Searching the Internet:
Recommended Sites and Search Techniques
Use BUBL when...
- you are researching a relatively broad topic
- you want to browse through subject categories to see what is available on your topic
- you want to retrieve a small number of substantive results - in this case, usually between 5 and 15 of the most relevant resources on any given topic
- you want to retrieve results that have been selected by information professionals
BUBL LINK is a significant, professionally-maintained directory that has been around for years.
Begun as a volunteer librarian effort, it was a UK funded project hosted by the University of Strathclyde Library in Glasgow, Scotland. Since this funding ended, BUBL has been maintained by staff at the Centre for Digital Library Research at the University of Strathclyde. Its many years of experience are apparent in the breadth of its listings, useful indexing, variety of access points and cogent, well-written annotations. Its main interface, BUBL LINK/5:15 offers between 5 and 15 relevant sources for most subjects.
Special Features:
- Offers strong coverage in academic subject areas
- Has wide coverage within topics
- 5:15 interface makes it easy to find highly relevant resources broken down into
targeted subject categories for accurate information finding
- Listings may be accessed by: Subject, A-Z, Dewey Decimal Classification, and Types,
e.g., biographies, essays, image collections, directories
- Coverage is noticeably worldwide
- Has a user-friendly search form
- Updates to the directory are listed each month
Let's explore BUBL LINK to get an idea of its coverage.
Exercise: exploring a professional directory
- Select the Science and Mathematics category
- On the next screen, notice the large number of subtopics from which to choose
- Select a topic that interests you, and keep selecting you retrieve a list of recommended sites
- On the final results screen, notice the link index on the left side of the screen. On the right, you'll see that each listing includes a title, annotation, author and Dewey class.
Here is a list of other recommended subject directories with evaluated content.
It is highly recommended that they become a part of your research repertoire.
- INFOMINE: Scholarly Internet Resource Collections
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http://infomine.ucr.edu/
INFOMINE is a large collection of scholarly Internet resources collectively maintained by libraries of the University of California and offering many interesting search and retrieval options
- Librarians' Internet Index
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http://www.lii.org/
The LII is a well-organized, selective, and continually updated collection maintained by a large number of indexers in California.
- Intute
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http://www.intute.ac.uk/
This collection from Great Britain is a gateway to large academic-oriented collections in major subject disciplines.
Want to see more useful directories? Visit Internet Subject Directories.
Now that we have covered the basics of subject directories, it is time to move on to the more complex topic of Search Engines. >>
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