In the world of today, information is readily available to anyone who has basic internet skills. Similarly, anyone can create a web page to provide information to the public. On some sites, articles are open to be modified by members of the public. Articles are written by the educated and the uneducated alike. This isn't always a negative, but there are several things to be aware of when searching for information online - the use of language, the author's credentials, and the sources. Certainly more items could be listed to caution searchers, but these three provide an excellent starting point.
There has been a wave of chat languages flooding the written world in the last few decades, but there is a time and place for the short cuts of L33T. The credibility of information is connected to the voice of the author, and the voice of the author has a lot to do with their grammar and use of the language. If a person has taken the time to write on a topic for use by the public, one would assume he or she is able to use the common tongue properly. If the person hasn't, and his or her article is full of common errors of grammar and spelling, it is likely that the information isn't better.
How much would you trust the words of a soldier on matters of genetics? Learning by ones self is an admirable thing, but it doesn't always provide the right tools for a person to write on par with the experts in the field. There are many people in this world that read one or two books on a topic, and then they present themselves as well read and learned individuals. Such isn't always the case. I wouldn't deny that some people may indeed have a clue, but the sad reality is that many people don't know very much. The main idea here is one of common sense. If a person has written an article on a subject they've not studied extensively and/or professionally, it would be a good idea on your behalf to check for information from other, more credible, sources.
To have good sources is what separates the men from the boys in the written world. Indeed anyone can say a thing on some topic, and some may believe that person. The reality is that sources provide credibility to the information one reads. Without credibility, information is very much a useless tool. That's all fine, but good sources aren't always easy to find. A great place to start finding sources online would be in databases. Databases are a center for knowledge on many topics that have been written by professionals. If possible, try to find articles that have been peer reviewed. Peer reviewing means that people in the same field of the writer have read the article, and those people agreed that the author was writing truthfully on the topic. If an author has cited sources originating in a database, the chances are much better that you've found good information. This isn't always fool proof, but it is a good way to ensure that you're reading the best information on your topic rather then the words of a fourteen year old who decided to create a web page.
There are three main things to keep in mind when searching for information online: the author's language; the author's credentials; the author's sources. Information is abundant in our world, and it can be difficult to discern the truth from the lies. The three items discussed should provide you with the tools to make an educated decision regarding your reading material. It's one thing to think we know something; it's another thing to know we know something.
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http://EzineArticles.com/?Cautions-Regarding-Information-Online&id=4113894] Cautions Regarding Information Online
