The following tools provide free information on a variety of topics:
- AnyWho Online Directory (AT&T)
Locate telephone numbers and addresses for both businesses and people. Other notable features include maps, reverse lookups (enter the phone number and it will return the owner's name and address), a toll-free directory, and links to international directories.
- Calculators & Converters
Calculate the distance between two cities, perform metric conversions, calculate inflation, and more.
- CIA World Factbook
Unclassified since 1971, the Central Intelligence Agency's annual World Factbook provides a reliable resource for information on independent states, dependencies, areas of special sovereignty, uninhabitable regions, and oceans.
- Information Please Almanac
The online version contains all of the facts from the printed almanac, plus a dictionary and encyclopedia.
- Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL)
The Purdue Online Writing Lab (OWL) offers over 200 free resources about writing, research, grammar, English as a Second Language, and professional writing.
Note: The American Library Association (ALA) has a list of the best free reference web sites.
Many other libraries and institutions have created lists of free databases.
One additional free search tool to consider is Summon (from Princeton). You will see information about journal articles, books, and other materials...but you will not have links to the full text materials.
