ABSTRACT
Since the World Wide Web represents a unique combination of conventional and new media, evaluation and creation of Web-based resources require the application of an equally novel mix of long-established and innovative principles. This chapter discusses the factors that must be addressed to present information that can be identified as reliable and authoritative. It describes five traditional evaluation criteria—authority, accuracy, objectivity, currency, and coverage/intended audience. Authority is the extent to which material is the creation of a person or organization recognized as having definitive knowledge of a given subject area. Accuracy is the extent to which information is reliable and free from errors. Currency is the extent to which material can be identified as up to date. Coverage is the range of topics included in a work and the depth to which those topics are addressed. Intended audience is the group of people for whom the material was created.
