Evaluation Set #5 Individual Assignment

8/14/2019 Evaluation Set #5 Individual Assignment

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1 Wasserman Eval V 4/20/09 ILS504/Spr09 Okobi

Terry Wasserman

Evaluation V

ILS 504/Spr 09

Prof. Okobi

20 April 09


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Directories

American Book Trade Directory

American Book Trade Directory 2008-2009. 54th ed. New Providence, N.J.: R.R. Bowker,

1999.

Scope

This directory includes 21,214 retailers and wholesalersover 600 of which are new to

this edition. It also includes almost 10,000 e-mail addresses, about 15,000 fax numbers

and 12,500 websites.

Audience

This directory was intended for booksellers, publishers and others in the book trade.

Format

This book is available in a single print volume.

Authority

This is the 54th edition published since 1915it was published by Information Today,

Inc., the publisher ofInformation Today, American Library Directory and Literary

Market Place, amongst others.

Selection

This directory is meant to be complete and thus include all relevant retailers and

wholesalers in the U.S. and Canada.

Comprehensiveness

Entries are listed alphabeticallythere are six sections. The first is Retailers and

Antiquarians, the second is Wholesalers, the third is Book Trade Information, the fourth


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is Dealers of Foreign Language Books, the fifth is an Index to the Types of Stores and the

sixth is a general index. The information provided in each entry is chosen in order to

allow the reader the best access to the right person/office for queries. Entries are concise

without being abbreviated.

Currency

The most recent publication, the 55th edition, was put out this yearthis directory is

updated annually.

Cost

$309

American Library Directory

American Library Directory. 61st ed. 2 vols. New Providence, N.J.: R.R. Bowker, 2008.

Scope

The directory is a listing of academic, government, public and special libraries in the U.S.

and Canada.

Audience

This directory can be used by the general public, students, librarians and information

professionals.

Format

This directory is available in print in 2 volumes.

Authority

This is the 61st edition publishedit was published by Information Today, Inc., the

publisher ofInformation Today, American Book Trade Directory and Literary Market


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Place, amongst others.

Selection

This is meant as a comprehensive directory, thus it attempts to include every library in the

U.S. and Canada.

Comprehensiveness (which will include length of entry)

Entries are arranged geographically and then alphabetized by state/province and then by

city and then by library name. Entries provide the name of the library, its address, names

of key personnel and the information on the librarys holdings. Entries may also include

information on income, e-mail, subject interests, special collections, automation and

publications. There are also organizational and personnel indicies.

Currency

Updated biennially until 1978, it has been updated annually since then.

References

Most information was provided by the libraries themselves, there is no mention of

additional references.

Cost

The current edition costs $309.

Associations on the Net (AON)

Associations on the Net (AON). Retrieved on 17 April 2009 from:

http://wwwsun.ipl.org.ar/ref/AON/ orhttp://www.ipl.org/div/aon/

Scope
http://wwwsun.ipl.org.ar/ref/AON/http://www.ipl.org/div/aon/http://www.ipl.org/div/aon/http://wwwsun.ipl.org.ar/ref/AON/http://www.ipl.org/div/aon/


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This site is a collection of over 2000 Internet sites providing information about

associations. Within these associations there is a wide variety of associations and

organizations including academic societies, advocacy groups, art and cultural, labour

unions, political parties, and professional and trade associations.

Audience

This is a resource of the Internet Public Library (IPL) and as such is intended for public

library users who use the internet. IPL includes a kispace and teenspace, but this

particular information is meant for an adult audience.

Format

The online format has ten different main subject categories and then each is further

broken down into additional sub-categories. The ten main categories are business &

economics; computers & internet; education; entertainment & leisure; health & medical;

arts & humanities; law, government & political science; regional & country information;

science & technology; and social sciences.

Authority

The IPL began as an exercise in a graduate seminar at the University of Michigan in

1995. For ten years U. Mich. ran the site for the benefit of the public and the site

broadened to what it is today and incorporated new technology as it came into existence.

In 2006, Drexel University began hosting the site, though U. Mich. stayed on as an active

partner and the University of Florida became a collaborator as well.

Selection

The AON attempts to include all recognized associations and organizations within their

ten categories. Associations either write in with their own information or users identify a


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source and the IPL staff checks the information.

Comprehensiveness

Each category is summarized in a sentence beneath the heading. Each entry includes the

name and site of the association as well as a blurb describing it. The subject category and

e-mail address are also included.

Currency

Most of the association information was put online before 2002, but newer associations

have been included since then (and are only on the 2nd website noted above).

References

The sources of information that IPL uses are the homepages of the associations and

organizations themselves.

Cost

IPL is a free service.

D&B Million Dollar Directory

D&B Million Dollar Directory. 5 vols. Bethlehem, P.A.: Dun & Bradstreet, 2000.

Scope

This source covers over 150,000 companies, 50,000 of which are top rated companies.

Audience

This source is intended for business professionals, job seekers, journalists, librarians and

students.

Format

This source is available in 5 print volumes or online aswww.companiesonline.com
http://www.companiesonline.com/http://www.companiesonline.com/http://www.companiesonline.com/


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Authority

Dun & Bradstreet, the publisher, is one of the best known and regarded names in

financial and business publications.

Selection

The intent of this directory is to be as comprehensive as possible.

Comprehensiveness

The entries are arranged by industry and companyeach entry has a profile of the

company, its leaders, its future prospects, employees, legal status and annual U.S. sales.

Currency

The online source is updated constantlyliterally, all day long.

Cost

It can be purchased for $200 on Amazon.com.

Directory of Special Libraries and Information Centers

Directory of Special Libraries and Information Centers. Retrieved from Gales Ready

Reference via NYPL.org on 19 April 2009.

Directory of Special Libraries and Information Centers. 24th ed. 3 vols. Detroit: Gale,

1999.

Scope

TheDirectory of Special Libraries and Information Centers (DSLIC) includes

information on more than 34,000 special libraries and information centers internationally.

Special libraries, unlike public or academic ones, are restricted in their content by subject

matter and would include such libraries as museum or historical society libraries, law


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libraries, medical libraries, corporate libraries and special collections (if maintained

separately) of public or academic libraries. The directory covers topics from anatomy to

zoology and everything in between.

Audience

The audience forDSLICwould be students, researchers or even the general public

anyone who is looking for subject-specific resources (particularly someone looking for

primary source materials).

Format

TheDSLICis available both in print as well as online. The online format is available

through Gale Ready Reference which is a subscriber service. The libraries and

information centers can be accessed by doing a nominal, geographic or topical keyword

search.

Authority

Thomson Gale is a highly respected reference publisher and the authority for this source.

Selection

This is intended as a comprehensive source and as such attempts to include all special

libraries/collections and information centers.

Comprehensiveness

Entries are arranged alphabetically with an index at the end. Each entry includes

information on contacting, personnel, subjects, special collections, holdings,

subscriptions, services, automated operations, OPAC availability, electronic resources,

networks/consortia, publications, special catalogs, special indexes and subject categories

(approximately 1000 words).


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Currency

The most current print edition is the 35 th ed. from 2008 and the online source is

copyrighted to 2004. It is updated periodically.

References

The information is cross-referenced, but acquired from the original source and so there

are no additional references.

Cost

Both editions of the print version sell for over $2000.

Encyclopedia of Associations

Encyclopedia of Associations: National Organizations of the U.S. 35th ed. 3 vols.

Detroit: Gale, 2000.

Scope

This is a directory of non-profit associations and organizations. Over 20,000 associations

are listed from many such different categories as labor unions, federations, veterans

associations and farming associations, to name a few.

Audience

This is geared towards students, attorneys, government officials and other who need to

understand many different types of associations.

Format

This source is available in print and online via GaleNet Reference Shelf. A Geographic

and Executive Index can also be purchased.

Authority


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The publisher is Gale, one of the best recognized reference publishers in the industry.

Entry information is usually provided by the associations themselves.

Selection

The editors were attempting to include all associations and organizations in the U.S. (as

well as some internationally).


Entries are arranged under 18 different subject headings and then arranged alphabetically

within them. The headings are 1. trade/commerce/business; 2. environment/agriculture;

3. legal/government/military; 4. engingeering/science; 5. educational; 6. cultural; 7.

social/welfare; 8. medical/health; 9. public affairs; 10. fraternal/ethnic; 11. religious; 12.

veterans/patriotic; 13. hobby; 14. sport; 15. labor unions/federations; 16. chambers of

commerce/tourism/ 17. Greek letter societies; and 18. fan clubs. Within the entries is

included contact information, founding date, head of the organization, staff, budget,

languages, description, libraries, geographic awards, services, staff, scope, conventions

and meetings, regional affiliates, publications, services, and awards. There is also a key

of abbreviations and two indicies.

Currency

The source is updated annually.

Cost

To purchase this source it is $660.

The Foundation Directory


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The Foundation Directory.

Scope

This directory covers the 10,000 largest grantmaking foundations in its nearly 3000

pages.

Audience

The directory is meant for grantseekers, grantmakers, students and the general public.

Format

It is available in a single print volume. There are also a number of subscription services

that interested parties can pay for.

Authority

The authority of the site is based on that of the Foundation Center, a non-profit founded

in 1956. The Foundation is a well-regarded authority on philanthropies, non-profits and

other grant makers. Their mission is to broaden public knowledge about U.S.

philanthropies

Selection

The editors have attempted to find those foundations that were amongst the top 10,000 in

terms of awards made in the most recent fiscal year.

Comprehensiveness

Foundations are arranged alphabetically, letter by letter. In addition there are indicies,

appendicies, fiscal charts, a glossary, an explanation of abbreviations and of the directory

itself. Each entry is fairly length including 34 different elements: name, contact info,

establishment data, donor/s, foundation type, assets, expenditures, grants paid, programs

administered by the foundation, loans, purpose and activities, fields of interest, type of


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support, limitations, publications, officers/principal trustees, staff and select grants,

amongst other items.

Currency

This reference is published annually.

References

Additional references are included throughout the book.

Cost

$195 annually for both subscription and print edition.

Foundation Center

Foundation Center. Retrieved on 18 April 2009 from www.fdncenter.org

Scope

This online source provides a virtual ocean of information on foundations that provide

grants. The site provides information on grant-seeking, grant-writing, classes and

tutorials for grant-seekers as well as non-profit managers/fundraisers and a large,

librarian-approved reference guide to over 20 different topics.

Audience

The audience for this website includes individuals seeking grants, grant fundraisers, grant

makers, the media and the general public.

Format

This online format is user-friendly and efficient. There are five main drop-down menus

(Get Started, Find Funders, Gain Knowledge, View Events and Shop) as well as ten

buttons across the top of the screen. There is a Welcome box and a Whats
http://www.fdncenter.org/http://www.fdncenter.org/


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New/Headlines/Events box on the homepage too.

Authority

The website is run by the Foundation Center, a non-profit founded in 1956. The

Foundation is a well-respected authority on philanthropy, non-profits and grant makers.

Their mission is to broaden public knowledge about U.S. philanthropies.

Selection

They seek to publish all useful information about U.S. grants and philanthropies.

Comprehensiveness

The website provides a bevy of information on foundations, philanthropies and grant

makers, including a foundation finder service. The finder provides the contact

information, the types of grants made, the IRS exemption status, the tax data and the EIN

of the foundation. The trend tracker provides charts on philanthropies financial activity

and the 990 finder provides the total assets, type of form, number of pages and EIN for

the philanthropy (all told, approximately 500 words on each foundation/philanthropy).

Currency

The website claims that the website is updated daily.

References

The website refers to theirFoundations Online subscription service, their daily news

servicePhilanthropy News Digestand their annualFoundations Today Series.

Cost

This website is free to the public.

Foundations On-line


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Foundations On-line. Retrieved 19 April 2009 from http://fconline.foundationcenter.org/

Scope

This is a subscription service that allows users to search the Foundation Center databases.

These databases include information on over 95,000 foundations, corporate donors and

grant-making public charities in the U.S. and 1.3 million of their recent grants.

Audience

The site is intended for grant-seekers, grant-makers, policy makers and the media.

Format

The online format requires a certain amount of work on the users partthere are many

boxes to be filled in and it takes a certain amount of time. However, nothing compared to

writing an actual grant application, so in that sense its a gentle foreboding of whats to

come. The homepage includes four main categories: Search Grantmakers, Search

Companies, Search Grants and Search 990s. There are tutorials and tours of the site, free

newsletters,Eye on FDO (blog), foundation-related stories and Update Central.

Authority

The authority of the site is based on that of the Foundation Center, a non-profit founded

in 1956. The Foundation is a well-regarded authority on philanthropies, non-profits and

other grant makers. Their mission is to broaden public knowledge about U.S.

philanthropies.

Selection

All respected U.S. grant-making organizations are includedhowever, in a search, the

searcher may limit the organizations to those that have given out grants recently. The

searcher will also limit the search by state, type of grant making organization, type of
http://fconline.foundationcenter.org/http://fconline.foundationcenter.org/


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grant, etc.

Comprehensiveness

The FDO provides all of the necessary information for a grant-seeker to assess a

philanthropy: a profile, basic information about the philanthropy, the donor, the

background of the philanthropy, their limitations, their purpose and activities, their

program areas, fields of interest, geographic focus, types of support, publications,

application information, officers and trustees, number of staff, memberships, financial

data, additional location information and selected grants (each entry, in its entirety

contains thousands of words).

Currency

The site is worked on daily and the information is updated regularly, as needed.

References

Foundation and philanthropy websites are referenced.

Cost

The cost of a subscription begins at $19.95 a month; however, the site can be accessed for

free at at all Foundation Centers and collaborating sites.

Hoovers

Hoovers. Retrieved on 17 April 2009 from www.hoovers.com

Scope

Hoovers offers business information and analysis on its website through a database of

over 25 million corporations and organizations. It offers free and paid-subscription only
http://www.hoovers.com/http://www.hoovers.com/


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information.

Audience

Hoovers main source of revenue comes from selling its paid-subscription services to

marketing, sales and business development professionals.

Format

Hoovers is online as well as published in a print form. The online form includes tabs for

Companies, People, Industries and Expert Advice as well as newsletters and two blogs

(bizmologies). Searchers can browse through companies alphabetically or geographically

as well as view industry overviews.

Authority

Hoovers has been a subsidiary of Dun & Bradstreet (D&B) since 2003. D&B is one of

the best recognized and regarded names in business information and research in the field.

Selection

All pertinent information on corporations and organizations business information is

included in the database.

Comprehensiveness

Each entry offers a brief overview of the subject and then, for the companies it states the

headquarters, the news about the company, the financials and the jobs (all the data

together is about 1500 words). In the case of industry overviews, there are 11 subject

headings (under which are over a hundred sub-categories): Construction and Real Estate;

Finance and Insurance; Food and Agriculture; Healthcare; Manufacturing; Public Service,

Education and Recreation; Retails; Services; Technology and Communications;

Transportation, Energy and Storage; and Wholesale.


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Currency (which will include frequency of publication)

References

Though most of the articles were written for Hoover, often the authors name and home

institution are listed (as proof of authority). Hoovers also includes information from

TheLadders.com, Going Public LLC, Comcast Business, Franchise Gator, Kolbe Corp.

and features sponsors (e.g., The Ladders) as well as partners (e.g., Franchise Gator).

Cost

The student rate subscription begins at $50/month, the executive at $75/month or $845

for the year.

The Literary Market Place

Literary Market Place, 2009. 2 vols. Medford, N.J.: Information Today, Inc., 2008.

Scope

This edition contains almost 12,000 entries160 of which are listed for the first time.

This directory of American and Canadian publishers, literary agents, manufacturers and

shippers includes over 3000 listings of publishers.

Audience

This directory is geared particularly towards authors, publishers, literary agents and

information professionals.

Format

This source is available in two print volumes or online as www.literarymarketplace.com.

Authority


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This is published by Information Today, Inc., the publisher ofInformation Today,

American Book Trade Directory and American Library Directory, amongst others.

Selection

This source is a comprehensive source and so attempts to include all publishers, agents,

suppliers, advertisers, etc. within the industry.

Comprehensiveness

Volume 1 covers publishing and agents, whereas volume 2 covers suppliers and service

providerstogether they cover everyone and everything involved in the publishing

industry. Within their headings, entries are arranged alphabetically and include such

information as name, contact info, key personnel, company reportage, branch offices,

brief statistics and descriptive annotations. There are numerous indexes in each volume

and an index to sections, to advertisers, to companies and to personnel.

Currency

This source is updated annually.

Cost

$309 to purchase.

PhoneDisc

Scope

This is a cd-rom that included 36 million residential phone numbers (and addresses) and

7 million business phone numbers.

Audience

Anyone looking for a phone number before online directories were prevalent.

Format


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This is in cd-rom format.

Authority

The phone numbers were collected from phonebooks and mailing lists.

Selection

This was meant to be a comprehensive list.

Comprehensiveness

Entries are fairly short, in alphabetical order and contain phone numbers and addresses

when available. Nearly 90% of residences are thought to be includedthe cd-rom is

searchable by location (city, street, etc.) as well as phone number.

Currency

It no longer appears to be published.

Cost

This cd-rom cost $129.

Standard & Poors Register of Corporations, Directors and Executives.

Standard & Poors Register of Corporations, Directors and Executives.3 vols.

Charlottesville, VA: Standard & Poors, 2000.

Scope

This source provides descriptions of over 75,000 corporations, the names and titles of

over 390,000 executives, and 77,000 biographical sketches of top-level managers in the

United States and Canada.

Audience


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This source was intended for business professionals, executives, managers and

information professionals. It contains over 600 new corporate listings and nearly 12,000

new individual listings.

Format

Standard & Poors Registeris available in two print volumes.

Authority

Standard & Poors Registeris one of the best known business resources around

Standard & Poor is the home of the S&P index and a subsidiary of McGraw Hill.

Selection

This source attempts to be as complete as possible and includes as many executives,

corporations and directors as possible. Information is obtained from outside sources

(internet, media, S&P databases) as well as from the corporations themselves.


Volume 1 contains an alphabetic listing of corporations whereas volume two contains

both an alphabetic listing of directors and executives as well as the indicies. Entries for

the corporations include contact information, officer descriptions, company service

providers, stock information, a description of company products and services, North

American Industrial Classification System code, annuals sales, number of employees,

division names and functions, subsidiaries, and affiliates

Currency

This source is updated annually.

References


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There are seven indicies including a cross-reference index and an obituary section.

Cost

The two volumes are available on Amazon.com for under $20.

The World of Learning

The World of Learning. 54th ed. London: Europa Pub., 2003.

Scope

The World of Learningincludes a fairly comprehensive list of institutions of higher

learning worldwide. Each location of higher learning is included in the text including

6,200 entries in universities and colleges; 6,600 research institutions; 3,000 museums and

art galleries; 5,300 learned societies; 2,500 libraries and archives and 26,000

publications.

Audience

This book is geared towards students, teachers, librarians, politicians and journalists.

Format

This book is available in a single, print volume as well as an electronic version.

Authority

It is published by Europa Publishing, a well-regarded international publisher of such

works asAfrica South of the Sahara 2006, Aslib Directory of Info Sources in UK, and

Central and South-Eastern Europe 2007.

Selection

It appears that the selection criteria was that the institutes of higher learning be in some

way associated to an international organization, thus lending these institutes proper


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legitimacy.

Comprehensiveness

The entries range from 100 words to thousands depending on the institution (some

universities can go on for pages while others occupy 8 lines). The first part of the book is

a list of International Associations; the 2nd part is a listing for every country in

alphabetical order and then entries for whatever Learned Societies, Research Institutes,

Libraries & Archives, Museums & Art Galleries, Universities and Colleges that country

might host.

Currency

The print version is updated annually, the electronic version is updated much more

frequently.

References

An index of institutions is included at the end.

Cost

This source is available for $691.

Switchboard

Switchboard.com

Scope

This is an online white pages and yellow pagesone of the first online in 1996, it

includes interactive yellowpage ads.

Audience


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This website is meant for a general audienceto push consumers towards the advertisers

of the products they are looking for.

Format

This is available online only.

Authority

The publisher, Idearc, is the official publisher of the Verizon Phone Book and the

producer of superpages.com.

Selection

This is meant as a comprehensive phone directory, but with more visible, special entries

for advertisers.

Comprehensiveness

This is a fairly comprehensive directory, though now that Idearc has filed for chapter 11,

no telling how much longer this online phone book will be useful. The find a person

section allows for traditional searches, reverse phone number searches and public record

searches. The search by phone directory also allows reverse phone number searches,

reverse address searches and searches for unlisted numbers. Area & zip code searches

allow zip code searches, reverse zip code searches and area code searches. There are also

tabs for maps/directions, web searches and business searches.

Currency

This website is updated regularly, though since the company filed for bankruptcy, no

telling how much longer that will be so.

References


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There is a section on town directories and business categories that can be reviewed.

Cost

This is a free service.

Biographies

Biography Index

Biography Index. Webb, W. (ed.). NY: H.W. Wilson, 1984.

Biography Index. Retrieved on 19 April from

http://www.hwwilson.com/databases/bioind.htm

Scope

The indicies are published quarterly with annual cumulations beginning in 1946 to the

present. The information from the 1984 and onwards cumulations can be found in the

database. Each year the Index covers the over 3000 publications indexed by Wilson, plus

other selected journals and 2000 biographies or collective biographies or books that

contain some biographical materials.

Audience

The Index is intended for a general and scholarly audience.

Format

In addition to the print format, there is an online formatBiography Index 1984-present

and a retrospective (which includes the new materials as well)Biography Index Past and

Present.

Authority
http://www.hwwilson.com/databases/bioind.htmhttp://www.hwwilson.com/databases/bioind.htm


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H.W. Wilson is one of the most well-regarded publishers in the industry; it is an authority

in and of itself.

Selection

The Index includes such biographical items as interviews, poetry, obituaries, collections

of letters, diaries, memoirs and bibliographies.

Comprehensiveness

The Index is intended to be comprehensive. Entries are listed alphabetically, letter by

letter, by last namethey are very short, approximately 50 words and the list of

abbreviations is essential in discerning an entrys meaning.

Currency

Originally published quarterly with annual cumulations, the online version is now revised

at least monthly with daily updates.

References

The print version includes a Checklist of Composite Books Analyzed for the reader to

refer to.

Cost

Print editions (retrospective available only) are $395 and an online subscription is also

$395.

Cambridge Biographical Encyclopedia

Cambridge Biographical Encyclopedia. 2nd ed. New York: Cambridge University Press,

1998.

Scope


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The Cambridge Biographical Encyclopedia (CBE) contains approximately 11,600

biographies ranging from a sentence or two to full length treatments. More attention is

paid to 20th c. personalities and special attention has been put to redressing the imbalance

found in many biographical dictionaries regarding their coverage of minorities.

Audience

The CBEis geared towards a general audience as well as students.

Format

The CBEis available in printthe information contained within CBEis available on

www.biography.com the website for the A&Es Biography television series.

Authority

Cambridge University Press is the oldest printer and publisher in the world and one of the

largest academic publishers. It is a name so well-known that nearly anyone, scholar,

student or layman alike, will have heard of it and trust it.

Selection

In addition to making a concerted effort to include more women, African-Americans,

Aborigines and Maori, the CBEmakes a point of including an international variety of

personalities, especially those from English speaking countries.


Organized alphabetically, the Cambridge Biographical Encyclopedia contains around

1600 full length entries. In addition there is a 150 page Ready Reference section of short

entries on over 10,000 people. Most entries are around 70 words, but there are a few

cases of whole page biographical essays. Each entry includes birth time/place
http://www.biography.com/http://www.biography.com/


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information, family, career and any other pertinent information about the person.

Currency

The 2nd edition has 500 additional people and has coverage through the year 1998.

References

The print version includes cross-referencesthe online version does as well and also

includes references to other books on the same person.

Cost

This can be purchased from Amazon.com for anywhere from $3-$41.

Contemporary Authors

Contemporary Authors. Retrieved on 19 April 2009 via the New York Public Librarys

Access to Galenet.

Scope

The electronic version has 135,298 contemporary authors. This source lists biographical

details on current writers as well as well-known 20th c. literary figures; on journalists,

non-fiction writers, novelists, playwrights, poets and screenwriters.

Audience

This source is geared towards students, book club members, journalists and legal

departments.

Format

This source is available in print editions as well as electronically. The print editions are

no longer being produced.

Authority


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Information is generally provided by the authors themselves or by their publishersso

the authority is fairly well-informed. The publisher, Gale, is widely recognized for their

research materials and is a highly-respectable authority.

Selection

Authors listed are generally those who have been published in commercial print or by

university pressesthe list also includes prominent journalists, cartoonists and

screenwriters as well as the literary greats of the early 20th century.

Comprehensiveness

Each entry contains a full length profile of the author ranging anywhere from 5500 words

to 12,000 or more. Most entries include the authors name, personal information

(birthdate/place, family data, etc), genre, autobiographical essays, pseudonym,

nationality, ethnicity, education, political preference, religion, avocational interests,

addresses, career summary, memberships, awards and honors, biographical and critical

sources.

Currency

Data updates are continuous online. The print version is updated periodically.

References

Each entry includes further reading on or about the personality profiled.

Cost

The print version can be purchased on Amazon.com for $255 and for the online

subscription, interested parties must contact Gale directly.

Biography @ UIUC


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Biography. Retrieved 20 April 2009 from

http://www.library.uiuc.edu/rex/erefs/biography.html

Scope

This source is an index of electronic biography resources. It includes 17 databases, 2 of

which are open and accessible to the general public and 15 of which are subscription

services.

Audience

The audience for this website would undoubtedly be college and university students and

staff.

Format

This is an online resource.

Authority

The reference staff at the University Library at the University of Illinois at Urbana-

Champaign (the main U. of Illinois campus) is the authority for the source.

Selection

The site includes electronic biographical information that is deemed to be useful in

college level research.

Comprehensiveness

Each entry gives a comprehensive explanation of the site, its uses and the types of entries

it provides. Entries on this site are approximately 350 words long.

Currency

The website is updated frequently: more than once a month.

References
http://www.library.uiuc.edu/rex/erefs/biography.htmlhttp://www.library.uiuc.edu/rex/erefs/biography.html


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Within the short explanations of the site there is no room for additional references.

However, many of the websites that are linked to include references in their entries.

Cost

This is a free service.

Current Biography

Current Biography Yearbook 2004. Thompson, C. (ed.). NY: H.W. Wilson, 2004.

Wilson Current Biography. Retrieved on 20 April 2009 from

http://www.ovid.com/site/catalog/DataBase/174.jsp

Scope

Each yearbook contains new and updated biographical profiles and thus supersedes the

previous edition. The electronic version contains more than 15,580 biographies and more

than 9260 obituaries covering 15,000 individuals from 1940 to today.

Audience

The Current Biography series is geared towards students, researchers and reference

librarians.

Format

Current Biography is a monthly publication with annual yearbooks. It is available in a

print edition. All biographies from 1940 onwards are available electronically.

Authority

This source is published by Wilson, one of the best-regarded publishers in the industry.

In addition, the writers and editors are all listed.

Selection
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Individuals are chosen for selection based on their prominenceWilson attempts to

include all living leaders in all fields of accomplishment. Obituaries are provided for

these prominent people as well.

Comprehensiveness

In the print edition there are different sections for biographical sketches, obituaries and

then classifications by profession and an index. All are ordered alphabetically. Each

entry provides such biographical information as profession, gender, birthplace, date of

birth, education, race/ethnicity and much more. Entries tend to be fairly long, 2500

words.

Currency

Eleven publications come out a year and then an annual cumulation. 200-450 additional

profiles are added annually. The electronic version is updated regularly.

References

Each entry includes a bibliography. Also, the preface refers to the many magazines,

newspapers, etc. that were used as reference in order to create the biographies and

obituaries.

Cost

An annual subscription is $175 and a single copy can be purchased for $50.

Dictionary of American Biography

Dictionary of American Biography. Vol. 22, supp. 2. New York: Scribners, 1958.

Scope


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This supplement to theDictionary of American Biography (DAB) covers biographies of

well known American who died between 1936-1940. TheDAB itself covers biographies

from the beginning of our national entity until the early part of the 1930s. The first

supplement picks up there and covers biographies of well-known Americans until 1935.

Audience

TheDAB is intended for a general as well as scholarly audience.

Format

TheDAB is in a print version; 20 volumes of the original with 10 supplements extending

up to the year 1980.

Authority

DAB is published by Scribners, one of the oldest and most venerable publishing houses

in the U.S. (it was purchased by Gale a decade ago). Entries are signed by the authors.

Selection

Biographies of the best known Americans (as understood by Scribners) are included in

each the original 20 volumes, alphabetically. Each supplement includes biographies of

well-known individuals who have died within the four year period the supplement covers.

Comprehensiveness

Signed entries contain approximately 600-6000 words; there are also mini-biographies

that have fewer words. Entries are fair and objective and the preface claims that every

effort was made to secure new information and not to simply rehash old standards.

However, there are fewer minorities represented here than there should be.

Currency


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The most recent edition, supplement 10 includes biographies of well-known Americans

who died before 1980. Each supplement also includes corrections to the most recent

edition.

References

Each entry includes a list of references at the end that will help the scholar or student find

out more information about the individual.

Cost

Copies of theDAB can be gotten on Amazon.com for $75-$350.

Documents

Evaluation Set #5 Individual Assignment