A short list of basics for every document.

• use your word processor's tools: spell checker, grammar checker
• Read your document bottom to top, one sentence at a time. This technique separates each sentence from the other and from the meaning of the whole. Ensure each sentence makes sense alone and is error free.
• Read your document aloud. A listener would be best, but even reading it aloud to yourself will help you hear errors you otherwise can't "hear" reading silently. Listen for meaning, flow, verb usage, repetition,
• If you have used the spacebar instead of the tab key to created indents, change all those spaces to tab markers.
• Remove all double spaces after periods. Find/replace will make this fast; run it as many times as it takes until there are 0 instances found.
• Unless it's a casual paper, remove all contractions. Use find/replace for apostrophes to speed the task

Ten Mistakes Writers Don’t See (But Can Easily Fix When They Do): An excellent article containing at least one tip for each of us who do any writing at all. "Like many editorial consultants, I’ve been concerned about the amount of time I’ve been spending on easy fixes that the author shouldn’t have to pay for. ...Most of the time the author...is too close to the manuscript to make corrections. ...The 10 ouchies listed here crop up everywhere. They’re so pernicious that even respected Internet columnists are not immune." 12/16/08

Acronym Dictionary: "With more than 600,000 human-edited definitions, Acronym Finder is the world's largest and most comprehensive dictionary of acronyms, abbreviations, and initialisms. New! You can also search for more than 850,000 US and Canadian postal codes." They also have a handy button you can add to your Google searchbar so that looking up an acronym is just one click from your search box. 11/24/08

AllWords.com: A helpful resources site as well as the dictionary search. This site has some unique options, such as a crossword puzzle solver type of search, 'Links for Word Lovers', a word-of-the-week page that defines and discusses the word, plus a blog and forums. Worth checking out! 08/10/07

Amazing Dictionary Resource: English, Multilingual, Scrabble, PigLatin, Rhyming Words, Crosswords, Name meanings, etc.

American --> British Dictionary: Translate both ways, American to British English, and British to American. 12/29/02

American Sign Language (ASL) Dictionary: An alphabetical list of words, illustrated by videos of each sign. 05/28/03

Computer Terms

Dictionary.com: Not only dictionaries of all kinds, but other reference links.

Dictionary.net: Truly an all-in-one search tool. This free online dictionary "returns word, and phrase definitions from a variety of english dictionary resources." It searches your term in Webster, FOLDOC (Free On-line Dictionary of Computing), The Jargon File, Devils Dictionary 1911, and more. You can search for acronyms, jargon, programming languages, tools, operating systems, in fact anything to do with computing. It also searches CIA World Factbook, The Elements Database, Virtual Entity of Relevant Acronyms, The WordNet Database (a lexical database for English). 06/10/04

Etymology Dictionary: "This is a map of the wheel-ruts of modern English. Etymologies are not definitions; they're explanations of what our words meant and how they sounded 600 or 2,000 years ago." 04/27/08

The Free Dictionary: Another all in one site. Approximately 2,000,000 articles and definitions from English, Medical, Legal, Financial, and Computer Dictionaries; a Thesaurus, Acronyms, Encyclopedias, a Literature Reference Library, and a Search Engine. 09/01/05

Hyperdictionary.com: As well an the usual English dictionary, they've also got a Thesaurus, a Computer Dictionary, a Dream Dictionary, a Medical Dictionary. 09/22/03

iTools! A great collection of language tools. Link to it from your course home page! Includes general and specialized dictionary / thesaurus tools, translation tools, research tools, and search tools. 02/22/02

Jargon Dictionary: "The Jargon File, a comprehensive compendium of hacker slang illuminating many aspects of hackish tradition, folklore, and humor." 05/04/04

Language Dictionaries: A good collection of these listed at YourDictionary.com. 01/16/02

LookWayUp: FREE dictionary tool for web browsing. Combines dictionary, thesaurus, translation, and other handy tools. Installed on a webpage, your viewers can double-click to instantly use any of the tools without leaving the Web page. BETTER yet, I use their browser "plugin", which gives me a button so I can look up anything on any webpage as I search. They now also have a wireless dictionary for cell phones or wireless PDA.

Merriam Webster: Dictionary, Thesaurus, and other references

Multi-Search Dictionary

One Click and you're there! An index of OnLine Dictionaries, English & multilingual, thesauri, and much, much more.

Oxford English Dictionary Online: Updated quarterly with at least 1000 new and revised entries. "The Oxford English Dictionary is the accepted authority on the evolution of the English language over the last millennium. It is an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, history, and pronunciation of over half a million words, both present and past. It traces the usage of words through 2.5 million quotations from a wide range of international English language sources, from classic literature and specialist periodicals to film scripts and cookery books." 08/14/01

Onelook: single look-up that resources 594 dictionaries

Phrase & Fable Dictionary

Reverse dictionary from OneLook: "...lets you describe a concept and get back a list of words and phrases related to that concept. Your description can be a few words, a sentence, a question, or even just a single word. Just type it into the box above and hit the "Find words" button. In most cases you'll get back a list of related terms with the best matches shown first." Examples of uses: Find a word if you know its definition; Explore related concepts; Generate a list of words in some category; Answer basic identification questions; Solve crossword puzzle clues. 10/30/04

Sign Language Dictionary: An alphabetical list of words, illustrated by videos of each sign. 05/28/03

Specialty Dictionaries at YourDictionary.com: Including Business, Computing, Cooking, Crafts, Finance, Genealogy, Humor, Law, Medicine, Sports, and 80 more! 01/16/02

Spelling Help in a browser! ieSpell: A free Internet Explorer browser extension that spell checks text input boxes on a webpage. The program installs as a new button in the IE toolbar. 09/25/03

TechTerms Dictionary: "The goal of the Tech Terms Computer Dictionary is to not just define computer terms, but explain them as well. While defining computer terminology may be simple, explaining what each term means is more helpful. TechTerms.org contains hundreds of computer and technology terms, all with detailed explanations." 01/22/06

Techtionary: A dictionary of technology that adds Flash animation to explanations for an illustrated and fascinating description of technology terms. Not for the beginner, but that in itself is a refreshing change -- most of TECHtionary definitions take you beyond the beginner's understanding of technology. 10/06/02

Urban Dictionary: If you can't find the word anywhere else it might be in this one. Look up street lingo: words, images, sounds. Time magazine named it one of the 50 best websites of 2008. Here's their self-definition (on Facebook): "I am a dictionary with over a million definitions you wrote. I stand for free speech and having a good time. urban dictionary started in 1999 as a parody of dictionary.com, with definitions written by the people. in the last 7 years, people have written more than 2,000,000 definitions...wikipedia says it well: 'urban dictionary allows for many truths, rather than an authoritative guide.' " 08/06/08

Visuwords™ online graphical dictionary: The words dance around graphically in grouped, dynamic, ever-changing visuals of connected words and ideas. "Look up words to find their meanings and associations with other words and concepts. Produce diagrams reminiscent of a neural net. Learn how words associate. It's a dictionary! It's a thesaurus! Great for writers, journalists, students, teachers, and artists." 07/02/07

Webopedia: Computer & internet technology definitions.

Wiktionary: "...includes a thesaurus, a rhyme guide, phrase books, language statistics, extensive appendices. ...not only the definition of a word, but also enough information to really understand it. ...etymologies, pronunciations, quotations, synonyms, antonyms, translations..." 02/12/08

YourDictionary.com: Includes a big list of Language Dictionaries, Grammar Courses in various languages, Translations, and Specialty Dictionaries, including Business, Computing, Cooking, Crafts, Finance, Genealogy, Humor, Law, Medicine, Sports, and 80 more. PLUS: lists of thesauri, grammar guides, a library, a research page, and much more. 01/16/02

Content

Canadian Encyclopedia: "...comprises the complete text and multimedia of the indispensable reference work originally published in 1985."

Encyclopedia Britannica Online

Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Wikipedia: The FREE Encyclopedia. You can look things up by categories or by search, and you can even help create it by adding articles. 07/23/02

Guide to Grammar & Writing: Sponsored by the Capital Community College Foundation, a nonprofit 501 c-3 organization that supports scholarships, faculty development, and curriculum innovation. 01/17/08

University of Ottawa: HyperGrammar electronic grammar course: Brief reviews of the basics, from parts of speech through to building sentences and writing paragraphs. 01/23/07

University of Victoria English Language Centre Study Zone: Index To Grammar Materials: "It includes grammar presentations, interactive practice exercises, and help pages for basic writing skills." 01/23/07

University of Victoria: The UVic Writer’s Guide: The site includes the topics: 01/23/07

• Planning, Organizing, and Presenting Essays
• Developing and Ordering Paragraphs
• Writing Clear Sentences
• Choosing and Using Words
• Acknowledging Your Sources
• Literary and Rhetorical Terms (By Category)
• Preparing Summaries
• Presenting Arguments Logically
• Knowing The Basics of Grammar

University of Toronto: Advice on Academic Writing: Includes these topics: 01/23/07

• Planning & Organizing
• Reading & Researching
• Using Sources
• Specific Types of Writing
• Style and Editing
• Grammar and Punctuation
• Some Answers for Writers of English as a Second Language

University of Calgary: The Basic Elements of English: Four major sections: Parts of Speech, Sentence Elements, Punctuation and Word Use. Includes Interactive exercises to help you "test your grammar skills and get immediate feedback by trying the exercises at the end of the tutorials." 01/23/07

Top Ten Grammar Errors that Haunt Web Pages: Robin Nobles lists some common grammar errors we see ANYWHERE, not just on web pages. 12/23/07

Resources for Writers: Robin Nobles again (see above). 12/23/07

Big Bones Grammar ~ A Bare Bones Guide to English: Includes a good list of common problems; the "bare essentials" of grammar; some short, interactive self-tests; an MLA Quick Guide with FAQs and tips for formatting papers. 10/29/06

Daily Grammar: "A free service, Daily Grammar sends you e-mail messages with a grammar lesson five days of the week and a quiz on the sixth day." Or visit their archive of daily lessons, all labelled by topic. 10/20/03

WebGrammar: A rich site full of resources. 10/20/03

Grammar Slammer: This might be the only reference tool you need. "Nearly 900 pages" of helpers complete with examples and inter-linked keywords. "The help file that goes beyond a grammar checker. Use it as you would any help file." 08/07/01

Guide to Grammar & Writing: Excellent and extensive.

Grammar usage in English: Basic online text, alphabetized. Categories such as pronouns, verbs, adjectives and possessives each have thorough examples and explanations.

HyperGrammar: Excellent tool/database/guide! Huge definition list.

Susan Jone's Grammar Lists: Many links to good grammar sites

Guide to Grammar & Writing: Extensive! from Capital Community College in Hartford

English Grammar: "How Good Is Your English"

Common Errors in English: "The concept of language errors is a fuzzy one. I’ll leave to linguists the technical definitions. Here we’re concerned only with deviations from the standard use of English as judged by sophisticated users such as professional writers, editors, teachers, and literate executives and personnel officers. The aim of this site is to help you avoid low grades, lost employment opportunities, lost business, and titters of amusement at the way you write or speak."

Alphabetized Guide to Grammar and Style

Blue Book of Grammar & Punctuation: "The mysteries revealed"

Free Language & Translation Tools: See the entry in Thesauri. 5/24/07

Dictionary of English Idioms and Idiomatic Expressions: At this date, 497 idioms at UsingEnglish.com. While you're there, check out the rest of the site -- very rich with resources. 11/10/04

Idiom Links: A list of locations. 10/20/03

Idiom Site: Idioms are separated into alphabetical order. The great thing about idiomsite.com is that sometimes we know what an idiom means, but this Web site takes that knowledge one step higher by giving us the origin of the idiom, too.

The Idiom Page

The Idiom Sisters: What is an Idiom? Several links to idiom pages from this page.

RealLiteratureDir.com ~ Author Biographies & Their Literary Works: FREE ONLINE. "...our site is the Reader's Ultimate Resource for Published Authors. Get the alphabetical list of authors. See the Biography picture and read Literary works of the eminent authors by clicking on their name." Categories of works available are extensive -- short stories, poetry, fiction, non-fiction, plays, novels, essays, children's literature, and more. 07/31/06

Librarians' Index To The Internet

Collaborative Digital Reference Service

Library of Congress: Collections

Library of Congress: Services for Researchers

Harvard Online Library

Internet Public Library

National Library of Canada: An online digital library.

Literary Resources: An eclectic collection.

Great Books Online: Plus a HUGE database of reference materials with excellent search facilities.

Bibliomania: Read, study, research, shop. Free online literature (fiction, drama, poetry, short stories) with more than 2000 classic texts. Study guides, literature book notes, reference books, book summaries, author biographies. TEACHER RESOURCES too. 07/02/07

Folklinks: Folk and Fairy-Tale Sites: A colleague sent me this link and said, "I came across this great web site as I searched for short short stories that can be used in English classes. 2 great things about it: 1) it includes folktales from all over the world and 2) it is categorized by subject or topic or theme. Enjoy." 11/25/06

WikiBooks and WikiSource: Wikipedia's Free collections of textbooks. "Wikibooks went online on 10 July 2003, and there are 22,403 modules currently on the site." ..."Wikibooks differs from Wikisource because content on Wikibooks is expected to be significantly changed by participants. Raw source documents such as the original text of Shakespearian plays is hosted on Wikisource instead."..."Wikisource collects and stores in digital format previously published texts; including novels, non-fiction works, letters, speeches, constitutional and historical documents, laws and a range of other documents. All texts collected are free of copyright, either because this has expired or because the text has been released under a GNU Free Documentation License." 11/25/06

The Complete Works of Charles Darwin is online: "The largest collection of Darwin's writings ever assembled...contains every Darwin publication as well as many of his handwritten manuscripts. All told there are more than 50,000 searchable text pages and 40,000 images. There is also the most comprehensive Darwin bibliography ever published and the largest manuscript catalogue ever assembled. More than 150 ancillary texts are also included, ranging from reference works to contemporary reviews, obituaries, descriptions of Darwin's Beagle specimens and important works for understanding Darwin's context. Free audio mp3 versions of his works are also available." 10/29/06

Google Books: In spite of the current controversy surrounding copyright issues, I think it's admirable that this and other sites are making texts more and more available. Here's what Google says about their initiative: "In May 1961, JFK said that he was going to put a man on the moon. The idea was unthinkable at the time, but within the decade, the goal was achieved. Google Book Search is our man on the moon initiative. We see a world where all books are online and searchable. How exactly will this be done? How long exactly will it take? We aren't sure, but we're committed to making it happen." When you get there, read their "about" page. 01/31/06

Google Book Search: Find new, and free, downloadable versions of some of the world's greatest books. "Working with our library partners, we're expanding access to books that are out of copyright and have become public domain material. Users can search and read these books on Google Book Search like always, but now they can also download and print them to enjoy at their own pace." 09/02/06

The GOOGLE LIBRARY: "In announcing Tuesday, December 14/04, that it is working with five major libraries to scan millions of books for inclusion in its Web index, Google opened another battle in the intense competition among the leading search engines." 12/25/04

Google Scholar (Scholarly Research tool): "Aimed at academic researchers and scientists, the new search service will make the world's scientific and academic literature universally accessible. Google Scholar enables you to search specifically for scholarly literature, including peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, preprints, abstracts and technical reports from all broad areas of research. GOOGLE wants "everyone to be able to stand on the shoulders of giants." GOOGLE is "giving back to the scholarly community," so the service is free and without text based ads." 11/20/04

RealLiteratureDir.com ~ Author Biographies & Their Literary Works: FREE ONLINE. "...our site is the Reader's Ultimate Resource for Published Authors. Get the alphabetical list of authors. See the Biography picture and read Literary works of the eminent authors by clicking on their name." Categories of works available are extensive -- short stories, poetry, fiction, non-fiction, plays, novels, essays, children's literature, and more. 07/31/06

Project Gutenberg: There are 17,000 FREE books in the Project Gutenberg Online Book Catalog. "These ebooks may be read on a computer using a simple text editor or viewer. The books are in the 'public domain' and all have been prepared by volunteers." 01/31/06

free eBooks.net: Download free Fiction, Marketing, electronic publishing ebooks. "Free-eBooks.net specializes in collecting free fiction, tutorial, marketing and business eBooks as well as resources to aid you in promoting eBooks. Our featured eBooks are below, please click on the name of the eBook to download to your hard-drive. We also have links to useful resources for eBook Publishers....We now offer free subscriptions to your favorite trade magazine publications for a full year!"11/01/05

Internet Archives: Extensive archives of existing internet audio, moving images, texts, and software. "The Internet Archive is building a digital library of Internet sites and other cultural artifacts in digital form. Like a paper library, we provide free access to researchers, historians, scholars, and the general public....an ‘Internet library,’ with the purpose of offering permanent access for researchers, historians, and scholars to historical collections that exist in digital format.... The Internet Archive is working to prevent the Internet — a new medium with major historical significance — and other "born-digital" materials from disappearing into the past. Collaborating with institutions including the Library of Congress and the Smithsonian, we are working to preserve a record for generations to come." 06/11/05

The eGranary Digital Library: "...provides millions of digital educational resources to institutions lacking adequate Internet access. Through a process of garnering permissions, copying Web sites, and delivering them to intranet Web servers INSIDE our partner institutions in developing countries, we deliver millions of multimedia documents that can be instantly accessed by patrons over their local area networks at no cost." 05/01/05

The Free Library.com: The EduResources Weblog says this about it: "A short biography of each author accompanies the e-texts, which include both short and long works; writers of fiction and non-fiction (such as Aristotle, Abraham Lincoln, and John Kennedy) are included. Additionally, a selection of famous quotations and additional resources accompany each listing. Textual searches, both within the entire library, and within a selected e-text can by made. Perhaps some evaluators might be critical about who is included in this e-library and who is missing, but I'm grateful to find such a readily available free library." 04/10/05

Encyclopedia of World History: Another reference tool at Bartleby.com. Sixth Edition. "Renowned historian Peter N. Stearns and thirty prominent historians have combined their expertise over the past ten years to perfect this comprehensive chronology of more than 20,000 entries that span the millennia from prehistoric times to the year 2000." 02/11/05

National Academies Press (NAP): NAP is a valuable resource for free online books of academic value, books that can be used for instruction and for research. The online inventory includes more than 3000 books on subjects ranging from Agriculture to Urban Development. 01/03/05

ProQuest Library Resources: "The ProQuest® online information service provides access to thousands of current periodicals and newspapers, many updated daily and containing full-text articles from 1986. Our deep backfiles of archival material are also expanding daily as we digitize 5.5 billion pages from our distinguished microfilm collection." 04/20/04

ProQuest's K-12 Library Resources are extensive. They include: 04/20/04

• eLibrary: "...the next-generation easy-to-use general reference tool -- features more than 800 full-text magazines, newspapers, books, transcripts, maps and images for support of student inquiry."eLibrary Curriculum edition: "...delivers one of the largest collections of periodical and digital media content designed specifically for K-12 schools and libraries. Students find the answers they need from more than 2,000 full-text magazines, newspapers, reference books, and transcripts -- plus thousands of pictures, maps, weblinks, and audio/video content."History Study CenterT "...offers valuable historical reference material that covers 14 centuries of history -- from ancient to modern, old world to new world." ProQuest Historical NewspapersT "...provides the full run of The New York Times from 1851 to 1999 -- an indispensable source for historical study."
• ProQuest Learning: LiteratureT "...features thousands of original full-text works of poetry, prose and drama, as well as author biographies and contemporary criticisms -- in one integrated source."

Shakespeare Search: Browse comedies, tragedies, histories, poetry, coined words, most popular lines, etc. 11/06/03

Bigwords.com: A place to find the best textbook prices available online. You can also search for the best prices for DVDs, games, and music. 09/14/03

Children's Books Online ~ the Rosetta Project, Inc.: "The largest collection of illustrated antique children's books on line...we think. Download Entire Books for FREE. ...The Rosetta Project's collections currently contain about 2,000 antique children's books which were published in the 19th and early 20th century. We shall be putting these combined collections on line as funding permits. Our current goal of putting 2,000 volumes on line will create an online library of aproximately 65,000 html pages. However, as we are still collecting books from around the world, we expect the Rosetta Project online library to eventually reach millions of html pages." 06/02/03

Knowing Poe Thinkport: A wonderful site to explore, even if you're not a grea Edgar Allen Poe fan. 05/10/03

Ancient Scripts.com: "The aim of Ancient Scripts is not to replace texts books or instructional web sites. Instead, it is designed to give an introduction to writing systems, which hopefully will tantalize the reader into searching for more information on the web or in books and publications." 05/10/03

The Online Books Page: Search 18,000+ Listings (by New Listings, Authors, Titles, Subjects, Serials) in the categories of News; Features; Archives (General, Foreign Language, Specialty). 12/27/02

Banned Books on-line: special exhibit of books that have been the objects of censorship or censorship attempts. The books featured here, ranging from Ulysses to Little Red Riding Hood. 12/27/02

Classics for Young People: "A growing number of children's literature classics are out of copyright, and are among the books available in full-text on the Internet. Here are some of the more popular and interesting titles that are available in HTML format." 12/27/02

Editec's Children's Collection: "The largest collection of antique children's books on the World Wide Web, we think. ...The Rosetta Project's collections currently contain about 2,000 antique children's books which were published in the 19th and early 20th century. We shall be putting these combined collections on line as funding permits." 12/27/02

Project Gutenberg: "...the Internet's oldest producer of FREE electronic books (eBooks or eTexts)." To this date, a total of 6267 Project Gutenberg eBooks, divided into basically 3 portions, as follows: 12/27/02

• Light Literature; such as Alice in Wonderland, Through the Looking-Glass, Peter Pan, Aesop's Fables, etc. Heavy Literature; such as the Bible or other religious documents, Shakespeare, Moby Dick, Paradise Lost, etc.
• References; such as Roget's Thesaurus, almanacs, and a set of encyclopedia, dictionaries, etc.

Online Computer Library Center, Inc.: Lots of resources, a librarian's toolbox, searches, etc. 10/18/01

Worditude.com: A small selection of links to online texts (html and pdf versions). 10/02/01

WireTap Electronic Text Archive: "Wiretap is a free public service to provide electronic text to citizens of the Internet. One of the earliest e-text repositories. All of this material was gathered and organized in an Internet world prior to creation of the World Wide Web. As such, it still resides in the archaic Gopher form." 11/13/00

eBook Library: 1,200 publicly-available ebooks from the University of Virginia Library's Etext Center, including classic British and American fiction, major authors, children's literature, American history, Shakespeare, African-American documents, the Bible, and much more. 11/13/00

Electronic Texts Center Collections: Contains over 14,000 titles that can be serched, or browsed by author, by title, or by Dewey Decimal Classification. 11/13/00

Great Books Online: plus a HUGE database of reference materials with excellent search facilities. 05/16/01

netLibrary
Questia
ebrary
The above are all MetaText providers. "A MetaText is a textbook that is read through a web browser. Every MetaText edition is surrounded by a pedagogical framework designed to make educational content easier to present, customize, extend, explore and discuss." Most often available by purchase and/or subscription, Metatexts "provide instructors and students with a full range of interactive learning tools." Some online book sellers support eBooks/MetaTexts purchases, such as Blackwell and Coutts. eBook Library: 1,200 publicly-available ebooks from the University of Virginia Library's Etext Center, including classic British and American fiction, major authors, children's literature, American history, Shakespeare, African-American documents, the Bible, and much more. Electronic Texts Center Collections: Contains over 14,000 titles that can be serched, or browsed by author, by title, or by Dewey Decimal Classification. 05/10/01

Shakespeare Search: 04/26/01

Mother Goose: Search all by title. 04/26/01

Holy Books: Search the old and new testaments by word. 04/26/01

American History: Search major historical documents. 04/26/01 Internet Public Library 03/29/01

WireTap Electronic Text Archive: "Wiretap is a free public service to provide electronic text to citizens of the Internet.One of the earliest etext repositories. All of this material was gathered and organized in an Internet world prior to creation of the World Wide Web. As such, it still resides in the archaic Gopher form."

Brainy Quote: You can search by author's last name, type of author, or by topic. 03/25/08

Quotations Book.com: A specialized search engine for quotations on the Internet. Lost of "extras", including a Facebook app; quotes of the day by RSS or email, for mobiles, & as a Firefox extension; starter page code for iGoogle, Pageflakes, & Netvibes; a widget to put on your website or blog; widgets for Windows Vista & Macs; a daily podcast; and more. 01/20/08

Aphorisms Galore

Bartlett's Familiar Quotations

The Free Library.com: As well as other content, they offer a selection of famous quotations. 04/10/05

Bibliomania: Click for Grocott's Alpha list or Grocott's Thematic list.

Geometry Step By Step from the Land of the Incas: "It provides an eclectic mix of sound, science, and Incan history intended to interest students in Euclidean geometry. The site includes geometry problems, proofs, quizzes, puzzles, quotations, scientific speculation, and more." 04/16/04

Shakespeare Search: 04/26/01

Quotations from Famous Authors: Organized by author's last name.04/26/01

Sayings for every event

Wiktionary: "...includes a thesaurus, a rhyme guide, phrase books, language statistics, extensive appendices. ...not only the definition of a word, but also enough information to really understand it. ...etymologies, pronunciations, quotations, synonyms, antonyms, translations..."

Oxford English Dictionary Online: Updated quarterly with at least 1000 new and revised entries. "The Oxford English Dictionary is the accepted authority on the evolution of the English language over the last millennium. It is an unsurpassed guide to the meaning, history, and pronunciation of over half a million words, both present and past. It traces the usage of words through 2.5 million quotations from a wide range of international English language sources, from classic literature and specialist periodicals to film scripts and cookery books." 08/14/01

Book Collector: Keep track of all your reference books! I'll admit it, I'm obsessive about lists. How can you tell from this site? But this is a piece of software I have to tell you about. I keep a list of every book I read, when I read it, my own review and rating, etc. That way I can remember what my books were about, as well has who has them on loan, etc. This software was absolutely made for my needs! 07/2202

eGems Collector: "the easiest and fastest way to capture, organize and source your electronic research! It will help you save your valuable research "gems"- text, images and links - from the Internet, digital libraries, email and open applications." 11/28/01

iTools! A great collection of language tools. Link to it from your course home page! Includes general and specialized dictionary / thesaurus tools, translation tools, research tools, and search tools. 02/22/02

TexNotes: Programmers keep getting better at knowing what writers need! Check out this amazing and inexpensive application from GemX -- everything you always thought you wanted, organizationally speaking, in one package. Free 60 day trial is more than enough to convince you. Take their online tour of features and you'll never look back! The newest feature in TexNotes is the ability to publish standalone eBooks. A large number of customized dictionaries available free. 11/16/02

TreePad: "TreePad Freeware is a very intuitive and powerful database program, only 380 Kb in size. It allows you to store all your notes, emails, texts, hyperlinks, etc. into a single file. With the look and feel of the familiar Windows explorer, editing, storing, browsing, searching and retrieving your data can not be easier!" 01/16/01

Annotated Papers: Very helpful! "Annotations in the margins of these sample papers give advice about formatting and documenting papers in MLA, APA, Chicago, and CSE styles." 10/29/06

APA style guides & software
[APA = American Psychology Association]

Getting Started with APA Style: A site from the library at UBC, Vancouver, BC. The opening page has a really useful chart of sample formats for Reference list (which seems for most people to be the most difficult aspect of following 'style' formatting. 06/18/07

APA's own site(s): www.apa.org and www.apastyle.org

APA Style Resource Links: My new favorite. Especially because of the author's extensive APA CRIB SHEET, which he links to from this Resource page. Author: Russ Dewey, Georgia U. Psych. Dept.05/25/06

APA: Psychology With Style~ A Hypertext Writing Guide: Good APA tips. M. Plonsky has put together an *excellent* guide based on the 5th edition of the APA Manual, 1/12/2004, Version 5.0. 02/10/04

At the above site they offer a FREE MS Word document/template for APA style. Click my link to get it, or at their site click General Topics on their table of contents to arrive at the link. Use in conjunction with their Guide (above). 02/13/06

APA Style Made Easy: (a site I like to use)

APA Style Guide eBook: FREE downloadable reference manual. "This e-book will show you how to format your essay to conform to the style as set out in the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th ed.). It contains examples of referencing of the most common sources, the way to layout your essay, page headings, page spacing, font type and size, paragraph indents, how to enter in-text citation etc. and includes links to more APA information sites on the net." 02/07/06

APA Style Helper: from the APA site. "APA-Style Helper 5.1 provides you with new organizational and help features, enhanced text processing capabilities, and step-by-step assistance in the creation of your document. APA-Style Helper 5.1 also provides you with a consistent work environment - your word processor. The new design eliminates the need to import your document into Microsoft Word, as previous versions required, saving you time and effort." FREE demo version; $34.95 to purchase. 02/07/06

APA Template: " Includes document templates for both APA (5th edition) and MLA (6th edition). Sets up your Word document with the proper title page, preset margins, page numbering codes, and page headers. All you have to do is write your paper. Has built in Style Settings for section level headers and quotes, so formatting text as you write is easy. Includes CiteWrite - a limited version of Citation, to help you format references and bibliographies. Saves your bibliographic information in a data file, so you won't have to retype it again for editing and revisions." 02/07/06

APA Referencing Macros v2.0 - APA Software: A MS Word macro that sets up your document in APA style, changes any/all formatting to APA style for you. Trial version, then $22.95 to purchase. 11/08/04

APA: Perdue's OWL (Online Writing Lab) Style Workshop: A good source of APA basics. 02/10/04

APA: Capital Community College's A Guide for Writing Research Papers: Clear and easy to navigate. 02/10/04

APA: Electronic Sources

APA Style FAQs

Using American Psychological Association (APA) Format (Updated to 5th Edition): from the Purdue University Online Writing Lab. 11/08/04

FormatEase: Paper and Reference Formatting Software for Microsoft Word. "Helps users quickly and effortlessly format term papers, theses, dissertations, articles, and book chapters in accordance with APA style guidelines." $29.95 to purchase. 02/07/06

Reference Point Templates: Available for APA and MLA styles. Templates are available for use with Word, WordPerfect, AmiPro, Word Pro, MS Works, and Star Office. "Quickly and easily download and install everything you need for a paper perfectly formatted in APA style or MLA style. Use your existing word processor and document software - nothing new to learn. Create title pages, abstract pages, margins, page numbers, even citations with ease. Type in author, title and journal; hit "enter" and you have a perfectly formatted APA style reference or MLA style works cited entry. Get menu-driven help and friendly customer service at your fingertips. Eliminate hours of frustration and focus on the content of your paper instead of the format." $27.95 to purchase. 02/07/06

StyleEase for APA Style: You can get it in versions for APA, MLA, Chicago Style, and Turabian Style. "StyleEase for APA Style for Microsoft Word formats your papers and references in accordance with the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (5th Edition). Simply choose from one of four document styles for theses, dissertations, journal articles, or term papers. You focus on the content of your paper, and let StyleEase handle the rest. " $35 to purchase. 11/08/04

bibme ~ a Free ONLINE BIBLIOGRAPHY GENERATOR: "BibMe is your one-stop source for all your bibliography needs!" Developed by Information Systems students at Carnegie Mellon University. Automatically generates correctly formatted entries for you reference list. Entries include various types (including web links). Resulting formats include MLA, APA and Chicago styles. ALSO: "Don’t remember all the information for the source you cited? No problem! BibMe allows you to search from a database of millions of entries to find your source and autofill in the information. Or, if you the source in front of you, you can enter your entries in manually." 05/18/07

Chicago Manual of Style (CMS) citation guide: Ohio State University Library. 4/13/10

Chicago Manual of Style online: This is a subscription service with a free trial period. An online version is handy because it's searchable, unlike the text version. 4/13/10

Citation Guides & Style Manuals: Their title is "The Ultimate Citation Resource". Their list of citation/style guides includes several for Humanities, Law, Scientific, Social Sciences. 4/13/10

Citation Guides for Electronic Documents: links to many

Citation Styles: citation formats for many circumstances (email, web discussions, listserves, newsgroups, etc.)

Citing medicine: NLM (National Library of Medicine) citation guide: University of Vermont. 4/13/10

Citing Your Sources: This Pearson Publishing site has a set of links that "...will take you to examples of citation formats in the most commonly used styles in documenting college research papers: MLA, APA, CMS, and CBE. 04/29/02

Columbia Guide to On-line Style

Columbia Online Scientific Style

MLA style guides & software [MLA = Modern Language Association]

Getting Started with MLA Style: A site from the library at UBC, Vancouver, BC. The opening page has a really useful chart of sample formats for Reference list (which seems for most people to be the most difficult aspect of following 'style' formatting. 06/18/07

MLA Quick Guide: From the Big Dog Bare Bones Grammar site, an overview and FAQs. 10/29/06

MLA: Perdue's OWL (Online Writing Lab) Style Workshop: A good source of MLA basics. 02/08/06

MLA Template: " Includes document templates for both APA (5th edition) and MLA (6th edition). Sets up your Word document with the proper title page, preset margins, page numbering codes, and page headers. All you have to do is write your paper. Has built in Style Settings for section level headers and quotes, so formatting text as you write is easy. Includes CiteWrite - a limited version of Citation, to help you format references and bibliographies. Saves your bibliographic information in a data file, so you won't have to retype it again for editing and revisions." 02/07/06

Reference Point Templates: Available for APA and MLA styles. Templates are available for use with Word, WordPerfect, AmiPro, Word Pro, MS Works, and Star office. "Quickly and easily download and install everything you need for a paper perfectly formatted in APA style or MLA style. Use your existing word processor and document software - nothing new to learn. Create title pages, abstract pages, margins, page numbers, even citations with ease. Type in author, title and journal; hit "enter" and you have a perfectly formatted APA style reference or MLA style works cited entry. Get menu-driven help and friendly customer service at your fingertips. Eliminate hours of frustration and focus on the content of your paper instead of the format." $27.95 to purchase. 02/07/06

MLA: Capital Community College's A Guide for Writing Research Papers: Clear and easy to navigate. 02/10/04

MLA: How to cite a Weblog entry and MLA: How to cite a Weblog comment

MLA Auto-Generator: "...an incredible piece of free software that allows you to quickly and effortlessly format your documents' works cited lists in complete accordance with the latest MLA or APA style guidelines. MLA Auto-Generator will automatically churn out a perfect bibliography entry, every time." 07/19/03

StyleEase for MLA Style: You can get it in versions for APA, MLA, Chicago Style, and Turabian Style. "StyleEase for MLA Style for Microsoft Word formats your papers and references in strict accordance with the latest version of the Modern Language Association style. Our templates format everything from title page to bibliography, and the StyleEase menu makes the entry and placement of references, in-text citation, and footnotes a snap." $35 to purchase. 11/08/04

Strunk's Elements of Style

The King's English: H. W. Fowler [1858-1933, English lexicographer] - "This reference work has remained a standard resource, serving generations of students and writers with common-sense rules of style and grammar."

Writing Guides: This is a very helpful site. Includes STYLE guides, WRITING guides, and other tools. Includes style guides I hadn't heard of until now -- CBE (for biologists), IEEE (for engineers), and MUCH more...check it out. 11/11/06

Thesaurus.com: This is the one linked to from Google's Toolbar so it's very handy -- a one-button click right from the browser. 02/12/08

Roget's Thesaurus at Bibliomania

Soule's Synonyms at Bibliomania

Free Language & Translation Tools: "Lingo24 seeks to be the leading language and translation site on the Internet. Below you can find our early offerings – please do bookmark this page and come back soon, as we have more irons in the fire!" I recommend you check out their "Parasaurus Englix – English language paraphrasing tool". It's kind of like having a thesaurus for full phrases rather than just words. I used it on a few English phrases and idioms and got some interesting results. 5/24/07

Plumb Design Visual Thesaurus: An amazing Animated 3D Thesaurus that will have you staying to watch long after you've found your synonym. Or -- say that word you need is stuck on the tip of your tongue, but you can't get to it. Try going to the visual thesaurus to jog your tongue's memory by looking up similar words, and see where it leads.

YourDictionary.com: offers a list of Thesauri

Write Better: A set of FREE downloadable courses from MIT's Open Courseware site. 03/04/08

150 Resources to Help You Write Better, Faster, and More Persuasively: A categorized and alphabetized list of links that "...focus on places where you can conduct research, software that is free and easy to use, and services that will remove that "extra work" monkey from your back....This list focuses solely on those tools that can make your writing life easier." Their categories are: Almanacs; Business and Legal Matters; Citation Styles; Dictionaries; English Language Skills; Genres; News Digests; New Media Resources; Organization; Professional Organizations; Rhetoric; Toolboxes; Writing Services; Writing Skills; Writing Software. 10/21/07

Writing Tools at AllWords.com: This section of the site has many excellent links. For example, check out the Writing Tips links page. 08/10/07

Poynter Online: "Everything you need to be a better journalist. The Poynter Institute is a school for journalists, future journalists, and teachers of journalists." One of their projects is to offer FREE courses at News University (see reference above). 06/01/05

News University: FREE Courses of interest to writers: That's right, this online university offers FREE courses; all you have to do is become a registered user of their site/services. I'm very impressed with what they have to offer already, and they've only just begun! "NewsU is committed to providing interactive, inexpensive courses that appeal to journalists at all levels of experience and in all types of media. Officially launched in April 2005, NewsU offers an innovative approach to helping journalists enhance their skills." From today's eLearning Guru newsletter: "Although NewsU.org is designed for professional journalists, I think many e-learning designers will find the free courses of value. They include courses on interview techniques, clear writing, color and design, use of photography, etc." 06/01/05

Fifty Writing Tools: AMAZING SERIES! Author Roy Peter Clark points out "These are TOOLS and not RULES!" He already has 42 of the Tools posted. "Each week I will describe a writing tool that has been useful to me. I have borrowed these tools from writers and editors, from authors of books on writing, and from teachers and writing coaches. Many come from the X-ray reading of texts I admire." 02/04/05

Take the Fat Out of Your Writing: A portion of an article; link to full article is included on the page. "Brevity has begun to supersede clarity in importance in our eyes. Striving for brevity isn't enough. We need to write tight." The author addresses the topics of clarity, accuracy, relevance, sincereity, concision, transparency, and consistency. 05/07/03

Chiasmus: A whole site devoted to it. Do you know what chaismus is? If not, link to the MW Dictionary.

Cliche Finder

Plain English: Illustrated rules & tips. Plain English refers to the writing and setting out of essential information in a way that gives a co-operative, motivated person a good chance of understanding the document at first reading, and in the same sense that the writer meant it to be understood." 08/14/01

Rhetoric: "A Forest of Rhetoric" is a guide to the terms of classical and renaissance rhetoric

Rhetoric: A bibliography of rhetoric, showing some of the common patterns

Technical Writing

WordWizard Portal: "For lovers of the English language"

Writer's Resource by Jack Lynch: An eclectic & useful list

Writers Workshop: Full of reference items

PLAIN ENGLISH: Tips for writing in Plain English: This article is good, and the best part is the MANY links to resources on the topic. 08/03/05

Webwriting That Works: "We help you write faster, better, and brighter, for the Web!" 01/17/04

Webwriting ~ Quality Web Content/Words That Work: This site is full of writers' resources. Among them a List of articles about writing web content. 02/26/04

Why do People Write? Is the desire to write a brain disease? There's a book called The Midnight Disease by Alice Flaherty, a leading neurologist at a major research hospital. I'm linking you to a description of the book and some reviews. The idea fascinates me: the author calls hypergraphia "the incurable disease of writing". 04/26/04

Writerly Sites: Resource links especially for web writers. From Webwriting That Works. 01/17/04

WritingWorld.com: "A world of writing tips for writers around the world." 12/29/02

WritersWrite.com: "Your one-stop resource for information about books, writing, and publishing. 12/29/02

Rights ~ A Novice Writer's Guide to Rights: "Knowing the basic rights that you own in your work and the terms used by the publishing world can help avoid some nasty disappointments down the road." 12/29/02

26 Golden Rules for Writing Well: this list is both hilarious and right on with its advice. Enjoy! 04/30/02

FreelanceWriting.com: website for today's working writers  12/29/02

Freelancers - Jump Start Your Freelance Writing Career: 12/29/02

Freelance Writers website: About.inc's huge site for writers. Always something there to explore. 12/29/02

Copyright for the Internet

This section is devoted to sites about WORDS. Etymology, wordplay, working with words, new generation words, quotations, translating words, and more. I don't know about you, but for me it's a thrill to come across sites made by people who simply enjoy WORDS for the sake of WORDS.

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Amazing Dictionary Resource: English, Multilingual, Scrabble, PigLatin, Rhyming Words, Crosswords, Name meanings, etc.

Anagrams instantly

Anagram Generator

Ask Oxford: If you truly love to write, or if you just want to brush up on your skills, then perhaps it's time to Ask Oxford. Learn terminology, sharpen your grammar, play word games. Find out what new words and phrases are being added to dictionaries. Search engine included. ALSO includes information, links, and resources for those working and studying in both schools and higher education. 08/14/01

Crossword Compiler: "...has everything you need to create great educational, professional, and fun crossword puzzles. You can make freeform crosswords automatically from your own words, or fill words into a standard grid from a supplied word list. You can print out and export your puzzles in many ways, including interactive online puzzles for your web page. The program combines ease of use for the casual user with many advanced features for the serious constructor. 11/09/03

EclipseCrossword: "fast, easy, free way to create crossword puzzles in minutes. It's never been simpler—just give EclipseCrossword a list of words and clues, and it does the rest. In seconds, you'll have a crossword puzzle with just the words you want. 10/22/03

English and Latin: (resources and translation services and more)

Links for Word Lovers at AllWords.com: Check out the ever-increasing chart of Links for Word Lovers, grouped in various useful categories. While you're there, check out the rest of the site -- some good dictionary resources and more. 08/10/07

Phrase Finder: The meanings of idioms phrases, sayings. As well as an alphabetized index and a search engine, they're categorized under headings like Shakespeare's sayings, biblical, nautical, proverbs, euphemisms, the body, nonsense/fallacies, etc. There's also a discussion forum, a Phrases Thesaurus (kewl idea!), phrase quizzes, most-popular phrase links, 'a phrase a week'. If you're into words and phrases, this is a fun site! 3/9/07

Plumb Design Visual Thesaurus: An amazing Animated 3D Thesaurus that will have you staying to watch long after you've found your synonym. Or -- say that word you need is stuck on the tip of your tongue, but you can't get to it. Try going to the visual thesaurus to jog your tongue's memory by looking up similar words, and see where it leads.

Quotations from Famous Authors: (Bartleby's)

Rhyme Zone: Put in a word and get hundreds of possible rhyming words. 04/26/01

Shakespeare Search: (What's a good "about-words page" without a Shakespeare entry?) Browse comedies, tragedies, histories, poetry, coined words, most popular lines, etc. 11/06/03

Translations - Babelfish site: Translate your typed text back and forth between several languages. GREAT for online chat/forums with people from other countries! Type or paste your text into a textbox (up to 150 words), select a language, and your words will come back in a reasonable facsimile in that other language (enough for others to get the gist of your chat or posting). Also will translate a webpage. [Here's fun: translate to something other than your own, then ask for the resulting text to be translated back into your own language. Sometimes it's funny what comes up.]

Translations - FreeTranslations site: Same deal; added feature of a special-characters selector.

Translations - English To Latin

Word Pirates: Listing and discussion of words that have been pirated to be used for all the wrong purposes. "Marketers, politicians and other short-sighted, self-interested, sticky-fingered people have been stealing our words. Not only do they take them for commercial purposes, but they misuse them entirely." 09/20/03

Word Spy ~ The Word Lovers Guide To Modern Culture: For writers and people who just love WORDS! "This Web site is devoted to lexpionage, the sleuthing of new words and phrases. These aren't "stunt words" or "sniglets," but new terms that have appeared multiple times in newspapers, magazines, books, Web sites, and other recorded sources." 10/07/04

World Wide Words: An etymologist's delight! "...a fascinating website ... All word buffs should pay the website a visit. They will be well rewarded." [Quote from University of the Third Age (March 2004)] Categories are numerous; to name a few: Articles, Q&As, Reviews, Topical Words, Turns of Phrase, Weird Words, Pronunciation Guide. Weekly newsletter by email subscription or feed. 04/23/04

Wordcounter: An online utility that ranks the most frequently used words in any given body of text. Use this to see what words you overuse (is everything a "solution" for you?) or maybe just to find some keywords from a document. 03/14/04

Wordsmith.org: "Wordsmith is a worldwide online community of some half-million readers who share a love for words, wordplay, language, and literature." Visit their Scheduled Chats page, where word lovers from all over the world meet to chat with others about words, languages, literature, and ideas. 10/11/08

Bibliomania's Reference Section: Reader's handbooks, dictionaries, quotations, thesauri, a phrase & fable section, and more. 07/02/07

The OWL at Perdue: A fantastic resource site: "Free writing help and teaching resources, open 24/7" Here are some of their categories: The Writing Process; Professional, Technical, and Scientific Writing; Job Search Writing; General Academic Writing; Research & Citation; ESL; Literary Analysis & Criticism; Writing in the Social Sciences; Writing in Engineering; Creative Writing; Teaching Writing. -- and each one has many sub-menu items. I can't describe it; you'll just have to check it out for yourself! 01/10/07

Writing Guides: This is a very helpful site. Includes STYLE guides, WRITING guides, and other tools. Includes style guides I hadn't heard of until now -- CBE (for biologists), IEEE (for engineers), and MUCH more...check it out. 11/11/06

25 Absolute Best Web Resources for Writers: Listed under headings suchs as How To Write, What To Write, Where To Find Information, How To Format Your Paper, Study Help, and more... 02/08/06

Article Finder: (A searchable database of full-text articles dating back to 1998 from more than three hundred magazines and journals. All of the articles are *free*, thanks to a content-distribution partnership between web directory and search engine LookSmart and reference publisher The Gale Group)

Bedford Handbook Online Resources: Lots of free goodies here at the "companion web site for The Bedford Handbook. Includes online resources for writing, grammar, and research. No charge. No activation code required." Includes peer review tools, grammar helpers, writing and research tools, and special sections for Instructors & students.10/29/06

Bibliographies using "Endnote" - Bibliographies made easy by using this software to collect, organize, update. Also makes it easy to do a search then export as HTML.

Blogs: A New Blog for Copyeditors (article); and here's a link to the actual new blog of which they speak, Prints The Chaff. 08/23/03

Blogs: The CyberJournalist List ~ The Internet's most complete directory of J-Blogs (aka Journalists' Weblogs) 08/23/03

Encarta Reference Page: Encyclopedia, Dictionary, Atlas and more

Essay: In Defense of the Essay: <snippet>"In his introduction to the Norton Anthology of the Personal Essay, Mr. Epstein makes reference to the rise and fall of genres, which occur no less frequently than the rise and fall of empires. Time was when drama was tops, only to be outdone by the poem. Now the novel is king. Unless one counts film. Or, God help us, television. This much seems certain: if the essay has been exiled to the kitchen table of literature, this has not always been the case."</snippet> 10/11/03

Farmer's Almanac

FreeByte's Online Reference: Don't go here unless you have a couple of hours to look at everything they offer. It's the closest I've come to thinking "one stop shopping for reference resources." 01/16/02

Google ~Guide: New page. Helps experts too. Example of the type of information on the site: "Why is the title of this tutorial Google ~Guide? Putting a tilde in front of a search term (with no space in between) effectively turns that term into any of its synonyms. The tilde is known as synonym operator. So, if you search for "Google ~Guide," Google will find Google Guide as well as other Google tutorials." 02/09/04

iTools! A great collection of language tools. Link to it from your course home page! Includes general and specialized dictionary / thesaurus tools, translation tools, research tools, and search tools. 02/22/02

News University course: The Writer's Workbench: 50 Tools You Can Use: "This collection of writing tools will help you strengthen new work and diagnose stories you have already written. The self-directed course groups tools into four sections:

• nuts and bolts, including word choice and sentence structure;
• blueprints to create architecture for your stories;
• special effects to refine your writing voice;
• and useful habits to help you be a more confident writer.
  Each tool features exercises to help you apply what you've learned. Use the tools to help build your skills or as reference to keep your writing sharp." 06/01/05

Research? Electronic Resources for the Reference Desk

Search Engine Watch: EVERYTHING you need to know about search engines is collected at this site!

Virus Myths/Hoaxes: "Mundus vult dicipi"--"The world wants to be deceived"