Universities offer a great diversity of information on the Internet. However, not all organizations are the same, so if the .org is obscure, it's best to carefully investigate the organization and its purpose. The same is true for trade organizations. A mysterious Web publisher or author is one to avoid. An example is Forrester Research, a respected and often quoted source of research on the effects of technology on business, consumers, and society.
Web sites are commercial, yet represent a recognized source.
Information obtained from a personal Web homepage, listserve, usenet, or chat room is hearsay, opinion, often emotionally charged, unsubstantiated, and can be highly unreliable. However, it still can be used, but cautiously and by carefully identifying the source. For example, research about consumer feelings of brand loyalty can make use of opinions collected from news groups located through a usenet search at DejaNews . Think about sources as if they were arrayed along a continuum. Information can be presented in many different formats.