Ready Reference

This collection is comprised of sources, in addition to Google searches, used by the eBranch staff to answer questions submitted to Ask a Librarian. There are a few duplications of sources found elsewhere on this site.

American FactFinder
US Census data.
Bartleby.com
Great reference books online - includes quotations, dictionaries, and encyclopedias.
Fact Monster
Almanac, dictionary, and encyclopedia.
GIGA Quotes
Quotations
Harris County Appraisal District Records
Harris County Databases
Real property, assumed names, vital statistics (birth & death), and marriage license databases.
Internet Public Library FAQ
Librarian's Internet Index
A directory of websites compiled by librarians.
SoYouWanna.com
Instructions for doing everything from decorating an apartment to joining the Peace Corps.
Texas Bureau of Vital Statistics
Information on obtaining birth & death certificates, marriage and divorce records, among others.
Texas Death Records
Search records from 1964 - 1998.
US Copyright Office
Virtual Reference Shelf
Sources compiled by the Library of Congress.
World Time Server
Find out the time anywhere in the world.
World Wide Study Bible
Yahoo! Reference
Online reference books from Yahoo.
Zip Code Lookup
From the US Postal Service.

Citation and Style Guides

A Guide for Writing Research Papers based on Modern Language Association (MLA) Documentation
A Guide for Writing Research Papers based on Styles Recommended by the American Psychological Association (APA)
APA Style.org
Official site.
Basic Legal Citation
Chicago Manual of Style Form Guide
Citation Machine
Select citation format and then type of material (book, magazine, online, etc.) and enter the relevant information and the machine formats your citation.
Modern Language Association (MLA)
Official site.
Online! A Referece Guide to Using Internet Sources
Overview of citing online sources in APA, MLA, and Chicago styles.

Conversions

MegaConverter 2
A variety of mathematical conversions.
UnitConversion.org
A variety of mathematical conversion calculators.

Dictionaries & Translation Services

Babel Fish
Translator from Yahoo. Translate to and from a variety of languages either by copying/pasting text or using a website address.
Dictionary.com
Searches for words in multiple sources.
Merriam Webster
In addition to dictionary and thesaurus services, includes a word of the day feature.
OneLook
Find definitions or translations in a variety of dictionaries including specialized dictionaries.
Translation Wizard
Includes translation to and from a wide variety of languages.
yourDictionary.com

Maps & Geography

Google Maps
Includes satellite photos.
HomeTownLocator Gazetteer
Find statistical information by place name.
Latitude & Longitude Look-up
Maporama
International maps.
Perry Castaneda Library Texas Map Collection
Current and historic state, city, and county maps.
Texas County Highway Maps
Texas Department of Transportation maps for each county. No longer updated.
Texas General Land Office Archives
Historic maps, history of land grants, and a history of public lands in the state.
The National Map
A topographical map showing elevations; from the US Geological Survey.
WorldAtlas.com
Links to several latitude/longitude look-ups.

Search Engines

Image Search Engines
Lists a variety of image search engines.
Peter's PolySearch Engines
Demonstration project allowing searching across specialty engines.
Search Engine Colossus
International directory of search engines.

Short URLs

Timelines

20th Century Year by Year
Major events from 1900-1999.
AlternaTime
Large list of time lines.
dMarie Time Capsule
Enter a date to find major events that occurred. Includes popular music, books, TV and toys.

Urban Legends

Museum of Hoaxes
A less serious approach to urban legends.
Purportal.com
Search several hoax sites.
Scambusters
Snopes Urban Legends Reference Pages
One of the most popular urban legend directories.
Truth or Fiction
Check out rumors, inspirational stories, virus warnings, humorous tales, pleas for help, urban legends, prayer requests and calls to action to see if they are truth or fiction.

Countries

Aneki.com
Information about countries and world rankings.
CIA World Factbook
Basic information about countries.
Country Studies
Analysis and history of countries.
NationMaster
Comparative statistics for the world.

Phone Directories

AnyWho
Residential, business yellow & white, and reverse lookup.
Area Decoder
Enter an area code to find out it's location.
Free Online Lookups
Links to a variety of directories.
Yellow Pages Location Directory
Business & residential.

Harris County Public Library

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