't feel as though the title of the book does full justice to its content.
It is clear that the book is aimed at students of library and information science throughout the world to help them use the wide range of sources available today. But it also seems as though the authors consider that the book will be useful to practitioners wishing to become acquainted with the techniques of searching various electronic information sources. Whilst it certainly provides useful background, it doesn't contain enough practical information to be a major source of information for practitioners. For example, when using online hosts that aggregate data from a number of sources, it is important to know whether the source is more up to date on one host than another; whether the data available represents only a sub-set of the database; or whether one online search service is better than another for searching that database because of added functionality; price comparison charts etc.
The final chapter looks at future trends in the electronic information sources and searching environment, including a brief look at electronic journals and digital libraries.
The book as a whole is well worth reading. It provides a useful overview of the information available in CD-ROM and online formats and it raises the issue of how to evaluate the sources, although it doesn't really provide a thorough critique of the sources covered. As the authors had chosen seven subject areas to look at, it did make me wonder whether there was scope for more in-depth publications on the sources available within those subject areas.
Free Pint Reviewer:
Paul Pedley is Head of Research at the Economist Intelligence Unit. He is the author of three Aslib Know How Guides - "Copyright for library and information service professionals"; "Intranets and push technology - creating an information sharing environment"; "The invisible web: searching the hidden parts of the internet" as well as a book on Free business and industry information on the web. Paul maintains a website at <http://www.paulpedley.com>.
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