Keeping up to date final
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Library DDP Keeping up-to-date with RSS feeds Marion Tattersall Research Development Librarian University of Sheffield Library
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Transcript of Keeping up to date final
Library DDPKeeping up-to-date with RSS
feeds
Marion Tattersall
Research Development Librarian
University of Sheffield Library
Today’s 1 hour session
• Introductory talk– What is RSS, why it is useful,– How it works for different sources
• Hands-on practice with workbook– at your own pace, staff to help
suggested time 30 mins• Information Skills R
esource for researchers access via Library home page
• Feedback
What is RSS?
• RSS is a web feed to which you subscribe• Useful for content which changes regularly• Collects material from a wide variety of sources
– Databases of peer reviewed articles eg Scopus, Web of Science, Pubget
– Journal tables of contents– Web pages, news alerts, blogs
• You still need a reference manager to store, manage and reformat any items you want to keep
Why use RSS?
• Alerts from different sources in 1 place – the feed reader
• Controls/tailors what you get – not overwhelming• Clear format to scan• Avoids losing or deleting important items• Reduces risk of spam and frozen email inbox• Can organise tags/folders to suit you• Helps you share with colleagues• RSS in 100 seconds video
RSS symbol for available feeds
PreviouslyMore frequently a standard icon is used
Look for the symbol it may be small, at top, at bottom.....
How do I get started with RSS?
• 1 Choose a feed readerWe recommend
www.google.com/reader
Bloglines is a popular alternative
• 2 Set up the reader Today
• 3 Organise it to suit you Laterfolders, display options
Advice on setting up Google reader
• www.google.com/reader Set up an account and follow the workbook instructions
• Follow our online interactive tutorialLibrary information skills resourceResearcher’s tab Keeping up to date,
• Watch a video on YouTube Getting Started with Google Readerabout 1 year old runs for 2 mins
Add some feeds 1: Databases
• Slightly older articles, but specific
– keywords, authors– citations to follow influential papers
• Scopus & Web of Science - multi-disciplinary
• subject specific ones eg PubMed for Biomedicine, MLA for languages
• Keep your references current• Extra benefit from previous searches
RSS feeds from Scopus
• Set up personal account• Carry out specific search
– keywords, authors, combine terms......– test on short time period
• citation (cited reference)– use a key paper, – find by sorting other results in citation order
• Process details– See workbook 1
Web of Science RSS feeds
• Also require a personal account• Same search advice• NB Must save to server. • Form covers email too, must select RSS• Process
– screencasts in Library ISR include citation alert
– workbook
• field tagged
Alerts: WoS or Scopus?
• All WoS journals are in Scopus - except Arts
• Scopus has expanded its Arts coverage• Engineering and medicine – more in Scopus
• Test which works best– now & later• Don’t be distracted by the interface
it’s the results that count• Use both? – sometimes/always• You may also need a subject database
Add some feeds 2: Journal contents pages
• Latest articles, but not topic specific• Useful once you know the key journals• Use aggregator services• Zetoc
British Library service > 20,000 journalseasy to use, good help and FAQ
• ticTOCS14,000 titles, some not in Zetoc. searching for possible titles differsexport to reader a little more complex
GREY LITERATURE
Reports/Working Papers– 3-6 mths
Posters/Conference papers – 3 mths
News - ImmediateWeb pages - Immediate
Scholarly Information
CycleRough time scale
to publication
PEER REVIEWED
Scholarly books – 12 mthsPublished theses – 3 mthsJournal articles – 6 mths
INFORMAL COMMUNICATION
Personal communication
Discussion boardsEmail lists
Blogs/WikisImmediate
Add some feeds: 3 News
• From news sites eg BBCNews sections of other sites – eg learned societies, professional bodies
• From recommended websites– Eg Library’s own list on next slide
• Using Google Alerts
Links to useful Internet resources can be found on the Library webpages:
http://www.shef.ac.uk/library/useful
Google Alerts• Google Reader is not the only feature that
Google provide to keep you up to date• Try Google Alerts
– monitoring a developing news story – keeping current on a competitor or industry – tracking medical or technological advances – getting the latest on a celebrity or sports team – searching for new videos that match a specific topic
• http://www.google.com/alerts• Delivered by RSS feed into your Google Reader
account
Add feeds: 4 Blogs informal IMMEDIATE info
• Web log = blog like a diary• Chronological - most recent first• Primary source of information about relevant
people and research• Internet publishing & reflective practice
– follow leaders, expand your network, build your reputation, get feedback.....
– University advice in setting up and using• Evaluate carefully to avoid overload
GREY LITERATURE
Reports/Working Papers– 3-6 mths
Posters/Conference papers – 3 mths
News - ImmediateWeb pages - Immediate
Scholarly Information
CycleRough time scale
to publication
PEER REVIEWED
Scholarly books – 12 mthsPublished theses – 3 mthsJournal articles – 6 mths
INFORMAL COMMUNICATION
Personal communication
Discussion boardsEmail lists
Blogs/WikisImmediate
What next with Google Reader?
• Star items, add notes, share with your friends
• Find out how from Google Reader Help– Explanatory pages
eg organizing covers tags and folders– Links to videos – Help forum
• Feed into other services such as iGoogle, Netvibes, Pageflakes etc.
Summary
RSS feeds help you to–save time & effort–save and organise items– tap into formal and informal sources–prioritise & share information
Find out more – try it out
• Workbook– login to MUSE Library tab– have another browser window open
• Library information skills resource– slides, workbooks, interactive tutorials
• Record progress in your ePortfolio in uSpace– training need met? How will you work
differently? What do you need next?
Library contact details
• Library DDP Feedback – email us your comments– join our evaluation project
• For subject specific help contact your Faculty Librarian
• All other Library [email protected]
