![]() ![]() In addition to this basic concept, many research guides include other complex goals, such as "teaching how to complete a given task, providing access to tools for actually doing it, promoting collections and services, educating users about the research process, and providing disciplinary context for in-depth research needs". However they are not generally an exhaustive collection of all of the materials on a given topic- they are designed for beginners in research to find the fundamental information they need to get started. Pathfinders are intended to be a launch point for research on a particular topic, via the collection of select materials available in a particular institution on that topic. Often used as curriculum tools for bibliographic instruction, the guides help library users find materials or help those unfamiliar with a discipline understand the key sources." Originally provided in print format in the 20th century in large academic libraries, pathfinders have evolved with the emergence of the World Wide Web and may now act as portals to information about resources in a variety of formats, including books, encyclopedias, bibliographic databases, almanacs, documentaries, websites, search engines and journals. The goal of a pathfinder is to gather all of the most useful, relevant, reliable and authoritative resources on a variety of academic, work-related or general-interest topics. Pathfinders may be printed or available online." Īccording to the Online Dictionary for Library and Information Science, a pathfinder is "designed to lead the user through the process of researching a specific topic, or any topic in a given field or discipline, usually in a systematic, step-by-step way, making use of the best finding tools the library has to offer. What is special about a pathfinder is that it only refers to the information in a specific location, i.e. ![]() Pathfinders produced by the Library of Congress are known as "tracer bullets". (Pathfinders are also referred to as subject guides, topic guides, research guides, libguides, information portals, resource lists or study guides). A pathfinder is a bibliography created to help begin research in a particular topic or subject area. ![]()
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