Research & Organization Tools
Get your research in order by using these online search and organizational tools. Create an account and de-clutter your online presence.
Use these tools for your own personal development, or teach them to your classes to inspire your 21st Century Learners.
Search Tools
Think beyond Google! There are a myriad of ways to search for information, with literally hundreds of alternate search tools, and new web tools that allow you to rethink the entire search process. Always remember, the NCS Library subscribes to multiple online databases specifically for research projects.
Other Search Engines
- Dogpile -- This search engine combines the results of four different search engines in one search bar.
- Technorati -- Search only blogs for quick access to recent events.
- Twitter Search -- Search Twitter to get a pulse on what's going on in the virtual world. Search trending topics to follow news events as they are happening.
- Google News Archive Search -- Can be used to search historical archives of newspapers. Excellent for primary source documents.
- Qwiki -- This unique Wiki encyclopedia creates virtual multimedia presentations to give an overview of topics. Ideal for visual or auditory learners.
Customize Your Search
- Google Custom Search Engine -- Allows you to create a customized search experience by including one or more websites, hosting a search box and results on your own website and customizing the results of your search match.
- Mashpedia -- Search this online "real-time encyclopedia" which incorporates searches from multiple locations on one page.
- Popurl -- This searchable news aggregator collects articles and resources in one attractive, customizable space.
Search Blogs
- edublogs -- This community contains blogs written by educators. Create your own edublog for use in the classroom, or just search for interesting blogs to follow.
- List of the Top 100 Best Education Blogs -- This is a great list of the top education blogs to help your search for what blogs to follow. It is put out by the Online Education Database.
Note-taking & Organization Tools
Finding sources is only the first step in the research process. These tools are essential for processing and making sense of your research.
Citation & Note-Taking Tools
- NoodleTools - The NCS Library has purchased a school-subscription to this online note-taking and citation service. Watch our Tips in a Minute Videos to learn how to create an account, take notes, and add citations.
- Evernote - Mr. Chase's favorite note-taking tool. This online resource lets you create an account and add notes through a variety of options: forward emails, capture websites, take pictures, and record audio. Because Evernote is cloud-based, you can access your notes from anywhere online.
- Diigo - Another cloud-based note-taking tool, Diigo allows you to create an account and then bookmark websites, highlighting portions of the site and adding notes directly on the page. Diigo has a social component as well, so you can share your notes and bookmarks with a social network of colleagues or students.
- OneNote - This Microsoft Product comes built in with the Office suite, and is a favorite among many in the NCS Tech department. This solution is not cloud-based, but allows for easy note-taking, particularly with Tablet PCs.
- iCyte - This service lets you save and annotate websites through an online account. You can share these notes and resources with others. The service is subscription based, but free with an education email.
- Stickr - This service lets you create and share sticky notes through your browser. Create a sticky note on any page to keep track of important information, then share it with others through Facebook or Twitter.
Personal Landing Pages
Create a new homepage with links to all the websites important to you.
- Symbaloo - Use Symbaloo to create a web presence filled with bookmarks of your own choosing. You can organize the bookmarks in the intuitive interface in any way you choose.
- Google ipage - Create a personal portal page with links to information as you need. You can also embed information from RSS feeds.
RSS Readers
Create an inbox for the Internet! Instead of sufing the web, learn to make important information come to you. Watch this video to learn about RSS
- Google Reader - This Google product allows you to sign in and subscribe to all kinds of feeds of information. Keep track of new blog posts, comment threads, and more.
- Good Noows - This reader has a sleek interface, allowing you to access your feed subscriptions in a unique way.
|
 |
