This document provides an introduction to using subscription databases and the "invisible web" which contains much more information than regular search engines can access. It discusses the difference between the visible and invisible web, with the invisible web being much larger but not searchable by Google and other public search engines. The bulk of the document promotes ELM (Electronic Library for Minnesota) databases for beginners to access the invisible web. It lists several ELM databases and encourages the reader to explore the databases using a provided checklist to determine which may be most useful based on content, coverage, interface features, and student needs.

1. THINK LIKE
A LIBRARIAN
ELM databases for beginners
MILI 2010-2011
LeAnn Suchy, Metronet
leann@metronet.lib.mn.us
http://www.flickr.com/photos/fabi_k/3546466770/

2. Visible versus Invisible Web
 “VisibleWeb” (often called “Surface
Web”)
 Stuff you find via search engines like
Google,Yahoo, Bing, etc.
 “InvisibleWeb” (often called
“HiddenWeb” or “DeepWeb”)
 Things not searchable by regular search
engines
 Think subscription databases

3. Visible Web
 Last year Google indexed its
trillionth webpage (1 trillion unique
URLs)
 This is only half of theVisibleWeb
 Results are relevancy ranked
 Over 200 factors determine relevancy
 Popularity is a large factor
 Relevancy rankings aren’t always credible

4. http://www.ipl.org/

8. Invisible Web
 InvisibleWeb is anywhere from 100
to 500 times bigger than theVisible
Web (or even bigger?)
 Includes more credible sources
 Search engines like Google can’t
index the InvisibleWeb because:
 Items found via a query
 Passwords

9. How do I find Invisible Web?
 Think DATABASES
 Database through the government,
libraries and state of MN
 Databases through your school
 Today we’re focusing on: ELM
databases (ELM = Electronic Library
for Minnesota

10. ELM http://www.elm4you.org/

11. Searchasaurus

12. Kids Search

13. Academic Search Premier

14. InfoTrac Junior Edition

15. InfoTrac Student Edition

16. ¡Informe!

17. Britannica Online

18. ProQuest Newsstand Complete

19. Student Resources in Context

20. CAMIO

21. Many more
 Almost 50 ELM databases
 More databases available through
your school, so talk to your media
specialist
 And now, think like a librarian…

22. Before recommending, explore
 Ask these questions of the database:
 What type of content is provided?
 How many publications are included?Years?
 How frequently is it updated?
 What navigational tools are provided?
 Are there tutorials? A help section? Search tips?
 How are search results displayed?
 Can I save, email or print articles? RSS feeds?
 Which students would best be served by this?
 These questions and more are on
Database Exploration Checklist

23. Database Exploration Checklist

25. Detailed Search

26. Search like a librarian

31. Between now and our meeting
 Check out the Database Exploration
Checklist worksheet
 Go into the ELM databases (or
databases linked from your school
library) and use the worksheet to
analyze a couple databases
 Blog about your experiences
 When we meet in-person: Bring an
assignment with you where you had to
have students research something