Google Scholar and the Academic Web

1. Google Scholar and the Academic Web Ben Taylorson Academic Liaison Librarian

2. Outline • Intelligent web searching • Google Scholar • Academic web • Wider web • Hidden web

3. Intelligent web searching • What are you looking for? • Breadth or precision • Single document or comprehensive coverage • How are you searching? • Targeted searching • Combining terms = narrow search; AND is assumed • OR, “phrase”, -not, ˜synonym, words**in between, site:ac.uk, date:months • Evaluating results

5. Google Scholar • What it includes • How to search effectively • + include common words, letters or numbers • - excludes all results that include this search term • “phrase search” • OR for either of your search terms • intitle: only returns results that include your search term in the document's title.

6. Google Scholar • Advanced features • Citations, grouped articles, related articles, alerts, set up ConneXions off campus, links to Endnote downloads Google Scholar

7. Advantages over library databases More results!

8. %

10. Advantages over library databases • More results • Broader range of resource types e.g. books, journal articles, theses • Information from range of sources e.g. databases, publishers, OA repositories • Can have better date coverage

12. Disadvantages • Too many results(?) • Less quality control • Doesn’t index all databases • Inconsistent level of bibliographic information • Some non-academic document types e.g. handbooks • Less developed search options and ability to limit searches

14. Hands-on • Link to Google Scholar • Set up preferences • Search using advanced search screen • Explore advanced options e.g. alerts • How does it compare with library databases you use?

15. Academic resources • Library catalogue, databases • Generic portals • BUBL, Pinakes, Infomine, Intute • Subject portals • TechXtra, Voice of the Shuttle, Scirus

16. Academic resources • Books • Google Books, Gutenberg Project, Universal Library, Alex • Journal ToCs • ZETOC, ticTOCs, My Favourite Journals , CiteULike Current Issues

17. Academic resources Open Access and repositories • Institutional: DRO, Durham e-Theses, D-space at MIT • Subject specific: ArXiv, British History Online • Harvesters: OAIster, Driver • …and of course Google Scholar

18. Hands-on • Try and access full text academic resources using freely available search engines and not Google Scholar

20. The wider web • Different search engines have different search options • They give different results • They present them in a different order • ranking depends on location of word in title, headings, frequency, proximity

21. Types of search engine • Search engines vs. meta-search engines Ask, Bing, Google, Yahoo Vs. Mamma, Dogpile, Metacrawler

22. Hands-on • Try a search engine you wouldn’t normally use • Try a meta-search engine • Look at the advanced search options • Are there any results that will make you refine your search?

23. Hidden web • Search engines can access only about 16% of the available information on the WWW. • Many library databases are not indexed by Google Scholar and other search engines. • If they are, they may not be very visible. Library web pages

24. Access to tools • Handouts and slides are available at www.dur.ac.uk/library/research/training/ • Most of the links mentioned in today’s session are included in the handout • Or via the web page: www.netvibes.com/intelligentwebsearch#Welcome!

25. Evaluation Please fill in the evaluation sheet to let me know what you thought of this session More information • Ben Taylorson • Benjamin.taylorson@durham.ac.uk • or 0191 3342975 • Liaison Librarian for your department • www.dur.ac.uk/library/resources/subject/