Fluffbuff

I am putting together a few tips on how to do research online for a friend, and thought I'd share them. They are mostly a matter of common sense, but you might find them useful, if only to become more deliberate in your research. Also, don't forget all the ways you can find information OFF line: libraries, friends, experts…

I break down my research process in four parts:

1. Plan
2. Refine
3. Evaluate
4. Use

although they are not entirely sequential. For instance, evaluating your findings is something you do as you go, since accepting or rejecting a source affects your decision to continue a search.

1. PLAN YOUR RESEARCH STRATEGY

A — DEFINE THE PROBLEM

The most critical bit of your research is defining the problem and formulate a question that will serve as your starting point. Finding information involves searching or exploring, or a hybrid of the two. Searching is indicated when seeking an answer to a specific question, while exploration is a better starting point when you are not quite sure of what you need to find out.

Some examples:

1 - You know what you are looking for and can articulate your question in precise terms (you are searching)

— You are looking for examples of Philosophia Unicase (a typeface) used in printed advertising.
— You are looking for the recipe of a cocktail called Bellini.
— You are looking for the date of birth of Ingrid Bergman.

2 - You have a vague idea of what you need to find out and how to start a generic search (you are half searching, half exploring)

— You are looking for statistical data on Internet start-ups.
— You want to find out about knitting through the ages in Turkey.
— You need to identify a typeface.

3 - You don't know what you need to find out (you are exploring).

— You are trying to stay up-to-date on medical advances relating to child diabetes.
— You've heard about a thing called "wiki" and have no idea what it is.

Recognizing the nature of your inquiry and the extent of your knowledge of the subject helps you choose the most appropriate research tool(s) for the job at hand.

B — CHOOSE YOUR TOOLS

Without getting into options that require payment, such as subscriptions to libraries, databases and clipping services, the most common ways of looking for information online are:
— Directories (a.k.a. guides, indexes)
— Search engines (a.k.a. spiders, crawlers )

Web directories are human-compiled list of URLs (Internet addresses) arranged thematically for easy browsing. Popular directories are: Yahoo Directory and Open Directory Project.
Directories are useful for browsing.

Search engines are unordered collections of URLs gathered automatically by spiders at regular intervals. These collections are much larger than those of directories and potentially more useful. The downside is that you have to sift through a lot more chaff to get to the gold. Popular search engines are: Google and MSN Search.
Search engines are especially useful for specific inquiries.

Some search engines have a specific focus: Technorati and Bloglines are for blogs, WebMD for medical information, CitySearch for local searches, Google Scholar for scholarly literature, and so on.

You could think of the difference between directory and search engine as that between table of contents and index in a book. If you were to look for a broad topic in a book, e.g. antipasti in a cookbook, you'd go to the table of content. If you were looking for something specific, e.g. an antipasto called prosciutto e melone, you'd go to the index and scan the alphabetical listing for the word prosciutto or melone, which act as keywords for your search.

Other useful resaerch tools include:
— Wikipedia
— Bulletin boards (a.k.a. message boards, forums)

Wikipedia is a free online encyclopedia created collaboratively by people from all over the world. The largest portion is in English, but there are sections in other languages — currently 35 — and some of them quite large, as those in German, French and Japanese. Wikipedia is constantly being expanded and reviewed for accuracy and bias, for which it relies on the peer review system. According to a recent study published by the science magazine Nature, Wikipedia's accuracy is comparable to that of the Encyclopedia Britannica.
Wikipedia is great when you need an overview of a subject, even a complex one, such as psychology.

Bulletin boards are fabulous when you are looking for advice that does not require authority. For instance, you are caring for a disabled person and are looking for advice on how to cope. A dedicated bulletin board can offer you a way to compare notes with other people in your situation. It can put you in touch with people in your local community and recommend resources. As a knitter, I use bulletin boards to exchange information on knitting techniques, yarn shops, and the like.

C — PLOT THE COURSE

Let's say you are writing a mystery book and you want to find a slow-acting poison that is untraceable or traceable only with great difficulty. Let's assume you know little about poisons. Here are some possible research strategies (but don't let this stop you from coming up with more).

A) Look for someone who has already done the research for you. Other writers have been in your position. There must be advice already compiled and available online. Professional writers' associations, forums for amateur writers… The web has been around long enough that the odds of someone having researched, found, and compiled the information you are after are in your favor.

Think about who else might be interested in this kind of information and why.
Who may want to know about untraceable poisons in order to:
a) Use them: researchers, doctors, killers…
b) Recognize them: doctors, pathologists, forensic experts, detectives…
c) Avoid them: parents, pet owners, hazard workers…

You could run a search for "mystery writers resources untraceable poisons" or "forensic expert training untraceable poisons" or "treating victims unknown poison" and so on. You get the idea. The possible paths to your destination are limited only by your resourcefulness.

B) Do your own research and come up with your own answer. Possible reasons to follow this route:
— You'll gain more knowledge of the subject in general.
— You may get original results.
— You'll be exposed to incidental information and pick up lateral insights.
— You'll increase your chances to find out something interesting or relevant by serendipity.

First, you need to familiarize yourself with the basics. Let's see what we can find on Wikipedia. Perfect: an entry on poison, with a good introduction and links to lots of sources. Once you've familiarized yourself with the basics and the appropriate terminology, you are on your way to dig into the subject.

And… THINK CREATIVELY.

– If you speak another language, try running your search also in that language. Most likely, you'll find more information available in English than in other languages, but if you are researching 16th century philosophy in Europe, you might be better off doing your research in German. And if you are interested in Italian cuisine, guess how you'll find the authentic stuff?

I am running out of steam and this seems a good place to stop.
Look for Part 2 in a couple of weeks or so.