100 Ready‐to‐Use Pathfinders for the Web: A Guidebook and CD‐ROM

Citation

Rokolj, T. (2005), "100 Ready‐to‐Use Pathfinders for the Web: A Guidebook and CD‐ROM", Library Management, Vol. 26 No. 8/9, pp. 545-546. https://doi.org/10.1108/01435120510631954

Wilson has compiled 100 pathfinders that are suitable for different research requests, clients and library settings. These research guides encompass broad, specific and topical subjects such as education, geology, world history, adoption, buying a car, etiquette, elections for kids, space shuttle, the Summer Olympics etc.

Systematically, the book is divided in two parts. The first part of the book discusses main components of a pathfinder along with its history and uses as well as the guidelines on creating, writing and presenting pathfinders. Wilson offers ideas on how pathfinders may not only benefit researchers, students, faculty, seasoned reference staff and new librarians, but also energize library services and collections. Her tips on pathfinder creation, usability and presentation are combined with the screenshots of exemplary pathfinders collected from a number of public, school and research libraries in the USA.

The second part of the book presents 100 pathfinders, arranged by alphabetical order. Each pathfinder features a brief introduction that explains the topic and available sources of information. Research resources are annotated and divided into categories such as books, magazines, web sites etc. Where applicable, subject headings are included to assist clients in further OPAC searches.

Wilson concludes the book with suggested compilations of the featured pathfinders according to different settings and information requests – school libraries, academic libraries, public libraries and general interest. The accompanying CD‐ROM contains copies of the 100 pathfinders in Microsoft Word and XHMTL formats along with cascading style sheets. The pathfinders can be customized, modified or used to create new online research guides.

While this book might be an excellent guide for libraries that are beginning to build or amplify their web pathfinder collection, several suggestions for improvement can be made about its content, and presentation. The promotion of pathfinders, one of the integral steps in the management of online research guides, is discussed fleetingly in two paragraphs. This section should have included more ideas or even examples from libraries with successful promotion initiatives. A list of suggestions for additional reading could have been added at the end of the first part of the book to allow readers to explore further the ideas discussed in each section. Finally, given its subject matter and intent, this guide would benefit greatly from a companion web site with online forums, list of bookmarks or updates, which would complement its dynamic nature.

Wilson's book is a recommended addition to the working or reference collections in public, school, and possibly smaller academic libraries. While the tips and the ideas presented in the first part of the book have the universal applicability, the actual pathfinders include predominantly US information sources, and might be of limited relevance to users in other countries.