Most publications (i.e. books and magazines) go through an editing process to make sure information presented is correct. Publishers have reputations to maintain so they are careful about what they publish.
Anyone can put up a web site on the Internet. Sites are created for different reasons. The purposes may be:
- Commercial----They want to sell you something.
- Information-----You can get the news, find out what's on at the movies, how to tie a necktie, etc.
- Entertainment----Some sites are created to entertain you and some sites are put up to amuse the creator of the site.
- Persuasion----These sites want to change your way of thinking. Sometimes they may look like information or entainment sites.
When looking at a web site there are some things to consider.
- Who
Who wrote the pages and are they an expert?
How can you find out more about the author? - What
What is the purpose of the site? - When
When was the site created?
When was it last updated? - Where
Where does the information come from?
Where can I look to find out about the producer or sponsor? - Why
Why is this useful for my purpose?
Why should I use this information?
Why is this page better than another?