Student Links

These sites are directories of websites which have been selected and recommended by librarians. They are excellent starting points when you need good information about almost anything.

Illinois CLICKS!: Links picked and organized by volunteer librarians in Illinois.
Librarians' Internet Index: "Websites you can trust."
Internet Public Library: Searchable directory run by a group of library schools.

Consumer Help

Find product and auto reviews, shopping tips, information about recalls, and consumer-protection agencies.

Buying Guides & General Advice

Consumer Reports: A lot of free and useful information is available, but a paid subscription is required for product reviews and ratings.
ConsumerSearch: "Reviewing the reviews." Compiles and analyzes product reviews from magazines and websites. Great starting point.
Epinions.com: Products rated by people who bought them.

Cars & Trucks

Car & Driver: Includes the magazine's road tests and reviews, interactive vehicle comparisons, and Kelley Blue Book values.
Edmunds.com: Reviews, comparisons, price and value information, and tips for buying new or used vehicles.
The Truth About Cars: Detailed reviews, written with a sense of humor.

Consumer Protection & Complaints

AnnualCreditReport.com: The place to get a no-obligation, free copy of your credit report from all three major reporting companies.
Better Business Bureau: Includes complaints against companies, fraud alerts, and general tips.
Consumer Protection Division: Part of the Illinois Attorney General's office.
Recalls.gov: Product recalls and safety information from the federal government.

Health Information

Reputable sources for information about health and medicine. (Items marked with ** require a login.)

MEDLINE via FirstSearch **: Archive and index of articles from medical journals. Subjects include: clinical medicine, nutrition, dentistry, pathology,education, psychiatry, experimental medicine, toxicology, health services administration, veterinary medicine, and nursing.
MedlinePlus: A medical super-site from the National Library of Medicine and the National Institutes of Health. Includes extensive information and links on hundreds of conditions and health issues, drug descriptions, a medical encyclopedia, surgery videos, and more.
HealthFinder.gov: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' guide to health information.
NIH SeniorHealth: Information for older adults, from the National Institutes of Health.
Illinois Health & Wellness: Official guide to state government programs and resources.
Health-E Illinois: Directory of healthcare providers, facilities, and services.

Library Catalogs & Libraries

If you have a Library Card, we'll borrow items from other libraries for you! Delivery from most Illinois libraries is free.

(Items marked with ** require a login.)

PrairieCat: Catalog for approximately 200 libraries in northern Illinois and eastern Iowa.
WorldCat via FirstSearch **: A catalog of more than a billion items in libraries worldwide.
WorldCat.org: An alternate way to search most of the WorldCat catalog, with no login required.
Every Library in ILLINET (ELI): Directory of hundreds of Illinois libraries, with links to many libraries' websites and catalogs.
Digital Illinois: Catalog of electronic collections of documents, photographs, etc., made available online by Illinois libraries.
Open-Access Text Archive: Thousands of public-domain books and other free books, for online viewing or downloading in plain text or scanned formats. Part of the Internet Archive site.
Library of Congress Digital Collections: A large number of pamphlets, letters, historic documents, pictures, early films and recordings, and other items are available online.

Illinois & Local History

Online documents, photos, articles, and other information about the history of Illinois and the local area.

Illinois Digital Archives: A portal to online exhibits and collections from libraries and museums across the state. A project of the Illinois State Library. Additional online collections are searchable through the Digital Illinois catalog.
Illinois History Resource Page: Dozens of links, compiled by the Illinois State Historical Society.
Cyndi's List - Illinois: Directory of genealogy and history websites. Also includes links for specific Illinois localities.

Magazine & News Articles

Online archives and search engines for finding articles from magazines and newspapers.

(Items marked with ** require a login.)

ArticleFirst via FirstSearch **: Index and archive of articles from magazines and journals. Many articles are available as Adobe PDF files, which look the same as photocopies from the print publications. For most publications, libraries which own them are listed.
BNET Research Center: (Formerly called FindArticles.com.) Index of magazine articles which doesn't require a login. Many articles are available online for free, but "premium" articles carry a pricetag. Subjects covered include: arts, autos, business, health, home and garden, news, sports, and technology.
Google News: Search for articles from newspaper, TV news, newswires, and other reporting websites.
Topix: Find local news published on websites and blogs.

Find Facts Fast

Encyclopedias, almanacs, dictionaries, statistics, and other sites for quickly looking up facts.

(Items marked with ** require a login.)

WorldAlmanac via FirstSearch **: Includes Funk & Wagnall's New Encylopedia, the World Almanac and Book of Facts, the World Almanac of the U.S.A., the World Almanac of U.S. Politics, and the World Almanac for Kids.
Infoplease.com: Information Please Almanac, atlases, and more.
Wikipedia: "The free encyclopedia that anyone can edit."
OneLook Dictionary Search: Look up words in almost 1000 online dictionaries at the same time.
IllinoisAtlas.com: A collection of Illinois and U.S. statistical maps.
World Factbook: The CIA's book of country profiles.