I decided to develop my conclusion about the differences between online resources and hard copy printed materials by taking note of how I actually research a topic for a paper that I am working on for another class. I am a Merchandising Management major so must of the subjects I do research on are in the fashion or retail industry. The paper that I am currently doing research for is about the marketing mix of an apparel company called Anthropologie. Most if not every bit of information about the company itself, I found on the Internet. The company is owned by Urban Outfitters, it’s a publicly traded company; the information is abundant throughout many different sources on the Internet.
I am very used to doing most of my research on the Internet so it seemed very inconvenient to have to go to the library for this assignment but I did it and I was there for hours actually. I use the website WWD for a lot of my research and just for pleasure, it’s an amazing resource for all things fashion. Apparently the library has a subscription to the magazine, Women’s Wear Daily, so instead of using the website I could actually flip through the pages of the magazine. I looked at about 20 issues while I was there, I grabbed a table and grabbed a huge stack of the magazines and didn’t leave my seat except to pee for about two and a half hours. The biggest difference for me was that when I was on the WWD website I was there looking for very specific information about the company, so I mostly used the search bar and it brought back related information. For the sake of my research for my paper using the internet was more efficient because I didn’t have to view any unrelated information but for my own viewing pleasure and general knowledge development, I learned a million amazing things from flipping through the pages. As a senior in Merchandising Management I’m also looking for a job for post graduation…. There was a section in the middle and at the back of each magazine that I looked at with internship and job opportunities! I loved that.
I got off track, I realize. The point is that in my opinion my use of the internet is more efficient. For more than one reason. The information that was in the magazine was dated in comparison to the information that I found on the website and I ended up getting very sidetracked by all the information that was unrelated to my research but still very interesting to me. That ‘s totally my fault. If I was supposed to find an aspect of hard copy research that is better than internet I didn’t really. Expect that when I was doing my internet research I was at home on my laptop and my dog was dropping her toy rope on top of my keyboard repeatedly making it very difficult to complete my research. I got to avoid this distraction at the library.
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3 comments:
I agree with you that sitting at home on my laptob is much more convenient for doing research. I also agree with the distraction factor of the dog. i do not have a dog,but I do find that if i go to the library to get on the interent I get a lot more done. I think the interent is the best resource, but it is best to be at the libraqry while using it.
It really is quite interesting how the internet will change your life. Even though I have studied on campus for three years and used the library like a wonderful study shelter, I found it really hard to get out of my house during my free time to go to the library. I have lots of other things going on, and I felt like it was a waste of my time. It really is weird how our perceptions become skewed once we discover the internet.
I didn’t even know what floor to start on when I tried looking for a book!!! Seriously though, what a weird assignment. It was like if someone asked me to go down and get water from the well instead of just turning on the faucet. I remember what it was like in high school looking through our small library for books and research information. I think if we didn’t have the internet and E databases, college would either be MUCH harder or professors would have to make the papers much less involved, or no one would ever get it done.
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