Are You Information Savvy?: Curator
Actively collecting and sharing resources online is one of the ways you communicate your interests and expertise. Carefully choose what and where to share and re-share as this tells others who you and what you value.
Savvy Curator: How do you collect, organize, and manage information?
Why does this matter?
You've done some searching and you have determined the information is reliable, but what do you do with all this information? Being a savvy curator means knowing how to effectively store, organize, and annotate your information so you can easily make use of it when you need it.
Scenario:
You’re planning a trip for next summer with some friends and you’re researching possible destinations, activities, places to stay, etc. What are some ways that you might gather and organize this information so that you can share it with your friends?
Tools for Curators
| Name of Tool | Description | Use For Curators |
|---|---|---|
| Citation / reference manager tools that allows for syncing across multiple devices. | Used for capturing and saving scholarly citations for use later. Can be used to compile references for use in academic papers. | |
| Google Drive | A cloud-based storage tool from Google, which allows for synchronizing and sharing files across multiple devices. Includes Google Docs (word processing), Sheets (spreadsheet), and Slides (presentation). | Can be a place to collect downloaded articles, images, or other files for later use. Folders or individual files can be shared with others as long as doing so does not violate copyright restrictions. Also a useful tool for collaboration and communication. |
| Evernote | A digital tool for note taking and capturing information from the Internet. Can be synchronized across multiple devises. Free and paid options. | Can be used to add resources, including clipping from the web, and notes & reflections. |
| OneNote | A digital tool from Microsoft used for note taking and capturing information from the Internet. Can be synchronized across multiple devises. Free and paid options. | Can be used to add resources, including clipping from the web, and notes & reflections. |
| OneDrive* | A cloud-based storage tool hosted at the University of Saskatchewan, which allows for synchronizing and sharing files across multiple devices. | Can be a place to collect downloaded articles, images, or other files for later use. Folders or individual files can be shared with others as long as doing so does not violate copyright restrictions. Also a useful tool for collaboration. |
| Wiki (Confluence supported at USask)* | A web-based tool which can be used for adding notes, images, and links for individual, group, or public viewing. Can also be used for collaborating with others. | Can be used to add resources and notes & reflections. Also a useful tool for collaboration and communication. |
| Blog (Wordpress supported at USask)* | A blog (short for web log) is an online tools that can be used for sharing reflections, news, photographs, and other pieces of information that others may comments on. It may be public or private. It can have more than one contributor / author. | Can be used to add resources and notes & reflections. Also a useful tool for creation and communication. |
*Tools officially supported at the University of Saskatchewan
Resources for Curating
Are you drowning in references and citations? Consider using a citation manager to save and organize your references. Reference (or citation) management software allows you to import references/citations from online databases, organize them into folders, insert them into the body of your research paper in a variety of citation style formats (e.g. APA and MLA), and generate formatted reference lists. There are various citation manager software options available, some for free, some for a fee.
Check out the library guide on these tools.