Web Research Sites: Authoritative Web Sites for Student Research

Reference Tools for Web Based Research

Internet Subject Directories
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Internet Subject guides function like highly sophisticated yellow pages. Human editors research and review web sites for their value as authoritative sites for research use. Web sites and the links to them are organized and presented in these directories by subject area. These directories are quick, accurate, and easy to use alternatives to search engines.

About.com – “When you read an article on About.com, you are tapping into a powerful network of 475 Guides -- smart, passionate, accomplished people who are experts in their field.“ Approximately 50,000 URLs.
URL http://www.about.com
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Business.com – A subject directory searching on business web sites.
URL http://www.business.com
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

DMOZ – Open Directory Project – This is the largest, human-edited directory of the Web. Google’s “Directory” is a version of the DMOZ directory that is searchable by the Google search engine.
URL http://www.dmoz.com
Discussed in BUSN 460, CIS 433

Infomine: Scholarly Internet Resource Collections – An academic focused directory produced by the University of California.
URL http://infomine.ucr.edu/
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Librarians’s Index to the Internet – Non-profit, government funded. Small but highly focused, its motto is “Information You Can Trust.”
URL http://www.lii.org
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Internet Search Engines
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An internet service that consists of computer programs that locate web documents and creates an index that can be searched by entering keywords. The search engine displays the links to the documents in the index in response to a specific search. Databases of licensed content such as ProQuest or EBSCOHost are technically not search engines.

Ask Jeeves – One of the largest search engines.
URL http://www.ask.com
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Google – Currently the most popular search engine.
URL http://www.google.com
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Yahoo! – A popular and powerful search engine that also provides users with internet subject directory.
URL http://www.yahoo.com
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Specialized Search Engines

FirstGov.gov – FirstGov.gov, is the official U.S. gateway to all government information. Use it to search for government web pages at the federal, state, local, and tribal government levels.
URL http://www.firstgov.gov
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

FedStats – “The gateway to statistics from over 100 U.S. Federal agencies.
URL http://www.fedstats.gov
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Science.gov – “Science.gov is a gateway to authoritative selected science information provided by U.S. Government agencies, including research and development results.”
URL http://www.science.gov
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Meta-Search Engines
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A search engine that passes a query on to other search engines and then displays selective combined results from individual search engines.

Dogpile – Searches 11+ different search engines. Results segregated by each search engine.
URL http://www.dogpile.com
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Ixquick – One of the fastest growing search engines. Good for image searching.
URL http://www.ixquick.com
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

MetaCrawler – One of the first meta-search engines.
URL http://www.metacrawler.com
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Vivisimo – Good coverage. Results are clustered into categories.
URL http://www.vivisimo.com
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Internet Site Evaluation Tools
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Whois.Net – “Domain-based research service”. Use this site to identify the registered owners of specific we sites. Identifying the owners can help you evaluate the authoritativeness of the source.
URL http://www.whois.net
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148  

The American Society of Newspaper Editors website presents it’s “ ASNE Statement of Principles.” These principles, if followed, promote truth, accuracy, impartiality, and fair play in newspaper reporting.
URL http://www.asne.org/kiosk/archive/principl.htm
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Web Resources By Subject

Company Information
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Conducting effective Company Research is vital to success in business.

Annual Reports & Financial Statistics

SEC’s EDGAR - All public companies, foreign and domestic who trade stock in the U.S., are required to file registration statements, periodic reports (10-Ks, 10-Qs), and other reports electronically through the government database EDGAR. The www.10kwizard.com database, that is available on campus to DeVry Students, offers superior search capabilities to these SEC filings.
URL http://www.sec.gov/edgar/searchedgar/webusers.htm
Discussed in ACCT 212, ACCT 301, ACCT 34

Company Rankings

Price’s List of Lists
How does a company compare with its competitors? “The List of Lists” is a database of ranked listings of companies, people and resources. Company rankings include largest and best companies to work for.
URL http://www.specialissues.com/lol
Discussed in CARD 405 & CARD 205

Cost of Living & Best Places
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Conducting effective Company Research is vital to success in business.

Discussed in CARD 405, CARD 205

Sperling’s Best Places - Sperling publishes “Cities Ranked and Rated,” Sperling’s website has a place calculator that ranks that attractiveness of various U.S. cities based on a number of factors.
URL http://www.bestplaces.net/html/citycompare.asp
Discussed in CARD 405 & 205

Realtor.Com - National Association of Realtors’ provides guidance and statistical information to related to relocating and moving across the U.S.
URL http://www.homefair.com/homefair/servlet/ActionServlet?pid=27&cid=homefair
Discussed in CARD 405 & 205

Salaries & Wages – The National Compensation Survey reports comprehensive figures of occupational earnings at the metropolitan, non-metropolitan areas, regional areas, and on a national basis.”
URL http:// www.bls.gov/ncs/home.htm
Discussed in COLL 147 & COLL 148

Economic Indicators & Statistics
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The Census Bureau not only counts people, but also businesses and industries.

Economic Census – The Bureau of the Census profiles the U.S. economy every 5 years Data from the Economic Census paints a detailed portrait of the Nation's economy from the national to the local level.

2002 Economic Census
URL http://www.census.gov/econ/census02/
Discussed in ACCT 212, ACCT 346, BIS 460, BUSN 319, EET 400

Statistical Abstract of the United States. 2006 Ed. - This National Data Book contains statistics on social and economic conditions in the United States, and selected international data. The Abstract is also your guide to sources of other data from the Census Bureau, other Federal agencies.

2006 Statistical Abstract
URL http://www.census.gov/statab/www/
Discussed in BUSN 115, BUSN 319, CARD 405 & 205

Financial Information
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Financial Ratios

Reuters Investor - Register for free to access to limited company and industry financial ratios. Investment analyst’s reports available from brokerage firms.
URL http://investor.reuters.com
Discussed in BUSN 379

Stock Prices

Yahoo! Finance – Financial data includes stocks prices going back in some cases to the 1970’s, beta, and basic financial ratios for companies and major industry sectors.
URL http://finance.yahoo.com
Discussed in ACCT 212, ACCT 346, BUSN 379

Industry Information
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Industrial Classification Codes

NAICS codes – North American Industrial Classification Codes classify products and companies into industry groupings. A specific NAICS code leads you to companies & products related to a specific industry.
URL http://www.census.gov/epcd/www/naics.html
Discussed in BUSN 115, BUSN 319, BUSN, 379, CARD 405 & 205

SIC codes– SIC codes Standard Industrial Classification codes were are to classify products and companies into industry groupings. SIC codes were superceeded by NAICS code in 1997. Many commercial company & product directories still use SIC codes to classify companies and products.
URL http://www.osha.gov/oshstats/sicser.html
Discussed in BUSN 115, BUSN 319, CARD 405 & 205

Industry Statistics

Census Economic Briefing Room - issue monthly reports that track major business indicators (new home sales, housing starts, retail sales, manufacturer’s shipments, etc.) that affect the U.S. economy.
URL http://www.census.gov/cgi-bin/briefrooms/BriefRM
Discussed in ACCT 212, BUSN 319, BUSN 379

Industry Trade Associations
Industry trade associations are membership organizations comprised of companies that are active in a specific industry. Industry associations are a rich source of statistics and other information about an industry.

AeA (formerly American Electronics Association) – Largest trade association for the high-tech industry. AeA publishes a number of industry studies, including one on operating ratios for high-tech companies.
URL http://www.aeanet.org
Discussed in BUSN 379

Consumer Electronics Association – The “Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) membership unites more than 2000 companies within the U.S. consumer technology industry.”
URL http://www.ce.org
Discussed in EET 400

Electronic Industries Alliance – “ The Electronic Industries Alliance (EIA) is a national trade organization that includes the full spectrum of U.S. manufacturers. The Alliance is a partnership of electronic and high-tech associations and companies whose mission is promoting the market development and competitiveness of the U.S. high-tech industry.”
URL http://www.eia.org
Discussed in CARD 205, CARD 405, COLL 147

Law & Legal Information
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Legal information consists of Codes, Statutes and Regulations, and Case Law.

FindLaw – “FindLaw is the highest-trafficked legal Web site, providing the most comprehensive set of legal resources on the Internet for legal professionals, businesses, students and individuals.” The FindLaw site, which is produced by media giant Thompson Company, offers databases of legal cases, codes, and news.
URL: http://www.FindLaw.com
Discussed in Keller GM 590

Marketing Information
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Demographics and market research reports are key resources in the marketing planning process.

Demographic Data
Demographics are the vital statistics of a population such as age, gender, marital status, family size, education, geographic location, and occupations.

American FactFinder – Tracks number of and types of people and business enterprises by city, county, zip code or state.
URL http://factfinder.census.gov
Discussed in BIS 460, BUSN 319

California Dept. of Finance. Demographic Research Unit – “Single official source of demographic data for the state.” Includes current population data for California city and counties, along with projections.
URL http://www.dof.ca.gov/HTML/DEMOGRAP/Druhpar.htm
Discussed in BUSN 319

Market Research Reports
Market Research report data relating to the number of buyers or the possible number of buyers for specific line of product or various classes of products. These reports are usually the result of proprietary surveys and studies.

Bizminer
URL http://www.bizminer.com
Discussed in EET 400

Datamonitor
URL http://www.datamonitor.com
Discussed in EET 400

Forrester Research
URL http://forrester.com
Discussed in EET 400

Frost & Sullivan
URL http://frost.com
Discussed in EET 400

Gartner Group (includes Dataquest)
URL http://gartner.com
Discussed in EET 400

IDC
URL http://www.idc.com
Discussed in EET 400

Newspapers Online
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US Newspaper List – Directory of links to local newspapers web sites by state and city.
URL http://www.usnpl.com/
Discussed in CARD 205, CARD 405

Product Information
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 Directories

Kellysearch – Online directory of industrial product company catalogs from around the world (published in the UK).
URL http://www.kellysearch.com
Discussed in Comp 129

ThomasNet – Online version of the Thomas Register – the largest directory of industrial products and services in the U.S.
URL http://www.thomasnet.com
Discussed in Comp 129

Standards
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“A standard is a documented agreement, established by a consensus of subject matter experts and approved by a recognized body, that provides rules, guidelines or characteristics to ensure that materials, products, processes and services are fit for their purpose.” - ANSI

National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) – “the NIST is a non-regulatory federal agency within the U.S.Commerce Department's Technology Administration. NIST's mission is to develop and promote measurement, standards, and technology to enhance productivity, facilitate trade, and improve the quality of life.”
URL http://www.nist.gov
Discussed in EET 400, NCOM 264

Volunteer Opportunities
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Databases and listings of volunteer opportunities can be an effective means of finding a client for your Senior Project Semester project or securing an opportunity develop your skills and your resume.

Volunteer Center – Serving San Francisco and San Mateo Counties – Use web site to find potential opportunities to assist local nonprofit clients as part of one’s senior project.
URL http://www.thevolunteercenter.net/
Discussed in BUSN 460

Volunteermatch.com - VolunteerMatch is a leader in the nonprofit world dedicated to helping everyone find a great place to volunteer. The organization offers a variety of online services to support a community of nonprofit, volunteer and business leaders committed to civic engagement.”  
URL http://www.volunteermatch.com
Discussed in the Senior Project Match & Exchange

The Bay Area Volunteer Opportunities Hotlist – “The purpose of this Web publication is to provide information about volunteer opportunities in the San Francisco Bay Area.”
URL http://www.volunteerinfo.org/hotlist.htm 
Discussed in the Senior Project Match & Exchange

Craigslist – Craigslist is a Local community of online classifieds and forums - a place to find jobs, housing, goods & services, social activities…community information, and just about anything else…in a relatively non-commercial environment.” Go to Craigslist then enter “volunteer” in the “search craigslist” window on the upper left hand side. Be prepared to wade through a lot of irrelevant listings.
URL http://www.craigslist.org 
Discussed in the Senior Project Match & Exchange

Compumentor - “Is a nonprofit organization specializing in technology assistance for community-based organizations and schools. Through our consulting practice, we offer technology planning, implementation, and support services.”
URL http://www.compumentor.org 
Discussed in the Senior Project Match & Exchange

Techsoup - TechSoup is the technology website for nonprofits. CompuMentor, the organization which sponsors TechSoup, was the first full-fledged technical volunteer matching program in the U.S. CompuMentor now provides matching services to nonprofits.” The mentor matching staff will help non-profits define the project, write a work plan, and find a volunteer with appropriate skills.”
URL http://www.techsoup.org  
Discussed in the Senior Project Match & Exchange

Government Jobs
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“To apply for most Federal jobs…you should search the USAJOBS database for opportunities that match the type of job you are interested in and are located where you want to work. Then, you should follow the "How to Apply" instructions contained within each job posting you locate.”

USAJOBS – “USAJOBS is the official job site of the United States Federal Government. It is provided at no cost and offers information on 18,946 U.S. government job opportunities worldwide.”  
URL http://www.USAjobs.opm.gov
Discussed in Card 405