INFORMATION UPDATE "Offering Information Solutions" May, 2003 Number 44 A Monthly Publication of Shamel Information Services mailto:InfoUpdate@shamelinfo.com Welcome to INFORMATION UPDATE, the free monthly newsletter for people who need to know. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ IN THIS ISSUE ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ => Do It Yourself - Librarian's Index to the Internet => Did You Know? - Market Research Requires Access to Multiple Sources => Notes, News and Announcements => Subscribe/Unsubscribe Information ************************************************************ DO IT YOURSELF - Librarian's Index to the Internet ************************************************************ Did you ever wish for something like a card catalog of Internet Web sites? The catalog would permit browsing for the topics and information of interest, permitting you to search for sites that might have what you need when you're not exactly sure what it is that you need. Did you ever wish for a list of Web sites that have been previewed, evaluated, and deemed reliable by an objective party capable of separating the wheat from the chaff? Well, Librarian's Index to the Internet http://www.lii.org is the site for you. Funded by the Library of California, the site's self stated mission is: "to provide a well-organized point of access for reliable, trustworthy, librarian-selected Internet resources, serving California, the nation, and the world." The directory includes over 11,000 Internet resources identified by the site's contributors and staff. Users can recommend sites for inclusion, but before a site is added it is reviewed as many as three times for availability, credibility, authorship, external links, and legality. Sites are rechecked often to be sure they are working and the above five factors have not changed. Sites that don't measure up are removed. Librarian's Index to the Internet lives up to its motto: "Information You Can Trust." I recommend that you bookmark it and use it often. ************************************************************ DID YOU KNOW? - Market Research Requires Access to Multiple Sources ************************************************************ Imagine trying to run a profitable business without reliable market research. It would be like trying to drive a car blindfolded. You sit in the driver's seat with your hands on the wheel, but you can't see the potholes, the curves, or any part of the road ahead. You can't see what kind of traffic is coming toward you, and you can't tell what the other drivers are doing. To arrive safely at your destination would require either incredible luck or nothing short of a miracle. Market research offers business managers a picture of the environment in which they operate. It is the eyes and ears, the map and the traffic report of the entrepreneur. Market research gives decision makers an awareness of the road and the traffic; it tells them what cross streets to anticipate, which turn to take at the intersection, whether the traffic ‘copter is circling overhead and what to do about it, and what kind of weather to expect for the journey. Good market research can thus facilitate informed decision making. The market researcher's toolbox normally contains The Big Three database aggregators - Dialog, Lexis-Nexis, and Factiva for news, industry and market data; five or six government Web sites; and seven or eight subscription services providing access specifically to company and market research reports. Professional research providers such as Shamel Information Services use all of these tools and bring the power of information to the business decision maker. For more information, call Shamel Information Services at 858-673-4763. ************************************************************* Notes, News, and Announcements ************************************************************* Special Libraries Association Annual Conference, New York City, June 8-11, 2004 http://www.sla.org Now Available: Bates, Mary Ellen. "Building & Running a Successful Research Business." Medford, NJ: CyberAge Books, 2003. Congratulations to Daniel Brawer upon the occasion of his Bar Mitzvah. Mazel Tov! ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ The Shamel Information Services web site at http://shamelinfo.com contains Information Update archives. Just click on "Newsletters" and check for any issues you might have missed. Cynthia L. Shamel, editor Shamel Information Services AIIP President, 2003-2004 http://www.aiip.org mailto:cshamel@shamelinfo.com Telephone: 858-673-4673 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Subscriptions to INFORMATION UPDATE are free. You may subscribe or unsubscribe by sending a message to: mailto:InfoUpdate@shamelinfo.com with SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line. Copyright 2003 Shamel Information Services Please feel free to forward this issue to colleagues, in its entirety. Other uses without permission may violate copyright. Online archives at http://shamelinfo.com/newsletter.htm ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^