The Internet compendium : subject guides to humanities resources /

Subdivided into the three conventional domains of natural and applied sciences, social sciences, and humanities, the three volumes in this set may be used independently, since each contains an identical introduction to Internet basics. Each of the 43 "subject-oriented" guides identifies different types of Internet resources, e.g., Web pages, gopher sites, listservers, and newsgroups. The volume for the social sciences, business, and law contains 18 specific subject guides, ranging from six to 40 pages in length. Several very specific topics are included, but there are no general subject guides for history, sociology, psychology, or geography; instead, one long guide attempts to identify resources for all social sciences. The volume for the humanities contains 16 guides, including several for religious studies, two for theater, and one each for architecture, journalism, music, and philosophy. The volume for health and science has nine guides, including such specialized topics as neurosciences, aquatic biology, and aerospace engineering, but there is no mention of physics, mathematics, or computer science. Coverage in all three volumes is spotty. Each is written by a different contributor and is dated to indicate when last modified. There is little structural consistency among the chapters; instead, the authors' comments are tailored to the distinctive features of their respective topics. A good subject index rounds out each volume. The paperback format lacks durability, but the binding is adequate, since Internet guidebooks remain useful only for a short time. Librarians should also consider the new paperbound Gale Guide to Internet Databases (CH, Nov'95), which is more comprehensive and better indexed. The Compendium is recommended for larger libraries. M. M. Bohn University of Nebraska at Omaha

Edited by a team from the University of Michigan Internet Clearinghouse, these two volumes in The Internet Compendium series (a third title is Subject Guides to Social Sciences, Business & Law Resources) provide much-needed print directories to Internet resources in health and science and the humanities. Far from comprehensive, both titles represent a selection of the Clearinghouse's 200 online guides available by gophering to gopher.lib.umich.edu under "What's New," then "Clearinghouse for Subject-Oriented Internet Guides." The nine subject guides in Subject Guides to Health and Science Resources cover topics such as aerospace, biology, chemistry, earth science, environmental science, health science, and neuroscience. Subject Guides to the Humanities features 16 subject guides including architecture, book discussions and reviews, Buddhism, Christianity, film and video, library employment, philosophy, and music and theater. Many humanities topics are not presented, but the book's instructions make it possible to obtain more online. In both volumes, the subject guides, each written by a different "power user" or subject specialist, many of whom are librarians or professors, list dozens or even hundreds of listservs, usenet newsgroups, electronic journals, text archives, freenets, chatlines, and Web addresses; the series as a whole provides access to roughly 10,000 Internet addresses. Each listing gives clear, concise instructions and descriptions of content, URLs, voice, and modem phone numbers, and prices (when applicable). Several well-written chapters (repeated in each volume) introduce readers to such Internet basics as telnet, ftp (file-transfer protocol), WAIS (Wide Area Information Server), ARCHIE, and VERONICA. While indexing the ever-changing environment of the Internet may seem an impossible job, this series makes an excellent start and will be valuable on the reference shelf for both librarians and patrons.-Laura Lipton, Miller Horticulture Lib., Seattle (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.