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This paper focuses on web sites included in the sixth annual Best Free Web Sites List for 2004. What makes this site American Women's History: A Research Guide especially useful is the ease of to be useful to experienced scholars while at the same time being easy to use for the novice researcher. In addition to including searchable access to the Compact Oxford Dictionary, the site AskOxford.com, features many other helpful resources for writers and students. It is divided into several sections: Ask the Experts, World of Words, Better Writing, Games, Global English and Foreign Languages. This site would be an exception teaching tool for upper-level high school English classes or lower-level college students. The Cyberschoolbus site serves as a valuable resource for primary and secondary school educators developing curricula focused on such global concerns as peace, poverty and work. The introduction provides an overview of United Nations history and work, complete with an organizational chart that links to the appropriate homepages. Earthtrends is a free, online database that focuses on issues of sustainable development and the environment. It includes data from more than forty internationally recognized sources, including international and national agencies as well as private corporations and organizations.

The article provides information on requirement for digital research and revitalization of scholarly reference to establish community and quality. Topics discussed include significant challenge researchers and collaborative relationship; Oxford Research Encyclopedias; and initial planning phase of editorial boards.

The article discusses the development of the subject encyclopedia and its role in library reference collections. It comments on the birth of the encyclopedia during the Enlightenment and the impact of compact discs (CD) and the Internet. The author focuses on student use of the online collaborative encyclopedia Wikipedia. He also explores libraries' efforts to promote online encyclopedias. Other topics include federated search engines and platforms for online reference databases such as SAGE Reference Online, Gale Virtual Reference Library, and ABC-Clio.

The article presents a pathfinder for library resources related to literary criticism. It notes that the guide is intended for public libraries which serve a variety of readership levels. It contains a section of general literary resources which could form a core collection of literary criticism resources as well as a section detailing books and library materials related to the work of author Herman Melville. Discussions of critical editions, bibliographies, and literary encyclopedias are also included.