Information
If you’re new to the internet and searching for information, there are a lot of options available for you but one must remember that
almost anyone can publish information to the internet and while much of the information you find may be accurate, not all of it is. If you cannot find a refutable source for your information, it’s best not to rely on it too heavily, especially when it comes to work and school related matters.
One of the easiest ways to find information on the internet, if you know what is it you’re seeking is to use a
search engine. Simply type in your research subject and browse the results. This will display webpages and sites which have information on your subject of interest. Some of these may be dedicated solely to your search subject and some may only have a few paragraphs of information. Additionally, some may not really be informative and may only mention your search subject in passing, but will still show up in the search results. If there are too many results or results which are not specific to your subject, you may need to clarify your search. To learn more about that, click
here.
If your quest for information is for entertainment purposes, you can browse many sites, learn new things and find lots of activities and pages to keep you busy. However, if you’re looking for accurate information, some websites will be more accurate than others. Generally, these types of sites have more accurate information:
- Official Websites
- Official Fanclubs
- Dictionary/Encyclopedia Entries
- Newspaper/Magazine Articles
- Professional Sites
- Government Websites
Whereas these types of sites may not have accurate information or may contain information which is biased or skewered so you will agree with the site owners or for the profit of the site:
- Fansites
- Unofficial/Unauthorized Websites
- Spoof/Parody Sites
- Hate Websites
- Propaganda Websites
- Amateur Zines
- Store/shop/auction Sites
The more time you spend online, the easier it will be to discern which sources are useful and accurate and which are not.
If you’re looking for general information or a search engine does not answer your question, there are other alternatives available to you. For example, one is able to look up electronic encyclopedia entries via the websites of many reputable hardcopy encyclopedias which with you are already familiar as well as blossoming internet-only encyclopedias. Some of the encyclopedias are:
Another resource available online as well as off is the dictionary. Like encyclopedias, you can find well known names which existed before the internet and reputable dictioanries which have arose online. Not only can you find regular dictionaries but there are also language translator dictionaries and combinations of dictionaries and other resources (such as dictionary/thesaurus combos).
Some typical dictionaries includes:
Some extended/atypical dictionaries include:
- Urban Dictionary
- A slang/culture dictionary with entries submitted by anyone via the WWW. Definitions can be rated by other users. Although there are some accurate definitions, there are many repeated and hateful/biased definitions and definitions don’t follow a specific format. Best used for enertainment value.
- Wiktionary
- A “a collaborative project to produce a free, multilingual dictionary with definitions, etymologies, pronunciations, sample quotations, synonyms, antonyms and translations.” Unlike UrbanDictioanry, there are stricter requirements for dictionary entries and it’s not a slang dictionary. Associated with Wikipedia.
- One Look
- A multiple dictionary search.
- Word Reference
- Multi language dictionary and translator.
There are also information sources which provide news which include many newspaper (and publication) websites, news channel sites, news *portal) sites and news networks (such as the Associated Press) sites. To find the website of your local paper or news channel, try a
search engine otherwise here are a few news sites:
Of course, there are also websites which distribute news and information about more specific topics which are not newspapers or similiar publications and neither of they a part of these associations. To find specific news you might try a search engine for your subject of choice. For instance a
Google search for “Technology News” brings up brings up thousands opf results – the first few which contain news from reputable publications such as
CNN and also more specific sites such as
CNET and
Wired News.
