Citing Internet Sources

Sites visited APA style

http://www.apastyle.org/elecgeneral.html

http://www.apastyle.org/elecmedia.html

http://www.apastyle.org/elecsource.html

http://www.apastyle.org/electext.html

Sites visited MLA style

http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~library/guides/cite.html

http://www.thewritesource.com/mla.htm

http://www.indiana.edu/~libugls/Publications/electronic_mla.html

http://www.classroom.com/community/connection/howto/citeresources.jhtml

After viewing the above sites, my suggestion to students would be visit the APA sites and use them for citing internet sources. On the APA website pages the URL addresses are described. The function of each part of the address is also described as shown below:

Protocol // host name / path to documentation / file name or specific document

http:// www.apa.org / monitor / oct 00 / workplace.html.

The APA sites stress the need after documenting the internet to check to make sure the links work properly. The APA site also states the path to the documentation ( the / part of the address after the host name /) is case sensitive ( it is important to have the capitals and small letters in the correct places in order to access the website ).

I like the APA style better because it gives date of the document / page separate from the date retrieved. In the MLA style both of these dates are next to each other. This to me could initially create some confusion. What if there is no date associated with the internet page / article . The retrieved date may be confused with the date the article / page was written.

Collectively all the sites stress the importance of citing documentation properly. With the Indiana University Libraries site suggestion to do otherwise would be plagiarism. The writer source site is very colorful and easy to read.

None of the above websites suggest what to do when the author and dates of web pages are unknown. Some pages are done by a group of people. The organization can be substituted for the author in these cases.

Formats

In APA style, the components are arranged this way:
Author. (Date of publication). Title. Retrieved date of access, from URL.

Example of APA style:

> Stump, K., & Batker, D. (1996, August). Sinking fast: How factory trawlers are destroying U.S. fisheries and marine ecosystems. Retrieved November 6, 1997, from http://www.greenpeace.org/~usa/reports/biodiversity/sinking_fast/.

In MLA style, the components are arranged this way:
Author. Title. Date of publication. Date of access <URL>.

Example of MLA style:

> Stump, Ken, and Dave Batker. Sinking Fast: How Factory Trawlers Are Destroying U.S. Fisheries and Marine Ecosystems. Aug. 1996. 6 Nov 1997 <http://www.greenpeace.org/~usa/reports/biodiversity/sinking_fast/>.

The above formats copied from Lafayette College Libraries, (2003 August), Lafayette College Libraries and Interactive resources. Retrieved September 14,2003 from

http://ww2.lafayette.edu/~library/guides/cite.html

Other examples using APA format:

Swalen P., (2000) The Quotable Mark Twain, Retrieved September 14, 2003 from

http://salwen.com/mtquotes.html

Central Intelligence Agency ( 2003 January ) The World Fact Book – Afghanistan,

Retrieved September 14, 2003 from

http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/af.html

Nascar, (2003) 2003 Winston Cup Series Drivers, Retrieved September 14, 2003 from

http://www.nascar.com/DRIVERS/winston/KHarvick00/index.html

McKenzie, J., (2001 June ), Building Good New Ideas.[Electronic version] Education Technology Journal, Vol 10 No. 9 Retrieved September 14, 2003 from

http://fno.org/jun01/building.html