Ask a Librarian Delaware

• Delaware Library Resources (includes EBSCO products – MasterFile Premier, Learning Express; Data Axle Reference Solutions (formerly ReferenceUSA) & more):  see the Delaware Libraries’ eMedia page
• CloudSource Open Access – peer reviewed academic articles available through the Delaware Library Catalog
• Homework help/Gale databases provided for home use for all Delaware K-12 students:  UD LibSearch (password required)
• See also – Web Evaluation Guidelines on this page – Additional Web Resources/Online Search Guidelines
• University of Toronto – How to Spot Misinformation about the coronavirus & COVID-19

• Delaware Libraries LibGuide on Fake News:  https://guides.lib.de.us/fakenews
• Here is a comprehensive evaluation guide: how to evaluate websites from Cornell University
• How to evaluate websites using the CRAAP test (old model, but still valid & useful).  More information about the CRAAP test and helpful tips from the Benedictine University Library
• Science Buddies offers a basic web evaluation comparison chart for students

• See Delaware Libraries LibGuides
• Library of Congress Ask a Librarian
• Censorship/Book Banning Resources from Penguin Random House

• The Delaware Libraries’ site has helpful information for getting started with Delaware’s collection of eBooks and eAudiobooks.  The check marks are clickable and give “how to” information for each device.  For help: https://help.overdrive.com/. FAQs on eMaterial access are also available on the patron portal page of AaLDE
• Most of Delaware’s collection is through Overdrive and they also have their own help pages – OverDrive Resources
  • Libby Brochure-Dec 2022 (PDF)
  • OverDrive Read & Listen Brochure-Jan 2023(PDF)
  • For more resources/pamphlets, see the eBook How To’s page on the DLC Consortium Site (password required)
• Project Gutenberg also has freely available eBooks, such as classics
• Delaware Libraries’ additionally offers hoopla for eMaterials, Flipster for eMagazines, and Kanopy, for streaming movies.
  • Steps to access Flipster app on a mobile device (PDF)
  • Flipster Brochure-Dec 2022 (PDF)
  • hoopla Brochure-Dec 2022 (PDF)
  • Kanopy Play Credits Update – Nov 2023
    • Kanopy Brochure – (PDF – updated November 2023)
• Miscellaneous Computer Resource:  How to Create a Gmail Account. Helpful for patrons who checkout Chromebooks.
• Basic AI Information
• ChatGPT LibGuide

• Home – 100-199 – General Philosophy & Psychology – LibGuides at Delaware Division of Libraries

• Home – 200-299 – General World Religions – LibGuides at Delaware Division of Libraries

LEGAL/LAW

• For Delaware residents, the Delaware Judiciary maintains the Delaware State Courts Citizen Help Center. Use this for legal information regarding landlord/tenant issues, divorce and custody information, how to pay a traffic ticket (with online options), and more.
• Ask a Librarian Delaware partners with the three county law libraries and the State of Delaware Legislative Library as subject specialists; you can refer questions to their respective queues in LibAnswers.
  • The county law libraries have their own Ask a Law Librarian service; please refer patrons for further assistance to their website or direct email Law.Library@delaware.gov.
  • The contact information for the specific counties are located on these webpages:  New Castle, Kent,  and Sussex.
•  The Law Library of Congress has a “Research Help” page that provides a fairly comprehensive annotated list of resources to find online information on law and the government.  It includes international, federal US, and state and territory laws.  The emphasis of this guide is on actual codes of law, rather than resources to help citizens (see the Delaware State Courts Citizen Help Center listed site above); still, it is a valuable collection of information in one place.
• Nolo focuses on publishing plain-English legal information that anyone can use.  Their website includes articles on a wide variety of topics, a legal dictionary, and a guide to performing legal research.  Use the links at the bottom of the website under “Free Legal Information” for easiest navigation.

EDUCATION

• Best Trade Schools – For recent high school graduates, an adult changing career paths, or a military.
  veteran, this website helps when deciding on additional schooling with information necessary to make the right choice for continuing education.
• Intelligent – Helping students succeed.
• Library Science.org – Information on library science degrees.
• Princeton Review – Full-length FREE practice tests for SAT.
• Smithsonian Learning Lab – Valuable resources for students, parents, and educators. Smithsonian Learning Lab puts the treasures of the world’s largest museum, education, and research complex within reach. The Lab is a free, interactive platform for discovering millions of authentic digital resources, creating content with online tools, and sharing in the Smithsonian’s expansive community of knowledge and learning.
• Social Justice LibGuide – comprehensive information to build awareness and inspire change.
• UDLib Search – for any Delaware student grades K-12 (please contact the Statewide Coordinator for login information).

• Home – 400-499 – General Language – LibGuides at Delaware Division of Libraries
• Home – Learn a Language – LibGuides at Delaware Division of Libraries

• Home – 500-599 – General Science – LibGuides at Delaware Division of Libraries
• Home – STEM (Science Technology Engineering Math) – LibGuides at Delaware Division of Libraries

• Delaware Library Business & Entrepreneurship LibGuide – a one-stop resource for the many facets of starting a new business, from pro/con considerations, research, resources, financial assistance, and more.
• Data Axle Reference Solutions (formerly ReferenceUSA) – A comprehensive database of 60 million US businesses. The database is searchable by SIC or NAICS code and can be filtered by geography and other markers. Log in through Delaware Libraries eMedia page or through this page after creating a login.
• Export Delaware:  An initiative that provides Delaware libraries with a direct way to help patrons who are starting a new business.  This site walks the entrepreneur through steps to getting their business license and on their way!
• Business Community/Market Research – The Business Reference and Services Section Education Committee of RUSA has put together an excellent LibGuide for Small Business.  It includes recommendations for books, databases and articles, as well as websites on topics ranging from how to start a small business to locating loans and financing.
• Foundations & Grants Information:  University of Delaware (UDEL) LibGuide provides comprehensive information to assist community members seeking access to resources, such as the Foundation Directory Online, provided in collaboration with the Foundation’s Funding Information Center.
• Personal Finance – Delaware Division of Libraries has a guide listing books and websites on a variety of topics, including debt and credit and teaching kids and teens about money.

• Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) Library: PDF Guide to services. Contact the librarians for assistance or transfer the ticket directly to the DHSS Library queue in AaLDE.
• Review Flaherty, Mary Grace, “The Public Library as Health Information Resource?” (2013).
  iSchool Information Science and Technology-Dissertations. Paper 82.  (It is 245 pages; especially review pages 93, 99 and 154-155). Freely available from: http://surface.syr.edu/it_etd/82
• MedLine Plus:  http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/

• Home – 700-799 – General Arts & Recreation – LibGuides at Delaware Division of Libraries
• Museum Pass – Delaware Libraries

• Delaware Division of Libraries has an excellent Reader’s Advisory LibGuide that is updated regularly.
• NoveList, an EBSCO subscription product for Reader’s Advisory, is also a great resource accessible through the Delaware Libraries eMedia portal page.
• Through the Delaware Library Catalog, you will find New York Times Bestseller and Suggested By Us book lists.  Use the drop down arrow to select the list of your choice.
• Libraries often use Pinterest to communicate and share with patrons.  Sacramento Public Library’s Pinterest site has one of the better boards for book recommendations.
• Mid-Continent Public Library has a very good Reader’s Advisory Page, but the best part is probably their lists of juvenile series and sequels. You can browse by Series Title, Series Subject, Book Title, and Book Author.
• Children’s Early Chapter Books (please note, ads on web page)
• GoodReads is populated by many librarians and avid readers, giving personal and professional recommendations and summaries.
• Library Journal Reviews
• School Library Journal Reviews
• For movies, the Internet Movie Database
• Don’t forget social media (Twitter, Facebook/Meta, Instagram, BookTok, etc.) as potential resources!

• Delaware Digital Newspaper Project
• Library of Congress Historical Company Research
• The Delaware Public Archives has a page, “Public Finding Aids“, for databases and resources to assist in genealogical studies
• Delaware Libraries LibGuide on Genealogy
• Two active groups in Delaware, the Delaware Historical Society and the Delaware Genealogical Society, have online tips, links, a calendar of programs/events, and contact information
• Another compendium of useful websites from the “Internet Sources on Local History and Genealogy Studies” page from the Library of Congress that should help patrons get started on genealogical research.
• A comprehensive list of resources for genealogy is from the National Archives (Archives Library Information Center on Genealogy). It includes information about using the Archives for research, as well as links to websites, databases, and blogs.
• The University of Delaware has a good resource on genealogy.
• Ancestry is offered in-library use only through Delaware public libraries.  See the list of libraries with availability on the Delaware Libraries Genealogy LibGuide.
• National Genealogy Society
• MyHeritage vs 23andMe vs AncestryDNA