Getting Started
Get Your UWNetID and Password
Your UWNetID is your personal network identification giving you access to UW computing services and library resources such as:
- MyUW and email
- Catalyst Tools (teaching tools)
- ERes, The UW Libraries electronic reserves system
- Libraries Proxy service to connect to restricted resources from off-campus
Connect to the Libraries' Proxy Service
Some online resources, including databases, e-journals, and textbooks, are restricted (indicated with a lock icon 
) and are available only to current UW students, staff, and faculty members. "Connecting to UW Restricted Online Resources" explains the steps for accessing these resources from off-campus using the Off-Campus Access links.
For information on usage restrictions for eresources, see the "Electronic Resources Usage Guidelines."
Link Your Barcode and PIN
The barcode on your Husky card and your PIN let you:
- Manage your library account, e.g. renew books
- Place holds from the Libraries Catalog.
- Request books from other libraries in the Pacific Northwest.
Explore the UW Libraries homepage www.lib.washington.edu
The UW Libraries homepage is your starting point. Bookmark it today! It provides quick access to:
- Resources, such as the UW Libraries Catalog, Research Databases, Electronic Journals, Reference Tools
- Services, such as course reserves
- Information about the Libraries, such as hours and locations
Searching for Books
Use the UW Libraries Catalog catalog.lib.washington.edu/search
Searching for Journal Articles
Different Types of Journals
- Scholarly Journals usually cite their sources in bibliographies. Articles are written by experts in the field. The main purpose of a scholarly journal is to report on original research in order to make such information available to the rest of the scholarly world. They are often published by a professional organization. Many scholarly journals are "peer reviewed" or "refereed" (to be accepted for publication in the journal the author of an article must submit the article to be reviewed, usually anonymously, by a panel of experts in the field). Examples: American Economic Review, Ecology, Journal of Marriage and the Family
- Popular Magazines rarely cite sources and the information published is often second or third hand. Articles are usually very short, with little depth to the content, and written in simple language. The main purpose of popular magazines is usually to inform or entertain the reader. Examples: Newsweek, Time, People, USA Today
Use a Research Database to Find Journal Articles
www.lib.washington.edu/types/databases
- PubMed (index to biomedical journal articles)
- PubMed at the UW healthlinks.washington.edu/howto/pubmed
- Expanded Academic ASAP and ProQuest (index to scholarly and general interest journals, many full text)
- Available along with other databases at www.lib.washington.edu/types/databases
- If you are off-campus, log in at the “Off Campus Access” link in the upper right
Locating Journals
- E-journals: use the Electronic Journals list
http://www.lib.washington.edu/types/ejournals - Print journals: use the UW Libraries Catalog to find library locations
Searching the Internet
Google www.google.com
- Biggest search engine: over 20 billion sites; averages 2,900 searches per second
- 49% of web users use Google to search
- Results are ranked using proprietary PageRank™ technology that looks at how many times a page is linked to, how important the linking site is, and the prominence of a search term within a page
- Search basics
- Default operator is AND - searches all words
- OR operator (│) – searches for either word
- Use the plus sign (+) to require terms
- Use the minus sign (-) to exclude terms
- Find synonyms with tilde (~) ex. ~nutrition
- Use the asterisk (*) as a wildcard
- Use quotes to search as phrase ex. "public health"
- Use parentheses to nest searches ex. video games (violent│violence)
- Special features:
- Cache: View a snapshot of each page as it looked when indexed
- I'm Feeling Lucky: Bypass results and go directly to the first web page on a regular Google search
- Images
- Similar pages: Display pages related to a particular result
- Definitions: glossary definitions gathered from various online sources ex. define pdf
- Limitations
- No mediation of results
- Full Boolean logic and truncation not supported
- Google has a strict 10 word per search limit. If you type in 11+ words, Google will only search the first 10
- Although the largest search engine, Google provides access to less than half the searchable web
Use Other Google Searches
- Advanced Google www.google.com/advanced_search
- for building complex searches, search for specific languages, file formats, etc.
- Can limit search to:
- Language
- File format, i.e., PDF
- Date
- Occurrences, i.e., in title
- Domain, i.e., .edu, .gov, .com, .net
- Special Google searches (e.g., Google Images, Google Scholar, Google Government) allow you to search for more specific content
When Google Just Won’t Do: Other Tools for Research
- Use research databases at www.lib.washington.edu/types/databases
- Try other search engines, such as Ask.com or Scirus (www.scirus.com, a science-specific search engine)
- Use the Useful Websites list on the course website courses.son.washington.edu/aut06/gis186/assignments.asp
Evaluating Web Sites
Problems with Web Sites
- Almost anyone can publish on the Web.
- It's often difficult to determine the author of a site.
- There's a lack of basic quality standards.
- Most information is unfiltered.
- The Web often functions as a soapbox.
Evaluation Strategies
Web sites should be evaluated similarly to print resources.
- Evaluate using the Criteria for Evaluating Web Sites checklist.
- Determine the type of site by analyzing Web Site Addresses.
Criteria for Evaluating Web Sites
This checklist is also available as a one-page pdf document.
- Authority
- Is the author clearly identified?
- Are the author's credentials listed?
- Is there an institutional affiliation?
- What authority does the author have to write about the subject?
- Can you easily contact the author for clarification of information?
- Example: Smoker's Home Page
- Accuracy
- Is the information accurate?
- Does the site offer a list of references or links to support the information presented?
- Is the source of information clearly stated?
- Is there an explanation of the research method used to gather data?
- Example: MMWR www.cdc.gov/mmwr/mmwr_wk.html
- Objectivity
- Is the purpose of the site clearly stated?
- Is the information impartially presented?
- Is sponsorship acknowledged?
- Example: melatonin.com
- Coverage
- Does the site satisfy the needs of its intended audience?
- Is the subject coverage comprehensive?
- Does the site offer extra features not available in other formats?
- Example: MEDLINEplus www.medlineplus.gov
- Currency
- Is the site current?
- Was the site updated recently?
- Are the links kept up-to-date?
- Example: CNN Health www.cnn.com/health
- Design
- Is the site clearly organized?
- Is there an internal search engine?
- Is the site user friendly?
- Can the site be accessed reliably?
- Do visual effects enhance the resource?
- Are there interactive features that increase usability?
- Can the site be accessed without additional viewers or plug-ins?
- Examples:
- OncoLink www.oncolink.upenn.edu
- Dihydrogen Monoxide - DHMO Homepage www.dhmo.org
Web Site Addresses
- The Uniform Resource Locator (URL) includes the name of the host computer, which can indicate the purpose of the Web site.
Questions?
- Ask Us www.lib.washington.edu/about/contacts.html
- Email, Q&A Live, phone, in person, mail
- Hours and Libraries www.lib.washington.edu/about/hours
- Research 101 www.lib.washington.edu/uwill/research101/index.html an interactive online tutorial for students wanting an introduction to research skills
- Janet Schnall (schnall@u.washington.edu) and Joanne Rich (jrich@u.washington.edu), librarians at the UW Health Sciences Libraries
August 2006
http://healthlinks.washington.edu/hsl/liaisons/schnall/gis186/