Academic Research on the Internet: Options for Scholars and Libraries (review)

Far from being an oxymoron, academic research on the Internet has become an accepted practice in the last few years. Contrary to popular thought, however, everything on the Web is not free or of sufficient quality for research. In addition, many searchers do not find the truly important materials (or gems in the mud) and end up satisfying themselves with inferior information. Indeed, many undergraduate students seek out and accept only information that is readily accessible and free.

The authors in this book address these concerns and evaluate the sites for value and quality in terms of scholarly research. Print resources are also cited, but they are not considered against their Internet counterparts. Finally, most authors conclude that even though the Internet can support scholarly research in many fields, scholars must still consult traditional library resources, both print and online.

Each essay examines the Internet as a source for primary and secondary documents, journal articles, databases of full-text articles and citations, government information, search aids, portals, virtual libraries, electronic books, reference resources, and discussion lists. The authors also examine copyright and intellectual property regarding use, access, and quality. Reliance solely on public domain or other free information can be limiting. As coeditor Helen Laurence mentions in the introduction, most of "the seminal literature in all fields will remain under copyright for many years, and will accordingly be costly to access" (7).

Written primarily by scholar-librarians, this book presents extensive annotated lists of research-oriented Web sites arranged by subject: anthropology and sociology, art and architecture, biology, business, education, engineering, history, the law, English and American literature, medicine, natural science, political science, and philosophy. Complete URLs are given for each resource as well as the date they were last accessed by the article's author. All URLs in this volume were accurate as of 31 August 1999. When I performed a random check of URLs, I found only one broken link, attesting to the stability of the sites listed. Access to many of these resources is free, while others are available by subscription. The articles clearly indicate those resources that are online at no charge and those that require a subscription such as commercial databases.

This book is a goldmine of information and as such is useful for scholars and librarians. Each article is laid out to best suit the subject material. All have a conclusion and a Webiography of additional online resources. Many have references or notes. Indeed, the only criticism of this volume may be its print format, which makes URLs more difficult to access and keep up-to-date. An online edition would allow easier updating and single click access. The index is adequate but not terribly detailed.

All the articles in the book were copublished simultaneously in the Journal of Library Administration 30, nos. 1-2 and 3-4.