Research then and now?

[neo]

I read on here somewhere that the internet has sped up research a lot. I'm curious to hear from someone who has searched before the web became mainstream and that has adapted to using it. I'm wanting to know how research was done back in the day and how it is done today if differently.

 

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I made bookstores rich. Had to live real cheap to do that, but no regrets.

The Internet changed things. Nowadays information is so cheap, same price as absolute rubbish. The cost of publishing is so low that editors don't exist any more. BS detector better be turned on and tuned up.

 

[Mackaydon]

Back in the day I would fly to certain repositories for information; usually specific libraries that house microfilm and microfiche. Sometimes I'd have to wait in a Special Collection section until a seat, gloves and book binding support would be available. On other occasions, I would have to write to sources and wait a week or so for their reply. Then there was the cost of all copies, the airfare, the taxi fare, meals out, being away from my family, etc.
Today, I could probably receive the same information within a couple of hours of online research--without the cost.
Don...

 

[MrLee]

Although I am long out of the industry, I use to be in title insurance and I had to do a lot of research on microfiche. What a pain in the ass. That was the late 90's before Google and everyone and their grandma started to digitize things. Nowadays, my friends just pull the docs off one of the services they subscribe to.

Ya, there's a lot of crap out there now, but as Don pointed out, without leaving your home you can have the answers you're looking for to a hell of a lot of questions within minutes.

I was a teen when the college BBS's were the rage, then my early 20's when AOL brought America online. Now in the age of social media you don't look for information, it comes to you. It's been a very interesting, albeit slow process, thanks telecoms. We were supposed to be out past Jupiter by now, flying cars, etc. I guess we'll just have to settle for mobile phones and Clash of Clans, (tokyokool if anyone is looking for a clan).

 

[Jason in Enid]

In the old days, you spent days and weeks in the local libraries and museums. You knew all the staff by first name you were in there so much. You carried a bag full of dimes to "xerox" pages of books, and maps. You had stacks of microfiche printout of old papers.

You were also very limited by what your library had on hand. Today I can old, local maps from archives across the country. I can download everything and look it over in my leisure. The problem is that now everyone can find the same data with a few key strokes. In the past you had to work for it.

One item I will add, you can often find a lot more detail if you look at those maps in person. Sometimes the people who photo them don't know what they are doing or using bad equipment and you lose all the fine detail (like names and words) on the scanned version.

 

[Mackaydon]

MrLee,
You mentioned the title business........in the early 60s (and as a banker in the RE department) to find the owner of a property, I had to search large Grantee/Grantor books at the County Recorder's office--or else hire the Title Co. to do the same exercise. Gone are those days--thankfully.
Don........

 

[Charlie P. (NY)]

On the other hand - 50% of the information wasn't nonsense as it is now on the Internet so it was easier to find relevant material.

There was something called a "reference desk" at libraries and many journals, directories of perodicals, and reference material books would give relevent material sources. Then you started pulling and reading. It was routine to spend 12 hours at the library on Saturday and Sunday to get materials and much more weeknights. And it had to be properly footnoted.

 

[BeeperBoy]

Hiya Guys,
Interesting tread you got going here. I I have also spent countless hours through the years at the Library scanning old newspapers from around the turn of the century on microfiche and now days, the computer.
I look for picnic, festival or any type of meeting notices inviting the public to various outdoor events.
In the days before radio & TV, socializing was the main form of entertainment. People looked forward to Sunday (or any) activities that got them off of the farm for a while. I Look for ads like:
"Odd-fellows picnic July 2 at Wagner's Grove 1pm - bring a dish, Fun and games for all"
I jot this info down or make a copy of the print if available. Then continue reading the paper searching for more clues and/or leads. Once I have several leads I'll go to the librarian and ask for a Plat map from the same time period. Find the land owned by the "Wagner" family. Now I know when and where a picnic was held. Check earlier and/or later issues, it's possible it was an annual event, which means possibly more goodies! Further research on the "Odd-fellows" may produce further clues or leads.

(Obviously, do I really need to say this ... "Odd-fellows & Wagner were EXAMPLES")

I have found many, many places to hunt using this method. Including a 1874 train wreck that was close by. A little leg work can tell you if the place is hunt-able. I go to the property and just look for a good place to picnic. It may be built up by now, OR it may still be pristine virgin ground. Now days with Google Earth you can zoom right in to the area in question and find out SO much more before you even leave the library.

Also on the subject of Libraries and librarians ... I have also gotten a tremendous amount of help and additional leads from them, they know all kinds of things you may never even realize. Think about it, librarians probably lead a dull thankless life for the most part. If you take one into your confidence tell her you are “Researching TREASURE leads” and explain why you need her help. Believe me you will spark a bit of adventure into this women's humdrum life that she's gonna love. They will bend over backwards to help you out. I have had a couple of old cronies in the past, but most times they are a big help. I have returned on a couple of occasions and rewarded them with a silver coin or interesting relic to thank them for their help. Try it. It works!

 

[Mackaydon]

What still may exist today is the limitation on the number of books you can check out from a library at one time. Even more restrictive are Research libraries where no book could be checked out. Thankfully, the Interest, today, has overcome many of those drawbacks--where the books are now online.
Don.....

 

[boogeyman]

One thing that I like is you can sit and take a pic with your cell phone of a page, bring it home & run it through your OCR software. Made me laugh thinking about "twelve hours in the library" Pretty bad when the third microfiche machines chair fits your butt better than the recliner at home because you use it more.

BTW What ever happened to the old 80s thing where we were going to be a paperless society? Still waiting for my rocket boots!

 

[Jason in Enid]

One thing that I like is you can sit and take a pic with your cell phone of a page, bring it home & run it through your OCR software. Made me laugh thinking about "twelve hours in the library" Pretty bad when the third microfiche machines chair fits your butt better than the recliner at home because you use it more.

BTW What ever happened to the old 80s thing where we were going to be a paperless society? Still waiting for my rocket boots!

LOL, yeah I remember spending hours writing notes in my research book in the library's "special collections" room where nothing could be checked out. Lots of dimes spent printing out microfiche pages too.

 

[neo]

Even though I'm new I like to buy old books when people really had to go out and work for information, I grew up in the internet age and hate how many places have just copied and pasted the same stuff. The web still has its uses I really need to find more old books about treasure in western nc so far all my info from lots of books has been very scarce on the western side of the state.

 

[boogeyman]

Even though I'm new I like to buy old books when people really had to go out and work for information, I grew up in the internet age and hate how many places have just copied and pasted the same stuff. The web still has its uses I really need to find more old books about treasure in western nc so far all my info from lots of books has been very scarce on the western side of the state.

Believe it or not, give your Good Will a shot! A lot of times you'll walk out with an armload of gems with $2 price stickers. If you have more than one in your area hit them all at least once a week.

 

[kcm]

There are TONS of digitized books online - OLD books! Many are available from Google, not to mention a number of other websites. Can usually select the type of download you want; .pdf, .dox, etc.

I've got quite a nice collection of mining/prospecting, geology, assaying/metallurgy, and then lots of BLM files that provide LOTS of information on older mines. I can only guess that there are also lots of old treasure hunting books/literature out there for download. The trick is, finding texts that are more fact than fiction.