This is the thinking person's guide to electronic information seeking. As such, it provides context for the reader, something academics, researchers, and scholars should appreciate. THE rule for doing research ON the Internet is, don't be impatient. While it is true that the only way you can ever learn to DO research on the Internet, is to actually do it, this kind of activity is only Phase 2 of an appropriate strategy. And, Marchionini's book provides excellent preparation.
Effective practice combines both.
The rest is detailed explanations and examples - but it's all good stuff. And novices need it. This is the most elementary kind of information. That's too conventional and complacent. A large part of their approach is to alert us to the fact that our thinking has become habituated.