1. Biographical Sources
Sajjad ur Rehman

2. Use Ready reference Brief background Extensive information
Historical/biographical research

3. Types of Sources Direct: Brief or extensive information
Indirect: Pointing to sources; indexes, guides, etc.
Original Sources: biographies, autobiographies, primary sources

4. Considerations Time factor Coverage
Retrospective
Current
Coverage
General and comprehensive
Subject or specialty (artists/authors, etc.)
Area: universal, regional, national, state, city, etc.

5. Evaluation Criteria (1)
Scope: criteria for inclusion of entries
Comprehensiveness
Accuracy: use of original sources, biases, conflicting facts
Authority and Authenticity
Objectivity
Format

6. Evaluation Criteria (1)
Currency
Frequency of revisions and updating of entries
Responses to questionnaires in many direct sources
References
Other Factors
User needs
Cost
Uniqueness

7. Biography & Genealogy Master Index (B&GMI)
Most comprehensive, covering both current and retrospective; more than 6 million references to hundreds of biographical sources
International coverage; American emphasis
1981- base of 8 volumes; annual updates; 5-year cumulative indexes
Dialog Online: Biography Master Index
CD version

8. Biography Index
One of the Wilson indexes; quarterly; annual and biennial cumulations; retrospective as well as current coverage; heavily used in public and academic libraries
Indexes 2700 periodicals and thousands of biographical monographs
Available as Dialog file and on CD-ROM

9. Brief and Direct Sources-Current
International Who’s Who
Current coverage, annual, Europa publication, more than 20 k entries; readable; detailed information
Who’s Who in the world
Current coverage, annual, Marqus pulication; based on questionnaires; liberal criteria for coverage; targeted for international market

10. Brief and Direct Sources-Retrospective
McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Biography
11 v, 12th volume is the index; 884 contributors; authoritative
Webster’s Biographical Dictionary, 1943-
20 updates, since 1983 name changed to Webster’s New Biographical Dictionary; 30 k entries; international coverage
New Century Cyclopedia of Names: 100,000 entries from English-speaking world

11. Specialized Sources Contemporary Authors
3 types of articles: basic information, sketches on several columns, and essays
9,500 authors included
references included
complex organization
cumulative index

12. Extensive Information
Current Biography
monthly, each issue containing 15 long and analytical essays, authoritative, contains a photo, has history of the individual and the family, updated essays, obituaries included, cumulation named as: Current Biography Yearbook

13. Biography Sources on Web
25,000 current and old biographies
27867 biographies (10989 biographies in English)
Public information facility used for learning; covers many areas