Search Engines
Search Engines are tools designed to bring some order to the chaos of the Internet. A search engine will help you track down what you are looking for.
Click on the Net Search button at the top of the Netscape screen. This is put together by the people at Netscape and lists all the major search engines. Among some of the more popular ones are Yahoo!, Excite, AltaVista, and Infoseek.
Once you've connected to a search engine, you will find an empty box provided. Click inside the box, then type a word or phrase you want to search for. The search engine will bring back a listing of sites it believes are relevant to your search. Each s earch engine has its own peculiarities and will bring back a different listing than the other search engines. Try the same search in more than one search engine to see the differences.
Each search engine will give "help" on how to search that site.
Directories
Directories provide listings of Internet resources by subject. These subject categories are hierarchical; arranged from the general to the specific.
To begin using a directory, click on one of the search engines listed above. Click on a category you are interested in. This brings up a list of more specific categories. Continue until you find something of interest. Beware though! You can spend hour s surfing the Net because you'll find so many things of interest!
The folks at Yahoo! have devised a very well-organized and logical index of categories that is quite easy to use. One possible URL for physical therapy is: http://www.yahoo.com/Health/Medicine/Physical_Therapy/
Another directory which will lead you to resources is the Internet Public Library. For medical information, go to: http:www.ipl.org/ref/RR/static/hea0000.html
What is a URL?
A URL (or Universal Resource Locator) is an Internet address. These URLs are found everywhere these days: TV commercials, billboards, ads in magazines, as well as printed Internet directories.
Opening a URL
Once you have a URL in hand, simply click on the Open button at the top of the Netscape screen. A box will appear wherein you can type the URL. Type it in exactly as you found it, including punctuation and upper or lower case lettering. Press EN
TER or click on the Open button. Netscape will then connect you to that site.
Here are a couple of URLs appropriate to your subject area:
http://www.apta.org/pt_journal/index.html
Physical Therapy, the world's leading peer-reviewed physical therapy journal and the official journal of the American Physical Therapy Associati
on since 1921. Physical Therapy contributes to and documents the evolution and expansion of the scientific and professional body of knowledge related to physical therapy.
http://www.sau.edu/CWIS/Internet/Wild/Majors/Medical/PhysTher/ptindex.htm
Physical Therapy Sources, from WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE, Librarian's Guide to the Best I
nformation on the Net.
Evaluating Internet Resources
Every source of information--books, magazine articles, government publications, broadcast news programs, talk radio shows, encyclopedias, and the Internet--incorporates the perspective or bias of its authors. This list of sites offers insight into evalua
ting information found during an Internet search.
Citing Resources on the Web
Internet Citation Guides
Because of the unique nature of Internet information, there are ways of citing Internet resources that differ from citing more traditional print resources. This URL lists several links to citations for various styles and types of Internet sites.
Cline LibraryCline LibraryNAU Vista Library Catalog | Search EnginesNet Search |
URLs for your subject areaPhysical TherapyPhysical Therapy Sources | DirectoriesYahoo!Yahoo! Health/Medicine/Physical_Therapy/ Internet Public Library Internet Public Library Health & Medical Sciences Reference |
Evaluating and Citing Internet InformationEvaluating Internet ResourcesInternet Citation Guides | Other sites of interestDEPARTMENT OF PHYSICAL THERAPYAsk a Reference Question of Kevin Ketchner |
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