INFORMATION UPDATE July, 2004 Number 52 A Publication of Shamel Information Services http://shamelinfo.com Welcome to INFORMATION UPDATE, the free monthly newsletter for people who need to know. ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ IN THIS ISSUE ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ => Do It Yourself - Ask Jeeves => Did You Know? - There's Often a Search Before The Search => Notes, News and Announcements => Subscribe/Unsubscribe Information ************************************************************ DO IT YOURSELF - Ask Jeeves ************************************************************ P.G. Wodehouse created the fictional character Jeeves to serve as valet, gentleman's gentleman, and brilliant problem solver for Bertie Wooster. Master Wooster regularly calls upon Jeeves to apply his brain to various situations that befall Bertie and his friends. In "Jeeves and the Unbidden Guest" Bertie is so pleased with the outcome of his latest scrape he gives Jeeves a substantial bonus and declares, "Do you know, Jeeves, you're--well, you absolutely stand alone!" "I endeavor to give satisfaction, sir," said Jeeves. Search engine AskJeeves continues to endeavor to give satisfaction. AskJeeves has been known for its natural language interface, wherein the user can pose a question in a simple sentence. The latest feature is the ability for broadband users to get a sneak peak at web sites without actually clicking to it. For more and more hits in an AskJeeves results list you can mouse-over the binoculars icon to get a preview of the retrieved web site. This replaces the need to repeatedly leave the AskJeeves web site to see what you have found. The idea of this feature is to save you time and energy. It's pretty nifty, but it is only available to Internet users with broadband connections such as cable or DSL. Other Ask.com features available to all users include Movie Search, White Pages Search, Dictionary Search, and Famous People Search. For more information and to use these options, go to: http://static.wc.ask.com/docs/announcements/searchsmarter.html Jolly good! ************************************************************ DID YOU KNOW? - There's Often a Search Before The Search ************************************************************ Sometimes we need to search for a source before we search for the answer. Many research projects begin not with a search for the answer to the questions at hand, but rather with a search for the sources that are likely to have the answers. It is a search before the search. Professional researches often begin with a directory or guide to information in order to identify likely sources or experts. There are very broad directories which list the newsletters, associations, trade shows, databases, and Internet sources common to a give industry or subject. "The Directory of Business Information Sources" from Grey House Publishing and Gale's "Encyclopedia of Business Information Sources" are examples of these. There are also subject speciality guides such as Bonnie Snow's "Drug Information: A Guide to Current Resources". Professional searchers turn to colleagues and experts in the field for ideas and tips, offered in books such as "Super Searchers on Wall Street: Top Investment Professionals Share Their Online Research Secrets" by Amelia Kassel. There are also online databases containing information point- ing toward answers we seek. Examples include the online databases of the Encyclopedia of Associations and the Foundation Directory. These sources lead to web sites and experts which we may not have thought of or would be other- wise difficult to identify. Count on an information professional to have access to these resources and to know how to apply them to your information needs. ************************************************************* Notes, News, and Announcements ************************************************************* The Society of Competitive Intelligence Professionals brings its CI 101 and CI 202 classes to San Diego on July 29 and 30. For more information go to Now Available - "Introduction to Online Market and Industry Research," edited by Cynthia L. Shamel. South-Western, 2004. This 450 page volume offers detailed information on how to conduct cost effective online market and industry research. It has been adopted as a required text for graduate level online searching classes and recommended by professional business researchers. For more information go to ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 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 Telephone: 858-673-4673 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ SUBSCRIBE/UNSUBSCRIBE ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ Subscriptions to INFORMATION UPDATE are free. You may subscribe or unsubscribe by sending a message to: e-mail InfoUpdate at shamelinfo.com with SUBSCRIBE or UNSUBSCRIBE in the subject line. Copyright 2004 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 ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^