Print v. Online

A summary of resource availability

Resource
Online Print Comments
Books Few available, so far. Main source - go the the library! See list of core textbooks under fundamentals
Conference Proceedings Usually not published electronically. Try INSPEC, ADS. Use UW Libraries catalog and search for by keyword. Get through inter-library loan Can be difficult to locate. Check: International Astronomy Meetings List.
Dissertations Use: UMI, ADS See: Finding Theses and Dissertations
E-prints/pre-prints arXiv.org, ADS Print versions rare Not refereed, evaluate carefully. See this.
Journal articles Ejournal list. ADS, INSPEC May be only source for older (pre-1970) materials Web of Science "cited reference" search may yield older material
Journals E-version not always same as print version Popular/general interest not full-text online. Trend is toward online only and full text access - but only if you can afford it. See this.
News & alerts More timely IAU Circulars
Reference materials Updated more often; good glossaries, acronyms, people, organizations, observatories, etc. See www resources. Paper resources still best for some things: mathematical functions & tables, ephemeredes, etc. Paper reference materials are generally easier to access and browse. Visit P-A library reference section.
Sky surveys Lots! Data, data, data. May need appropriate software. Atlases, charts, star/galaxy/object catalogs – paper often easier to use, browse.

 

 

 

 

Physics-Astronomy Library
University of Washington, Seattle, WA
phylib@u.washington.edu

updated: 07/17/01
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