Federal Register Reborn
by Philippe Cloutier
The Federal Register’s enhanced online presence is up and running. It is certainly dazzling, and in comparison to the black and white, impersonal, and sometimes too technical print document, the new web 2.0 version proves engaging. FR 2.0 adds photos, sections/categories, friendly navigation and interface, and digital bookmarks (see photo-click to enlarge).
It definitely feels like a web newspaper and represents itself as such, displaying the current date, latest issue, and a focus on browsing. The little things within each document make the experience better: font size and color control, easy access to PDF and XML versions, shortened links, and citation information. Also welcomed are RSS feeds by section, allowing us to stay on top of healthcare and banking systems in flux.Sadly, searches with Boolean operators and advanced options/fields aren’t enabled. However, search results are presented in a sleek fashion, breaking down the results into date, type, agency, and topics, plus options to narrow a search by zip code, and the ability to RSS a search string. Furthermore, historical browsing isn’t as streamlined as browsing current documents, making advanced searching a necessity.
Federal Register 2.0 is a fine product, and I have a feeling that it will stack up well next to other databases, including GPO Access, which I use regularly for FR research. Thanks to all the intuitive and modern features and design, I look even more forward to my next Federal Register reference request.
Themocracy
[…] July 28, 2010 by liskid My latest post is available at the Law Librarians of Puget Sounds blog: Federal Register Reborn. […]