Web+Research+1



=**Web Research 1 : Introduction to the Internet and the World Wide Web**=


 * Aim:**


 * Common Core State Standards:**


 * CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.7** Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.


 * CCSS.ELA-Literacy.W.11-12.8** Gather relevant information from multiple authoritative print and digital sources, using advanced searches effectively; assess the strengths and limitations of each source in terms of the task, purpose, and audience; integrate information into the text selectively to maintain the flow of ideas, avoiding plagiarism and overreliance on any one source and following a standard format for citation.


 * Objectives:**


 * Vocabulary:**


 * hypertext
 * hypermedia
 * hyperlink or link
 * HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol)
 * URL (Uniform Resource Locator)
 * HTML (Hypertext Markup Language)
 * home page
 * client/server
 * error messages
 * directories
 * subject catalogs
 * search engine
 * meta-search engine
 * specialized databases
 * bookmark
 * protocol
 * Tim Berners-Lee
 * Web browser
 * favorite
 * Internet
 * link
 * Web 2.0
 * Web page
 * World Wide Web


 * Introduction:**

Who invented the Web? A guy named Tim Berners-Lee. He is credited with saying, "The WWW is the universe of network-accessible information, the embodiment of human knowledge."

Elicit from students: What else if the embodiment of human knowledge? Answer: libraries.

And the difference between the Internet and a library is that all the books are scattered on the floor. A journalist from the Boston Globe, D.C. Dennison said, "The Internet may be the world's greatest library, but let's face it - all the books are scattered on the floor."

So this course is going to help you manage your research on the WWW.


 * Discussion:**

Elicit from students what information can be found on the WWW.

Answers:


 * art
 * science
 * humanities
 * politics
 * law
 * business
 * education
 * government information
 * scientific and technical papers
 * financial data
 * stock market reports
 * government reports
 * advertisements
 * publicity
 * news
 * info about products
 * info about travel
 * tips and advice
 * health issues
 * environmental issues
 * cooking
 * gardening
 * camping

Draw a web page on the board. Draw pictures and text and use underlines to represent links.


 * Hypertext and Hypermedia**

When you use the Web, you are working in a hypertext or hypermedia environment. That means you move from item to item, page to page and back again without having to follow a predefined path. You follow hyperlinks according to your interests and needs.

Elicit from students what some hyperlinks look like:

Answers:


 * text
 * images
 * icons
 * maps
 * graphics

The term **hypertext** is used to describe text that contains links to other text. When the hypertext and links are from a variety of media (text, video, audio), we use the term **hypermedia**.

Elicit from students how you know something is a hyperlink.

Answers:


 * underlined
 * boldfaced
 * different color


 * In-Class Activity:**

1) Create a new page on your wiki and name it Web Research 1. You will write all your answers on this page.

2) I want you to continue to either think about a topic you'd like to research, or to visit Web sites related to something you are learning in school. Perform a search in the search engine of your choice.

3) In the event you can't think of something, do this:

Search for resources related to starting a small business by using the search expression **starting "small business** in Google. Follow one of the hyperlinks returned by Google. How many results did you get?

Click on the link with the domain name sba.gov. This is the site for the Small Business Administration from the U.S. government. Go to the toolbar and click on bookmarks and bookmark this page. Before moving on, take a look at the Web page to see if it says who is responsible for the SBA Web site. It helps us to determine the reliability of the information on a Web site when it includes the name of the author or publisher. In this case we see the site if published by the U.S. Small Business Administration.

Click on the hyperlink **Write a Business Plan**.

Now look for services offered by the SBA. Can you find it? Try typing cmd-F and typing in the word Services if you can't. It will highlight the word.

Go back to your list of results and click on another link. See if you can find additional information to what you found on the sba.gov site.


 * Some terminology:**


 * client/server**

When you start a Web browser or follow a hyperlink, the browser sends a request to a site on the Internet. That site returns a file that the browser then has to display. This sort of interaction in which one system requests information and another provides it is called a **client/server** relationship. The browser is the client, and a computer at the site that provides the information is the server.


 * HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol**

The documents or files are passed from a server to a client according to specific rules for exchanging information. These rules are called **protocols**. The protocol used on the Web is named HTTP because the documents, pages, or other items passed from one computer to another are in hypertext or hypermedia form.


 * HTML (Hypertext Markup Language)**

Many of the rules for creating or writing a Web page are specified as HTML. This language provides formal rules for marking text. The rules govern how text is displayed as part of a Web page. In order for text or an icon to represent a hyperlink, it has to be marked as a link in HTML, and the URL has to be included. Web pages are often storied in files with names that end in .html or .htm.


 * URL (Uniform Resource Locator)**

The hyperlinks are represented in a specific format called a URL. Each Web page has a URL as its address. For example the URL for the Library of Congress is http://www.loc.gov.

The URLs that point to Web pages typically start with http: because they are all transmitted according to HTTP. You may see something differentt for URLs that access information through other Internet protocols, e.g. FTP:.

You'll find it helpful to think of a URL as having the form:

how-to-get-there:where-to-go/what-to-get

When you cite a resource on the WWW, you include the URL for it.


 * Error Messages**

As amazing as some computer systems are, they generally need very precise instructions, so you have to be careful about spacing (generally there aren't blank spaces in a URL), the symbols used (a slash and a period are not interchangeable), and the case of the letters (lower or upper case).

When you type in a URL incorrectly, you get an error message, called a **404 Error**, which tells you that part of the URL was incorrect. Also, if you click on a hyperlink and get a 404 message, you may have come upon what is sometimes called a **dead link**.

Here's another error message:


 * 403 Forbidden** which means that the URL was correct but the file isn't available to you.

Taking advantage of the resources on the WWW aren't difficult but it does require a lot of knowledge.


 * Homework:**

1. Go to Google.

a. Let's look for information about NASCAR. Type **NASCAR** into the search box. What happens if you click the button that says "I'm feeling lucky?" What is the URL of the site you arrive at? b. Click on the back button to return to Google. **NASCAR** should still be showing in the search box. Click on the **Google Search** button. How many Web pages are found for that topic? c. Google used to say how many sites it knew about on its home page. Check to see if that information is there now. If it isn't there, how can you find the answer to the question, "How many sites does Google know about?" //Hint:// Look for the article whose title is "We knew the Web was big" on the official Google blog.

2. Try using the meta-search engine Clusty. We'll put a different twist on our NASCAR search this time. Try putting in the words **NASCAR ballet** into Clusty's search box. Click the **Search** button. We'll try to find out what company created this dance.

a. How many results does Clusty return? Click on the first result. Does it tell you what company created this ballet? What is the name of the company? If that result doesn't give you the information, click your Back button to go back to your results list. Sometimes you need to click on more than one search result to find what you want to know. Click on some of the links until you find the answer. b. Notice that Clusty clusters its results into **Categories**. What are the first five categories you find on the left hand side of your browser window? Click on the first category. Does this help you narrow down your search? How?


 * Summary Activity:**

3-2-1

Name 3 new things you learned from the lesson.

Name 2 areas in which you are still confused.

Name 1 way you might apply what you've learned to another area.


 * Source:**

Hartman, K. and Ackerman, E. (2010). //Searching and researching on the Internet and the World Wide Web//. Sherwood, OR: Franklin, Beedle & Associates.


 * Additional Resources:**


 * net.TUTOR**

@http://liblearn.osu.edu/tutor/


 * The Help Web: A Guide to Getting Started on the Internet**

@http://www.imagescape.com/helpweb/


 * Learn the Net**

@http://www.learnthenet.com/index.php