Spot check the sources cited by the author. Always rely more on books and articles. It is much more difficult to publish a book or an article in a journal than it is to place material on The Web. Although there are privately published books, they are not usually easy to find. Most books in a college library have been bought at the request of a faculty member or after a check by a librarian.
Most journals are subject to editorial and peer review.
There are no such controls on websites. On the other hand, websites can be updated much more rapidly than can either books or journals, so the information may be more current. One of the most exciting features of The Web is the availability of original documents that have been scanned or typed in and posted in electronic form. As with any other publishing medium, however, unless the provider of documents is extremely careful, mistakes will be introduced in the electronic form of the document. Personal anecdotes versus hard research .