Internet Resources Newsletter - Issue 163 July 2008

A-Z of new, nice and interesting websites, RSS feeds, blogs and Internet books from the Heriot-Watt University.

Encyclopedia Britannica Goes Wiki!

They never thought it would happen - but the Encyclopedia Britannica is opening its pages to everyone -

A redesigned website will allow current expert contributors to have more freedom to add information and advertise their own work, while also allowing the public to add articles under their own names. The encyclopedia will, however, still check that all information provided is correct before publishing. They say :

“The main thrust of this initiative is to promote greater participation by both our expert contributors and readers. Both groups will be invited to play a larger role in expanding, improving, and maintaining the information we publish on the Web under the Encyclopaedia Britannica name as well as in sharing content they create with other Britannica visitors”.

Read more about the changes here or check out the Britannica blog.

You can access the encyclopedia online for free in Wales if you are a member of a Public Library

Internet Resources Newletter - Issue 162

A-Z of new, nice and interesting websites, RSS feeds, blogs and Internet books from the Heriot-Watt University.

Internet Detective - Free Internet Tutorial

You can use the Internet to search for information every day - but are you finding quality sites that are suitable for your coursework?

This Intute Wise Up to the Web tutorial gives you the tools you need to find reliable, accurate information online while staying on the right side of copyright law.

Coleg Meirion-Dwyfor have also translated the site into Welsh. Please contact LibeRaCe (by leaving a comment below this post) for the zip file to convert the tool.

 

 

New York Times - Free Archive Access

Interested in American current affairs and maybe even 20th Century US History? 

Get access to the archives of the New York Times online.

Free article access from years 1851-1922 and from 1987-present .

TeacherTube and SchoolTube - Free Teaching Videos Online

A new way to interact with our students:

TeacherTube went live in 2007 and so far has 15,000 free to view instructional videos created by and for teachers. It includes featured videos, that are rated by viewers. Some of the diverse subjects covered include photography, maths, physics, English, French grammar. A keyword search box provides links to suitable videos. The US slant and some distracting advertisements may limit its appeal, but the range of subjects and alternative teaching ideas available make it a useful resource.

 

Another US based website called SchoolTube contains videos that have been created by students with the help of tutors on a wide range of subjects. Each video is screened by a qualified teacher using school district best practice before it is made available on the site. Videos are arranged by subject heading to the left of the page. The site also works in partnership with the Student Television Network (STN), a group of journalism teachers that share their expertise to create quality videos.

IRN - Internet Resources Newletter - Issue 160

The free, monthly, newsletter for academics, students, engineers, scientists and social scientists edited by Heriot-Watt University Library.

View the A-Z of new and notable websites, interesting blog, book reviews and more ……

More Free eBooks

 

There are more sites than ever providing free access to online text and audio books. Many of the books are older classics that are “in the the Public Domain” as they are no longer covered by copyright law, however some sites may be hosting material illegally. Check the authenticity of host/editor of the site before you download.

The Online Books Page (hosted by Univeristy of Pennsylvania)- over 30,000 free ebooks from classics to more modern titles. Good subject coverage.

Etext Centre (hosted by the University of Virginia) - one of the original ebook libraries on the web, includes staff recommended lists.

Many Books (uses a similar database list to Project Gutenberg) - modern and classic titles, with good subject coverage.

Microsoft Reader (not all books are freely accessible) - good for free dictionaries to download in multiple languages.

Classic Reader (Public domain books) - Includes books, plays and short stories with some author biographies and portraits. Over 3,400 titles too choose from with easy author/title search function.

There are other sites such as Page By Page Books  which also have free ebook access to classic titles but their editors or hosts cannot be ascetained.

Audio book sites covered by a Creative Commons License (a non profit organisation that provides free tools for authors, artists, and educators to mark their creative work with the freedoms they want it to carry) inlcude -

 Telltale Weekly (free perfomances released five years after their first appearance here or after a hundred-thousand purchases of the recording, whichever comes first. These recordings will be freely available for download at The Spoken Alexandria Project) - covers mostly classic literature.

Literal Systems (professional actors re-tell classic stories) - smaller number of classic books available but quality of recordings makes up for this. Older material is cleared to make room for new titles. Shakespeare’s sonnets may be relisted if demand arises.

 

Information for Social Change - No. 26 Winter 07- 08

No. 26, Winter 2007- 2008 (all in PDF Format, formatted for A4 paper).

Information for Social Change is an activist organisation that examines issues of censorship, freedom and ethics amongst library and information workers.

“The ways by which information is controlled and mediated has a serious influence on the ways people think, how they communicate, what they believe is the ‘real world’, what the limits of the permissible are. This applies equally to information that comes through the channels of the mass media, through our bookshops or through our libraries.”

European Sources Online **New** Wales and Europe Section

 

Euorpean Sources Online has added a new Wales & Europe section to its database. This will be an invaluable resource for Welsh Bacc students.

You can access resources relating to Wales by using pre-definded searches or choosing ‘Wales’ from the advanced search page.

To access ESO on campus go to Novell/Mulitmedia & Reference/Online Refernce/ESO and double click on the  icon.

To access ESO from home you will need an Athens Password. Please ask in the library for details or download an application form in the Library Moodle pages.