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Module Module 5
Introduction 5
Examining
Catalog
Types
Lists
Dewey
Electronic, OPLIN
Internet sites
Your files
Review 5
Quiz 5
Answer 5
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Answer Key

Suggested Answers for Module 5 Exercises

Examining and Evaluating

Q:

1. Use a print almanac or similar ready reference book from the library collection. Print the Book Examination Checklist to carry with you. Examine the book and identify each of these parts:

  • Author, Title, Volume, Edition, Series, Place of Publication, Publisher's Name, Date of Publication
  • Foreword or Preface, Introduction or Instructions for Use, or Table of Contents
  • Text
  • Appendix, Glossary, or Index
  • Special features such as charts, graphs, photos

2. What would you say are the purpose, authority, scope, audience, and format of the book?

3. Choose another reference book, one you haven't used before, and answer questions 1 and 2 for that book.

A:

Not all parts on the Book Examination Checklist are available for every book. To check your answers, look at the catalog record for the book! Look at the main Table of Contents and Index to get the best idea of the scope and a sense of the format of the almanac. Reference staff in the library use reviews in books, journals, and online to help assess the value of reference sources for the library. Ask what review sources are used in your library.

Catalog

Q:

1. Locate an encyclopedia of science and/or technology in the catalog.

A:

If your library has one it would be listed in the catalog under the subject heading Science--Encyclopedias and Dictionaries or Technology--Encyclopedias and Dictionaries.

Q:

2. Locate a handbook of chemistry and/or physics in the catalog.

A:

If your library has one it would be listed in the catalog under the subject heading Chemistry--Handbooks, manuals, etc. or Physics--Handbooks, manuals, etc.

Q:

3. Look in your catalog for books about Ohio. Look closely at the catalog records for 2 or 3 of these items. What can you learn about dates for the authors? What can you learn about other subject headings to help you find more resources?

A:

The online catalog record or a catalog card will show you the birth and death dates for authors. A full record will show you "tracings" -- other authors or other subject headings for the item.

Types

Q:

1. Identify one of each of the following in your library: atlas, bibliography, dictionary, directory, gazetteer, handbook, periodical (or index to periodicals), and yearbook.

A:

Use the types as keywords in your catalog search.

Q:

2. How many of these (atlas, bibliography, dictionary, directory, gazetteer, handbook, periodical or index to periodicals, or yearbook) can you find that pertain specifically to Ohio, e.g. a periodical about Ohio or a directory  of Ohio business?

A:

The answer will depend on your library's collection. Use the resource lists in this module if you need some ideas. Use the term Ohio with any of the other terms as keywords to find specific Ohio resources. Examples of subject headings you will find are Ohio--Encyclopedias or Almanacs--Ohio.

Lists

Q:

1. Locate any of the resources on the Essential List in your library that are unfamiliar to you and use the Book Examination Checklist to examine them. Try to do at least one a day.

Dewey

Q:

1. Locate the non-fiction areas in your library. Each area (reference, ready reference, children's, videos, adult non-fiction, etc.) may be organized by Dewey.

2. How many places in your library can you locate resources in the 900s?

A:

If you aren't familiar with all areas of the library and your library doesn't have a map, it might help to make one. Dewey numbers won't be exactly the same in every library because numbers are sometimes adjusted to fit books into a specific collection.

Internet sites

Q:

1. Choose a topic of interest and search for information in at least two different search engines. Do the search exactly the same way in each search engine. Were your results the same?

    You can use Infopeople.org Best Search Tools Page, a search form that serves as an interface to several search tools on one page.

2. Look at SearchEngineWatch.com to learn how search engines work, how they compare, and how they add sites.

A:

Search results are never the same on any two search engines because they each use different methods for searching, index different numbers of web sites, and many even sell their top sites to companies who want to be in the top ten hits!

If you search the Internet to answer reference questions, be sure you talk to your supervisor and other staff about what's available for staff members on the library's site. Staff can recommend available databases that would be better than a general web search, or have lists of recommended web sites.

  

 

 

 

Take note!

There are no "right" answers for many of these questions. Discuss the questions with your supervisor or other staff members to learn how things work in your library.
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