1. The Internet and the World Wide Web: Core Concepts
The Internet is a global "network of networks" consisting of millions of interconnected computer networks that transmit data using standard protocols. It serves as the vast infrastructure for a wide range of information and communication activities.
The World Wide Web (WWW or Web) is a service that operates over the Internet. It is a global collection of interlinked hypertext documents, which can include text, graphics, audio, video, and other multimedia objects. Developed by Sir Tim Berners-Lee in 1989, the Web was designed to meet the human need to share information resources, knowledge, and experience. Users access Web documents, known as web pages, through client software called a Web Browser.
While the terms are often used interchangeably, the Internet is the system of interconnected networks, while the Web is the collection of interconnected documents accessible via the Internet.
2. The Internet as an Information Source: Characteristics and Impact
The Internet has fundamentally changed how information is produced, published, stored, transmitted, and used, playing a crucial role in fulfilling the information needs of modern society. It is considered a distinct non-documentary source of information. The spectacular growth of the Internet and its associated technologies is a key factor in the modern perception of an "Information Society".
2.1 Strengths and Advantages
The Internet offers significant advantages as a reference and information tool:
- Easy Access: Information on the Internet is available to users at any time and from any location, breaking down the physical and time barriers of traditional libraries.
- Currency: Internet resources are often more up-to-date than their print counterparts, with some sources updating news and information daily.
- Multimedia Content: The Web supports a wide variety of formats beyond text, including audio, visual, and video information, which can enhance the learning process.
- Interactivity and Participation: The Internet facilitates two-way communication through features like e-mail, discussion groups, and online chat. The evolution to Web 2.0 has further transformed the web into a participatory platform where users can create, share, and collaborate on content.
- Multiple Users: Unlike a physical document, a resource on the Internet can be accessed by multiple users simultaneously.
2.2 Limitations and Challenges
Despite its strengths, the Internet has inherent limitations that users must be aware of:
- Lack of Quality Control: A major defect of the Internet is the absence of a formal quality control or peer-review process. Anyone can publish content, which makes it difficult to assess authority and authenticity.
- Burden of Evaluation: The responsibility of evaluating the reliability, accuracy, and validity of information found online falls on the user.
- Volatility: Web content is not static; it can be added, modified, or deleted constantly. Websites can disappear or change their address (URL), making it difficult to cite them as stable sources.
- Cost Barriers: While a vast amount of information is free, quality, full-text research articles are often located in expensive, subscription-based databases, meaning not all information is truly free to access.
- The Digital Divide: Access to the Internet is not universal. It is restricted to those who have access to computers and broadband facilities, creating a "digital divide" that denies access to a major section of the community due to economic constraints or illiteracy.
3. How Information is Organized and Accessed
The vast and often chaotic nature of the Web requires specific tools and methods to organize and retrieve information effectively.
3.1 Markup Languages and Metadata
Web pages are created using markup languages. HyperText Markup Language (HTML) is a foundational language used to structure and format documents for display in a web browser. Extensible Markup Language (XML) is a more advanced language used to describe the data itself, enabling structured information interchange between different systems.
Metadata, or "data about data," is crucial for organizing web resources. Web developers can embed metadata into a web page's code using meta tags. These tags provide information such as keywords, page descriptions, and author details, which are used by search engines to index the page more effectively.
3.2 Search Tools
- Search Engines: These are automated tools like Google and Yahoo! that help users locate information. They use special software programs called web crawlers or spiders to travel the Web, following links and indexing the content of pages. The indexed information is stored in a massive database, which is then searched when a user enters a query. The results are often ranked for relevance using algorithms like Google's PageRank.
- Search Directories: Unlike search engines, directories such as the Google Directory and Yahoo! Directory are created and maintained by human editors who classify websites into hierarchical subject categories. They are useful for browsing topics and tend to be smaller but more curated than search engine databases.
- Meta-search Engines: Tools like Dogpile perform searches across multiple search engines simultaneously and aggregate the results into a single list.
3.3 Classification and Gateways
Traditional library classification systems like the Dewey Decimal Classification (DDC) and the Library of Congress Classification (LCC) have been used to organize and search information on the Web. In addition, subject gateways or information gateways have been developed by experts, often librarians, to provide curated and browsable collections of high-quality online resources focused on specific subjects.
4. The Rise of Web 2.0: The Participatory and Sharing Web
The evolution of the Web into what is known as Web 2.0 marks a significant shift from a static, "read-only" platform to an interactive, "read/write" environment. Web 2.0 applications are built on user participation, collaboration, and sharing.
Key examples of Web 2.0 tools and services include:
- Wikis: These are collaborative websites where users can create and edit content together. The most prominent example is Wikipedia, a massive, community-built online encyclopedia.
- Blogs: A blog (or weblog) is an online journal or diary where an individual can publish their own content, which can include text, images, audio, and video.
- Social Bookmarking: Services like Delicious allow users to save, categorize (using "tags"), and share their website bookmarks with others in a public space.
- Social Networking: Websites like Facebook and Twitter function as online communities where users create profiles and connect with others to share information, photos, and personal updates.
- Media Sharing: Platforms like YouTube allow users to upload, share, and view video clips online.
5. The Internet's Impact on Libraries
The rise of the Internet as a primary information source has had a profound impact on libraries and information services.
- It has driven the transformation of traditional libraries into hybrid, digital, or virtual libraries that provide access to both print and electronic collections.
- It enables libraries to offer new and enhanced services, such as Web-based OPACs, virtual reference, and remote access to databases and e-journals.
- It serves as the backbone for resource sharing, library networks, and consortia, allowing libraries to collaborate and share collections on a global scale.
- It presents both a challenge and an opportunity, creating competition from other information providers but also forcing libraries to innovate and market their unique value to users.