A few reminders and clarifications:

• Make sure you take a new look at the Documents File--I will occassionaly post updates to it
• Please place copies of your files in your K: drive space with a suitable directory structure.  This is my main way of knowing that you have been extending your work on your own time.
• Please remember to keep a copy of the "old" version of your documents (you should have 4-5 major versions or so by the end of the semester).
• Right now you should be figuring out how to refine your research plan and how to start keeping records of what you find, how you found it, and what next (Log, plan, etc). While also wondering how you will organize notes on the content of the materials you are finding.
• Make sure you read the guide that posted on the web site--it has lots of useful tips about organizing the research project and using the web.  We will discuss this on our third meeting.
• As we go along we will further refine our documents and tecniques (as we start looking at documents, newspapers,journals, reference matarials, etc) and you have to make sure that you are organized enough to deal with these new materials.
• Make sure you bring the books to your sesssions and that you carefuly cover the sections about web searching and research, and keeping track of the information you find.
• Feel free to experiment with the software I linked on the page--I will have installed working copies of these programs in the Lab PC's
• I will install these programs in the History Dept. workstation which you can use on your free time.
• A few important elements for work during and AFTER the next session:
• experiment with web searches for 'traditional' type materials (library catalogs, journal indices, etc)
• experiment with ways of saving what you find (email, cut and paste, save-as, bookmarks, history file, etc) and organizing what you save
• begin to find either your prefered set of search engines or your preferred way of searching
• Start finding and using well-developed institutional web sites linked to your theme/area of study.  Find web pages that already have most of the history-related links that you could and use that as a constant starting point for your work.  Many universities have research centers connected to your topics that closely monitor the web and select out the best links.  I have some of those links in the history web page and my web page (for history in general and for latin american studies).  This is one of the most useful kind of shortcut on the web.
• begin to wonder HOW do you start searching for monographs, journals articles, reference materials, documents, and other kinds of searches for the largest coverage for your particular topic:  should you search library of congress besides firstsearch's worldcat?  How many digital journal indeces should you cover?  Remembering that you still have to cover paper versions of those same kinds of resources.
• make a list of the things you have no idea how to deal or the problems you encountered with so we can discuss them monday
• start relating your theme and your questions to the materials you are finding.  Either to critically evaluate the usefulness of the materials or to let the materials help you define or develop or narrow your research questions.
• Practice your boolean searches!!