This material has been developed to accompany: "Searching and Researching on the Internet and the World Wide Web, Fourth Edition" ISBN 1-59028-036-9 "The Information Searcher's Guide to Searching and Researching on the Internet & the World Wide Web" ISBN 1-887902-58-9

Citing Web and Internet Resources

Topics

It's necessary to cite your sources when you write a research report. That way, others who read your work can check the resources you've used. They can view or read the original sources to check for accuracy, to see excerpts or ideas in the context of the original piece, or to obtain more information. You'll also want to cite resources to let people know where they can find information on the Internet or the Web, whether you're preparing a formal research paper or writing email to a friend.

There are several guidelines and styles for citing works correctly. No one uniform style has been adopted or is appropriate in every case. The same situation exists for citing works that appear in print; you may be expected to follow APA or MLA style, for instance. You need to adopt a style for your own work and communications, and you should check with whoever is directing the research-your editor, instructor, or publisher-to see what citation style is required.

In the last few years, people have been citing resources that they find on the Web or through the Internet. The styles used for citing electronic works sometimes differ from those of citations for printed works, which have a long tradition of specific formats. Citations for works in print or on the Web have a number of common elements. These include the author's name, the work's title, and the date on which the cited work was published or revised.

There is no uniform agreement on all of the details of a citation for information found on the Web or the Internet. Most suggestions for the form of a citation include the name of the author, the title of the work, the date the information was last revised, the date the information was accessed, and the URL. The date the information was accessed is included because it's relatively easy to modify information on the Web, and the information available through a URL sometime in the future may not be the same as when it was accessed for the research. Methods for determining the date when information on the Web and the title of a Web document are discussed.

Guidelines for Citing Resources Found on the Internet and the Web

MLA and APA Style Guidelines

"Frequently Asked Questions about MLA Style "  A collection of frequently asked questions with authoritative answers from the MLA.

"Electronic Reference Formats Recommended by the American Psychological Association." Published by APA.

Here are the items we recommend including in a citation for information on the Web or Internet:

Web page  

• name of author(s) -if known
• title of the work - in quotes, if known
• title of the Web page - in italics, if applicable
• date of last revision
• URL
• Date accessed
Example: 
Ackermann, Ernest. "Writing Your Own Web Pages." Creating Web Pages.  23 Oct. 1996. http://people.umw.edu/~ernie/writeweb/writeweb.html 
10 Feb. 1997.   
 
File available by anonymous FTP
 
• name of author(s) -if known
• title of the work - in quotes, if known
• date of last revision
• URL
• Date accessed 

Example: 
American Civil Liberties Union. "Briefing paper Number 5, Drug Testing in the Work Place." 19 Nov. 1992. 
ftp://ftp.eff.org/pub/Privacy/Medical/aclu_drug_testing_workplace.faq 
13 Feb. 1997. 



Gopher resource
 
• name of author(s) -if known
• title of the work - in quotes, if known
• date of last revision
• URL
• Date accessed
Example: 
Shultz, Michael T. "Significant Figures". 
gopher://ericir.syr.edu:70/00/Lesson/Subject/Math/cecmath.42 
15 Feb. 1997.   
 
E-mail message to an individual
 
• name of author
• subject of the message - in quotes
• date the message was sent
• type of communication: personal, distribution list, professional
• author's e-mail address
• Date accessed
Example: 
Mills, C. "Getting gigs in Nashville." 13 May 1996. Personal. 
cc@digicool.com 
13 Dec. 1996  
 
E-mail message that's part of a discussion group
 
• name of author
• subject of the message - in quotes
• date the message was sent
• author's e-mail address
• address of discussion group
• via URL of archive - if known
• Date accessed
Example: 
Ackermann,E. "Re: Bookmark files with Netscape 2.0." 7 Mar. 1996 
ernie@mwc.edu 
nettrain@ubvm.cc.buffalo.edu 
via http://listserv.acsu.buffalo.edu/cgi-bin/wa?S1=nettrain 
14 Feb. 1997  
 
Usenet article
 
• name of author
• subject of the message - in quotes
• name of the newsgroup
• date the message was sent
• author's e-mail address
• date of access
Example: 
Ackermann, E. "Question about keeping Bay plant indoors." rec.gardens.  3 Dec. 1995 
ernie@mwc.edu 
13 Feb. 1997  
 
Articles from electronic journals
 
• name of author(s) -if known
• title of the work - in quotes, if known
• title of the Journal, volume and issue - in italics, if applicable
• date of last revision
• URL
• Date accessed
Example: 
Agre, P. "Designing genres for new media: Social, economic, and political contexts." The Network Observer: 2.13. 21 Oct. 1996 
http://communication.ucsd.edu/pagre/tno/november-1995.html#designing 
14 Feb. 1997

Information on the Web About Citing Electronic Resources

There are several very good Web pages for information about citing Web and other electronic resources.

These Web pages that have links to several other sources on the subject:

• "IPL Citing Electronic Resources", The Internet Public Library
• "Karla's Guide to Citation Style Guides", Karla Tonella, University of Iowa
• "LIBRARY & INFORMATION SCIENCE: Citation Guides for Electronic Documents", International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions

• "Electronic Reference Formats Recommended by the American Psychological Association." Published by APA.
• "Citation Styles online!" - a companion to the book "Online! A Reference Guide to Using Internet Resources" by Harnack and Kleppinger
• "Frequently Asked Questions about MLA Style "  A collection of frequently asked questions with authoritative answers from the MLA.

Links to Useful Sites about Citing Web and Internet Resources

Visit Searching and Researching on the Internet and the WWW for more information about using the Internet for doing research and finding what you need.

This material has been developed to accompany: "Searching and Researching on the Internet and the World Wide Web, Fourth Edition" ISBN 1-59028-036-9, ©2004 "The Information Searcher's Guide to Searching and Researching on the Internet and the World Wide Web" ISBN 1-887902-58-9, ©2000 by Ernest Ackermann and Karen Hartman, and published by Franklin, Beedle and Associates, Incorporated, Wilsonville OR.

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Just as the strength of the Internet is chaos, so the strength of our liberty depends upon the chaos and cacophony of the unfettered speech that the First Amendment protects.— Philadelphia Federal Judges Panel in ruling on CDA (6/12/96).