This is the first in a series of articles on networking opportunities for NIU off-campus students.

For those of you still unfamiliar with Facebook (http://www.facebook.com), this social networking website is set up for you to get to know people in your classes and at your school. Using your NIU e-mail address, you can become part of the NIU Facebook network.   Facebook is structured as a series of networks. These networks can be people in your highschool, university, company, or region. You can join multiple networks at the same time. Your basic profile on Facebook includes name, contact information, and interests. For all of this content, you can choose what is visible publicly, meaning by your network(s) or by friends only. There are a number of reasons why it is important to manage what is visible on your profile carefully. Read the rest of this entry »

We talked with expert librarians from Northern Illinois University, Elgin Community College, Rock Valley College, and Waubonsee Community College to get their recommendation for reputable online research sources.  The following resources are free, and are considered trustworthy and reputable by many of the nation’s best librarians.

The Internet Public Library (www.ipl.org) is a subject-oriented guide providing easy access to an array of library services and internet resources.  This site provides specific categories that link to over 45,000 reference sources.  Each source has been reviewed and selected by professional, degree-holding librarians.  Users can email on-site librarians regarding research topics and receive a reply within three days.

The Librarians Internet Index (www.lii.org) is a publicly-funded website featuring quality links already screened, reviewed, and organized by a staff of reputable librarians.  In addition to the database, the librarians deliver a newsletter, “New this Week,” highlighting the staff’s favorite links.  Review or subscribe to this free report at http://www.lii.org/pub/news/50.

The University of Wisconsin produces the Internet Scout Project (www.scout.wisc.edu), a site dedicated to facilitating the research process.  Check out “The Scout Report,” (www.scout.wisc.edu/mailman/listinfo/scout-report) published every Friday and available on the web or by email.  This service keeps you informed about valuable resources on the Internet. Expert UW librarians and graduate students select, research, and annotate each resource.  Access requires a log-in, but is free for all users.

Google has developed a new beta site called Google Scholar (http://scholar.google.com).  This resource searches multi-disciplinary channels so users can identify relevant sources from a variety of fields.  Links provide information and knowledge produced by scholarly research in specified fields. 

Google U.S. Government Search (http://www.google.com/ig/usgov) provides users with a single location for searching through government content and keeps you up-to-date on federal news. A key feature of this site is access to federal, state, and local government websites from a single search box.

The U.S. Government Printing Office has created GPO Access (www.gopaccess.gov), a search engine providing free access to a wealth of information produced by the federal government.  Materials on this site are published officially and can be used without restriction.

We would be remiss if we did not also direct students to the NIU Libraries (www.ulib.niu.edu).  NIU offers comprehensive services including online catalogs, research tools, and instruction in use of all library resources. The “Ask a Librarian” chat service responds within 48 hours to online questions.

NIU participates in several Interlibrary services such as Illinet Online, WorldCat, and Statewide Illinois Library Catalog. These lending services connect you to local, national, and international academic libraries.

NIU students gain off-campus access with a library ID (usually a social security number with no dashes).  If your ID is not recognized, contact the library’s circulation desk at 815-753-9844 for helpful assistance.

Happy research surfing! 

Amanda