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Using and evaluating the internet

Search

Google Scholar

Search Google Scholar from the library homepage and get direct access to full text journal articles from the library.

To do this, you must set up your preferences:

  • In Google Scholar, go to Scholar Preferences
  • In Library Links, enter Swinburne
  • Tick the option for Swinburne University of Technology - Full Text?
  • Click Save Preferences
  • Your search results will now display a Full Text? link

Google Scholar search tips (PDF)

See: Better searching, better results (PDF) for more tips

More search tools

What are you looking for? 

 Search tool
Subject specific information
Links to journals, databases, books and websites for your subject. 		 Subject starter guides
Subject overview
A good starting point to help you understand your topic		 Wikipedia
Quick searches
A clever search engine designed to give you answers quickly and simply		 DuckDuckGo
Data, statistics, facts and figures
A search engine designed to answer factual queries		 Wolfram Alpha
Science
A science specific search engine 		Scirus
Images
Always check the licence restrictions before using any photo		 Flickr
Everystockphoto
Wikimedia Commons

 

Evaluate

How to evaluate online sources

Anyone can publish on the internet. Information on the web may be poor quality, misleading or biased. At university level you need to use good quality information and to do that you need to evaluate the information you find.

Use this checklist to examine each web page you plan to use:

  • Intended audience - Is the site aimed at school children or university level?
  • Reliability - Is the author identified? Do they have relevant qualifications? Can you identify an institution or organisation? Look at the URL (web address) for information: is the page hosted by an educational institution or government department? Is it a commercial site, or a personal web page?
  • Currency - Has the article been dated? When has it last updated? Does it cover recent news?
  • Accuracy - Can you check the information? Sites that quote statistics should have a bibliography. What kind of references have been used? Are all aspects of the subject covered? Does the text use graphs, images and photographs where appropriate?
  • Objectivity - Does the material cover all viewpoints? Are they trying to sell a product or idea? Is the information biased, controversial or misleading? Extreme or emotional language is a warning sign.

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Reference

How to acknowledge online sources

Always check with your teacher first to find out which referencing style you should use.

See reference lists and bibliographies for different styles and more help.


Swinburne Harvard Style

See the Harvard Quick Guide (PDF) for examples of online sources.

For more information, see the Harvard Style Guide.