What is the difference between a subscription database and a web site?

A database is a collection of information organized for efficient retrieval. Cook Memorial Public Library District pays for subscriptions to a wide variety of databases that contain articles from established periodicals as well as material from long-standing, well-respected reference sources. Every article, report or fact has been chosen and checked by professional editors, and the text content is identical to the print versions of the publications.

Web sites are available free to anyone. Some contain valuable, reliable information that cannot be found elsewhere. However, many exist for the sole purpose of selling products or services, and some contain one-sided, out-of-date or inaccurate information. The sites featured on our pages have been selected by Cook Memorial Library District librarians for the quality of their content.

Guidelines for evaluating web sites