Three hosted federated search tools, Follett One Search, Gale PowerSearch Plus, and WebFeat Express, were configured and implemented in a school library. Databases from five vendors and the OPAC were systematically searched. Federated search results were compared with each other and to the results of the same searches in the database's native…

This article discusses the potential of Google Scholar as an alternative or complement to the Web of Science and Scopus for measuring the impact of journal articles in education. Three handbooks on research in science education, language education, and educational technology were used to identify a sample of 112 accomplished scholars. Google…

In this article, the author describes five lessons which focus on skills that students will need in any library. The following lessons should be taught during first semester to first-year middle school students: (1) Locating books at the library; (2) Locating databases at the library; (3) Locating encyclopedias at the library; (4) Locating…

In this study, students' use of a new educational Web portal was evaluated with particular emphasis on searching and browsing strategies. The effects and implications of a federated search system are also discussed. Fifty-four students, ranging from 5th to 12th grade, were given five tasks to complete using the SchoolRooms interface. The tasks…

Teens are impatient and unsophisticated online researchers who are often limited by their poor reading skills. Because they are attracted to clean and simple Web interfaces, they often turn to Google--and now Wikipedia--to help meet their research needs. The Google Game, co-authored by this author, teaches kids that there is a well-thought-out…

An exploratory study was designed to describe Internet search behaviors of deaf adolescents who used Internet search engines to complete fact-based search tasks. The study examined search behaviors of deaf high school students such as query formation, query modification, Web site identification, and Web site selection. Consisting of two fact-based…

ScanGrants (www.scangrants.com) is a free, online listing of grants, scholarships, and other types of funding in the health sciences. It is basically a launch pad for anyone looking for money to fund medical research or community/public health projects, or to finance their education in various healthcare fields. The goal is to enable researchers,…

One can obtain definitions and perform calculations, conversions, and a variety of other tasks on the Google search bar. The most useful shortcut for most Web searchers is Google's definitions. The ability to obtain definitions from Google without reaching for a dictionary or searching a dictionary web site is very helpful when reading technical…

Information retrieval in the context of virtual universities deals with the representation, organization, and access to learning objects. The representation and organization of learning objects should provide the learner with an easy access to the learning objects. In this article, we give an overview of the ONES system, and analyze the relevance…

This article presents systems that use speech technology, to emulate the one-on-one interaction a student can get from a virtual instructor. A web-based learning tool, the Learn IN Context (LINC+) system, designed and used in a real mixed-mode learning context for a computer (C++ language) programming course taught at the Université de Moncton…

Academic libraries customize, support, and provide access to myriad information systems, each with complex graphical user interfaces. The number of possible information entry points on an academic library Web site is both daunting to the end-user and consistently challenging to library Web site designers. Faced with the challenges inherent in…

Discusses how to find digital images on the Web. Considers images and copyright; provides an overview of the search capabilities of six search engines, including AltaVista, Google, AllTheWeb.com, Ditto.com, Picsearch, and Lycos; and describes specialized image search engines. (LRW)

Search engines rapidly add new services and experimental tools in trying to outmaneuver each other for customers. In this article, the author describes the latest additional services of some search engines and provides its sources. The author also suggests tips for using these new search upgrades.

Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to present the design and implementation of music courseware that features a music search system that uses impression keywords. The paper applies the courseware to "Kansei" (sensibility) development for elementary and junior high school students. The objectives of this courseware are to cultivate…

Although the exponential growth of the Internet has made it easier than ever to carry out plagiarism, it has also made it much easier to detect. This paper gives an overview of the many different methods of detecting web-based plagiarism which are currently available, assessing practical matters such as cost, functionality and performance.…