Tech Directions - September 2007 - (Page 12)

newspapers, magazines, scholarly journals, transcripts, white papers, books, encyclopedias, dictionaries, thesauruses, and almanacs. Most of this content isn’t on the free Web. HighBeam costs $199.95 per year or $29.95 per month. Refdesk (www.refdesk.com), an oldie but goodie, provides a host of different reference services, including calendar, currency converter, news, stock quotes, dictionary, maps, weather forecasts, and more. The tools of choice for many librarians and professional researchers are commercial research databases. Top services include Dialog (www.dialogweb.com) and LexisNexis (www.nexis.com), which aggregate information from hundreds of third-party databases and let you quickly search through any or all of them using the same search procedures. Dialog, created in 1972, was the world’s first online information retrieval system. It has traditionally been strong on scientific, technical, and intellectual-property material, and it’s still that way. But now it also provides excellent coverage of general and business news. LexisNexis is a combination of Lexis, the premier source of in-depth legal and regulatory information and public records, and Nexis, a good source of general and business news, market research, and other company and industry information. Each service has different pricing options for individuals, small businesses, and large businesses and information professionals. For individuals and small businesses, a payas-you-go plan may make the most sense. Costs for extensive searches can rise quickly, though the scope is unparalleled. The Human Touch Among the most interesting new developments in searching is as old as the first librarian. Several Webbased services offer human help in finding even the most specific or arcane of information. With AskMeNow (www.askmenow. com), you use your cell phone or wireless handheld computer to text a question, and if the AskMeNow representative is able to answer it, you’re charged 25 cents on your carrier’s bill. The company employs researchers in the Philippines who search the Internet for you. You use Jatalla (www.jatalla.com) and ChaCha (www.chacha.com) like traditional search engines, but the results are ordered by human intelligence. ChaCha distinguishes itself even more by letting you chat with a guide, who can help you refine your search to find the most relevant pages. As of this writing, both services were still in beta, or testing, mode, but were live and usable. Established search sites have also been incorporating the human element. Yahoo Answers (answers. yahoo.com) is an online community where you can ask questions and get answers from real people. Reid Goldsborough is a syndicated columnist and author of the book Straight Talk About the Information Superhighway. BACK-TO-SCHOOL SALE—SAVE OVER 50%! Three-book series is great for teaching the history of technology Building Civilization: The Growth of Production Moving Civilization: The Growth of Transportation Connecting Civilization: The Growth of Communication Author Dennis Karwatka brings to life the fields of production, transportation and communication. Each book features an overview of the technology’s history plus biographies of its key players. Inventors and inventions like Edwin Link and his flight trainer and the Mack brothers and the first American trucks will inspire your students. Vintage photos and drawings make reading interesting. Buy them today and save over 40% Only $19.95 each! Save over 50% on the set Get all 3 for only $49.95! + shipping & handling Call 800-530-9673 x200, fax 734-975-2787 or order online at www.techdirections.com/civsale.html Tech Directions Books & Media 12 techdirections ◆ SEPTEMBER 2007 http://www.jatalla.com http://www.refdesk.com http://www.chacha.com http://www.dialogweb.com http://www.nexis.com http://answers.yahoo.com http://answers.yahoo.com http://www.askmenow.com http://www.askmenow.com http://www.techdirections.com/civsale.html

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Tech Directions - September 2007

Technically Speaking Contents Direct from Washington The News Report Technology’s Past Technology Today Mastering Computers Dome, Sweet Dome—Geodesic Structures Teach Math, Science, and Technology Principles Help Students Become Wise Energy Consumers How Does FERPA Affect You? Camera Operator and Videographer e-gallery Product Central Free for the Asking More than Fun

Tech Directions - September 2007

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