Fee-based (free to PSU students and faculty;
the Library pays the fee)
Free (but some commercial sites charge for access to some information)
Organized into searchable fields
Not organized; information can be retrieved through search engines
Information has been checked for accuracy
and reliability
Information has not necessarily been checked or verified
Information comes from publishers
Information comes from anyone who has access to the Web
Contains information published in books, magazines, journals, and newspapers
Contains information from almost anywhere (government, non-profit organizations, high-school students, commercial enterprises, personal collections of photos, etc.)
