Delivering Web Reference Services to Young People

VOYA - Rebecca Vnuk

Minkel and Feldman have written an excellent book for librarians on how to use the Internet to the fullest potential. Although it is easy enough to be read from start to finish in one sitting, this is a reference to be frequently consulted. Aimed at giving Web reference to young people, the book also provides practical tips that are useful for any reference situation, including adults. Sample reference questions add effective detail to instructions on how to use various search engines, meta-crawlers, and the like. Sections on how to analyze and evaluate Web sites, how to conduct a search, and how to answer the inevitable copyright questions are valuable additions. Besides general how-to-search information, there is also a section on Internet troubleshooting--how to best view, print, and save the information one finds. Programming suggestions are covered in "Training Young Users," which is filled with ideas for classes and instruction. One of the real strengths of the book is that instead of simply giving out URLs (which would no doubt be expired before long), the authors make a real effort to teach librarians how to use the Internet to find the most updated information on any topic. This is a worthy read that will not only train the beginner, but also instruct and inspire the already experienced, techno-savvy librarian. Index. Illustrations. Webliography.