English Seminar (ENG 4900)

JET Library book databases / collections

Free Books Online

General Podcasts

Genre Podcasts:

Author Podcasts:

Series Podcasts:

Everything Else:

Ask yourself the following questions about each website you're considering:

Currency: Timeliness of the information

• How recent is the information?
• Can you locate a date when the page(s) were written/created/updated?
• Are the links functional?
• In regards to your topic, is it current enough?

Relevance: The importance of the information for your needs

• Does the information relate to your topic or answer your question?
• Is the information at an appropriate level (not too elementary or advanced)?
• How does it compare with other sources you have looked at?

Authority: The source of the information

• Can you determine who the author/creator is?
• Is there a way to contact them?
• What are their credentials (education, affiliation, experience, etc.)?
• Is there evidence they're experts on the subject?
• Who is the publisher or sponsor of the site?

Accuracy: The reliability, truthfulness and correctness of content

• Is it arranged logically and consistently?
• Has it been either peer reviewed or cited elsewhere?
• Can you verify any of the information in another source?
• Does the language or tone seem biased and free of emotion?
• Are there spelling, grammar or other typographical errors?

Purpose / Point of View: The reason the information exists

• Based on the writing style, who is the intended audience? 
• What's the intent of the website (to persuade, to sell you something, etc.)?
• What is the domain (.edu, .org, .com, .gov etc.)? How might that influence the purpose/point of view?
• Are there ads on the website? How do they relate to the topic being covered (e.g., an ad for ammunition next to an article about firearms legislation)?
• Is the author presenting fact or opinion?
• Who might benefit from a reader believing this website?

By scoring each category on a scale from 1 to 10 (1 = worst, 10=best possible) you can give each site a grade on a 50 point scale for how high-quality it is!

45 - 50 Excellent | 40 - 44 Good | 35 - 39 Average | 30 - 34 Borderline Acceptable | Below 30 - Unacceptable

While not a browser extension, users with a google account can quickly modify their settings to see library holdings within Google Schlar results.

On-Campus Users:

No configuration is necessary. When you conduct a search within Google Scholar, articles that can be linked to full text will have a "Full-text @ Molloy" hyperlink at the right of the results as illustrated below:

Off-Campus Users:

You can connect via the instructions in the GET IT FAST box  or use the GoogleScholar search box provided on this guide. You can also manually configure Google Scholar on your home computer or laptop in a few simple steps:

Once you are in Google Scholar, click on the three vertical lines in the far left, then the gear icon for Settings

1. Click "Library Links" and enter Molloy then click the "Search" button.
2. Put a check in all available resources as indicated below
3. Click SAVE to apply your changes

In the "Search Results" settings, you can also select a bibliographic manager. RefWorks and EndNote are options. BibTex and RefMan (RIS files) should work with any citation manager.

Setting Additional Preferences: While in the Scholar preferences, you may also want to take a moment to set the Search Language to English and if desired, 

Test your settings. Conduct a sample search. Links to Molloy should appear to the right, links to ProQuest and RefWorks appear below the citation as indicated in the first screenshot above. Didn't work? Use the methods indicated in the GET IT FAST box on the right.