Online Sources
The Internet has become an increasingly popular medium for the publishing of academic material. As with written documents, all online sources must be properly referenced.
When making use of online sources, remember that much of the information on the Internet has not been subject to the rigours of academic peer review which one would expect from a book or journal article.
Due to the ephemeral nature of material published on the Internet, it is essential that the date on which the online resource was accessed is included in the reference. This will ensure the reference is as accurate as possible.
References to online publications should follow the same pattern set out for written sources, and should thus include:
- The name of the author
- Title
- Title of online resource in which it appears
- Details of publication - volume, date etc.
- Website address (URL) - in angle brackets
- Date on which the website or resource was accessed - in square brackets
- Specific location of reference in brackets e.g. (para. 4 of 30)
Ensure that the URL is written correctly. Be especially careful to check the use of capitals, as addresses are case sensitive. When writing URLs, try not to have the address continue over two or more lines. Where this is impossible, place the line break at a forward slash.
