What's New Library Blog - LaGuardia Community College Library Media Resources Center

Search Ads Are Big Business

USA Today has an article on how the business of search engine ads is booming.
Search engine ads are those "sponsored ads" links that show up when you run a search.
Sometimes, you don't even notice them, though, so you click on a link, thinking it matches your search request, when the reality is it was paid to be placed there. Most search engines are good about identifying search returns that are actually paid ads, but I'm not sure users are as vigilant about spotting them.
Right now these ads are a big business, and I can only imagine it's going to get bigger. Eventually, certain searches might yield a full page of paid ads that users will have to sift through before they can see the actual search results.
The cool thing about the Internet is that it's always changing.
But it's also the scary part.

posted by Steve in the Library on Monday, October 31, 2005

Library Workshops

The Library will be having several computer and research workshops this semester.
You can see the schedule here or by clicking the Programs and Workshops link on our home page (it's under About the Library).
There are a lot of good programs, including Learn to Blog in 60 Minutes and Health and Wellness on the Web.
So stop by and check them out!

posted by Steve in the Library on Thursday, October 27, 2005

Microsoft Searches Books

Even though Google seems to be having a lot of problems with its project to place books online and then make them searchable, Microsoft is jumping into the same kind of business.
Microsoft is only going to use material in the public domain, for now, with an eye toward possibly getting into copyrighted content.
Google, rather famously, is just ignorning copyright, and telling publishers to let them know if they don't want their matierial online.
Microsoft also isn't sure if their book search will be free or will cost money.

posted by Steve in the Library on Wednesday, October 26, 2005

Government Watching College Networks

Here's a scary story from the Sunday Times:

The federal government, vastly extending the reach of an 11-year-old law, is requiring hundreds of universities, online communications companies and cities to overhaul their Internet computer networks to make it easier for law enforcement authorities to monitor e-mail and other online communications.

Universities quoted in the article mostly seem upset about the expense of all of this. I thought they'd be more upset about the wiretapping aspect of this law, but I guess since it's an 11-year-old law, there's been time to get used to the idea.
Here are more details on the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, the law driving all of this.

posted by Steve in the Library on Monday, October 24, 2005

What is Splog?

One of the ways the Internet beats our databases is for super, super recent trends.
One of those trends is splog.
What is splog? It's false search engine hits caused by blogs created for the express purpose of driving search engine traffic someplace else.
eWeek.com has a clinical, sort of dull look at the issue.
Mark Cuban, owner of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks (and who is involved with a blog search site), also has some opinions about what can be done about the issue.
There's so much content on the Internet, it's nearly impossible to really tame results. And as we see very day, it's really pretty easy to break them.
So whenever you're searching, be aware that the results could be tainted with bias, either in how the information is presented or how the search engine found the page.

posted by Steve in the Library on Thursday, October 20, 2005

UN Event Today

The Library's UN Event is today at 11:30.
Stop by the Little Theatre for a great panel discussion about the role of the UN in Global Issues.
Here's the schedule.

posted by Steve in the Library on Tuesday, October 18, 2005

Online Health Information

USA Today has a disturbing report that more and more teens are going online for health education and information. This includes sex information, too.
Obviously, they're getting a lot of bad information.
The article recommends the site http://teenhealthfx.com, as a good source of information. Looking at the description of the site, it's run by a hospital, but teens help to maintain it.
I'm also a big fan of http://medlineplus.gov/, which is easy to use and has amazing information.
And talking to a doctor is usually never a bad idea.

posted by Steve in the Library on Monday, October 17, 2005

UN@60

The Library is hosting an event celebrating 60 years of the United Nations. The event is Tuesday, October 18. The site for the event is here: http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/library/un/index.html.

We have some nice handouts and resources about the UN here: http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/library/un/factsheets.htm.

posted by Steve in the Library on Friday, October 14, 2005

New Trial Databases

Is there anything better than trial databases on a rainy Wednesday?

Not that I can think of.

The Library has trials for two interesting databases.

One is Shakespeare Collection Online, which in addition to having full-text articles on the life and work of Shakespeare, also features articles on the Renaissance, Elizabethan studies, Early Modern English studies, and film studies.

It also features select criciticism from Shakespearean Criticism. For more details, there's an informational PDF here (from the vendor): http://gale.com/pdf/facts/ShakespeareCollect.pdf.

To try the Shakespeare Collection Online, click here: http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/library/rpa/onlineresearch.htm#trial and then click Shakespeare Collection Online.

Our other trial is for Scopus.

What is Scopus?

"Scopus, the world’s largest abstract and indexing database, offers you access to 14,000 peer-reviewed titles from more than 4,000 international publishers."

Scopus covers health, life sciences, agricultural and biological sciences, chemistry, physics, math, engineering, earth and environmental sciences, social science, psychology, economics, business and management. They have full-text content, too. You can see that by clicking the View at Publisher link on the results (assuming the publisher provides open access).

You can access Scopus here: http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/library/rpa/onlineresearch.htm#trial.

If you have any thoughts or comments about about either of these databases (or are having trouble accessing them), please email sovadia -at- lagcc.cuny.edu.

posted by Steve in the Library on Wednesday, October 12, 2005

Tagging the Catalog

Lifehacker has a piece on tagging tips.
When most people talk about tagging, they mean the act of giving quick descriptions to photos and Web sites (although it was slang for graffiti when I was a kid).
For instance, here is a list of photos tagged with the term dog: http://flickr.com/photos/tags/dog/.
The Lifehacker tips include "Use a core keyword set," "Use meaningful keywords," and "Be consistent."
These tips for tagging are the same rules used in creating subjects in the CUNY+ catalog (or any catalog really).
When you do a subject search in the catalog, you're searching a finite list of core words. Tagging borrows heavily from the tradition of assigning subjects to books and other works in library catalogs.
But I guess tagging sounds more fun than cataloging.

posted by Steve in the Library on Friday, October 07, 2005

Assignment Calculator

In case you haven't seen this before, this is the assignment calculator. It helps you map out your assignments, so they get completed on time, and with high quality information.
It's sort of a step-by-step guide to your personal research process.
It's very neat and very easy to use.

posted by Steve in the Library on Monday, October 03, 2005

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		Search Ads Are Big Business USA Today has an article on how the business of search engine ads is booming. Search engine ads are those "sponsored ads" links that show up when you run a search. Sometimes, you don't even notice them, though, so you click on a link, thinking it matches your search request, when the reality is it was paid to be placed there. Most search engines are good about identifying search returns that are actually paid ads, but I'm not sure users are as vigilant about spotting them. Right now these ads are a big business, and I can only imagine it's going to get bigger. Eventually, certain searches might yield a full page of paid ads that users will have to sift through before they can see the actual search results. The cool thing about the Internet is that it's always changing. But it's also the scary part. posted by Steve in the Library on Monday, October 31, 2005 Library Workshops The Library will be having several computer and research workshops this semester. You can see the schedule here or by clicking the Programs and Workshops link on our home page (it's under About the Library). There are a lot of good programs, including Learn to Blog in 60 Minutes and Health and Wellness on the Web. So stop by and check them out! posted by Steve in the Library on Thursday, October 27, 2005 Microsoft Searches Books Even though Google seems to be having a lot of problems with its project to place books online and then make them searchable, Microsoft is jumping into the same kind of business. Microsoft is only going to use material in the public domain, for now, with an eye toward possibly getting into copyrighted content. Google, rather famously, is just ignorning copyright, and telling publishers to let them know if they don't want their matierial online. Microsoft also isn't sure if their book search will be free or will cost money. posted by Steve in the Library on Wednesday, October 26, 2005 Government Watching College Networks Here's a scary story from the Sunday Times: The federal government, vastly extending the reach of an 11-year-old law, is requiring hundreds of universities, online communications companies and cities to overhaul their Internet computer networks to make it easier for law enforcement authorities to monitor e-mail and other online communications. Universities quoted in the article mostly seem upset about the expense of all of this. I thought they'd be more upset about the wiretapping aspect of this law, but I guess since it's an 11-year-old law, there's been time to get used to the idea. Here are more details on the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act, the law driving all of this. posted by Steve in the Library on Monday, October 24, 2005 What is Splog? One of the ways the Internet beats our databases is for super, super recent trends. One of those trends is splog. What is splog? It's false search engine hits caused by blogs created for the express purpose of driving search engine traffic someplace else. eWeek.com has a clinical, sort of dull look at the issue. Mark Cuban, owner of the NBA's Dallas Mavericks (and who is involved with a blog search site), also has some opinions about what can be done about the issue. There's so much content on the Internet, it's nearly impossible to really tame results. And as we see very day, it's really pretty easy to break them. So whenever you're searching, be aware that the results could be tainted with bias, either in how the information is presented or how the search engine found the page. posted by Steve in the Library on Thursday, October 20, 2005 UN Event Today The Library's UN Event is today at 11:30. Stop by the Little Theatre for a great panel discussion about the role of the UN in Global Issues. Here's the schedule. posted by Steve in the Library on Tuesday, October 18, 2005 Online Health Information USA Today has a disturbing report that more and more teens are going online for health education and information. This includes sex information, too. Obviously, they're getting a lot of bad information. The article recommends the site http://teenhealthfx.com, as a good source of information. Looking at the description of the site, it's run by a hospital, but teens help to maintain it. I'm also a big fan of http://medlineplus.gov/, which is easy to use and has amazing information. And talking to a doctor is usually never a bad idea. posted by Steve in the Library on Monday, October 17, 2005 UN@60 The Library is hosting an event celebrating 60 years of the United Nations. The event is Tuesday, October 18. The site for the event is here: http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/library/un/index.html. We have some nice handouts and resources about the UN here: http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/library/un/factsheets.htm. posted by Steve in the Library on Friday, October 14, 2005 New Trial Databases Is there anything better than trial databases on a rainy Wednesday? Not that I can think of. The Library has trials for two interesting databases. One is Shakespeare Collection Online, which in addition to having full-text articles on the life and work of Shakespeare, also features articles on the Renaissance, Elizabethan studies, Early Modern English studies, and film studies. It also features select criciticism from Shakespearean Criticism. For more details, there's an informational PDF here (from the vendor): http://gale.com/pdf/facts/ShakespeareCollect.pdf. To try the Shakespeare Collection Online, click here: http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/library/rpa/onlineresearch.htm#trial and then click Shakespeare Collection Online. Our other trial is for Scopus. What is Scopus? "Scopus, the world’s largest abstract and indexing database, offers you access to 14,000 peer-reviewed titles from more than 4,000 international publishers." Scopus covers health, life sciences, agricultural and biological sciences, chemistry, physics, math, engineering, earth and environmental sciences, social science, psychology, economics, business and management. They have full-text content, too. You can see that by clicking the View at Publisher link on the results (assuming the publisher provides open access). You can access Scopus here: http://www.lagcc.cuny.edu/library/rpa/onlineresearch.htm#trial. If you have any thoughts or comments about about either of these databases (or are having trouble accessing them), please email sovadia -at- lagcc.cuny.edu. posted by Steve in the Library on Wednesday, October 12, 2005 Tagging the Catalog Lifehacker has a piece on tagging tips. When most people talk about tagging, they mean the act of giving quick descriptions to photos and Web sites (although it was slang for graffiti when I was a kid). For instance, here is a list of photos tagged with the term dog: http://flickr.com/photos/tags/dog/. The Lifehacker tips include "Use a core keyword set," "Use meaningful keywords," and "Be consistent." These tips for tagging are the same rules used in creating subjects in the CUNY+ catalog (or any catalog really). When you do a subject search in the catalog, you're searching a finite list of core words. Tagging borrows heavily from the tradition of assigning subjects to books and other works in library catalogs. But I guess tagging sounds more fun than cataloging. posted by Steve in the Library on Friday, October 07, 2005 Assignment Calculator In case you haven't seen this before, this is the assignment calculator. It helps you map out your assignments, so they get completed on time, and with high quality information. It's sort of a step-by-step guide to your personal research process. It's very neat and very easy to use. posted by Steve in the Library on Monday, October 03, 2005