(MLA-Style Citations of Electronic
Sources)
Endorsed by the Alliance
for Computers & Writing
The basic component of the
reference citation I have compiled is simple:1
Author's Last Name, First Name. "Title of Document."
Title of Complete Work [if applicable].
Version or File Number [if applicable]. Document
date or date of last revision [if different from
access date]. Protocol and address, access path
or directories (date of access).
STYLE SHEET
(Endorsed by the Alliance for Computers & Writing)
FTP (File Transfer Protocol) Sites
To cite files available for downloading via ftp, give the
author's name (if known), last name first; the full title (of a shorter work in
quotation marks; of a larger work, in italics); and the document date (if
available). Next, give the protocol (i.e., "ftp") and the full FTP
address, including the full path needed to access the file. Last,
list the date of access, enclosed in parentheses.
Johnson-Eilola, Johndan. "Little Machines:
Rearticulating Hypertext Users." 3 Dec. 1994.
ftp://ftp.daedalus.com/pub/CCCC95/johnson-eilola
(14 Aug 1996).
WWW Sites (World Wide Web) (Available via Lynx, Netscape, Other Web Browsers)
To cite files available on the WWW, give the author's name,
last name first (if known); the full title of the work, in quotation marks; the
title of the complete work (if applicable), in italics; any version or file
numbers; and the date of the document or last revision (if available). Next,
list the protocol (e.g., "http") and the full URL, followed by the
date of access in parentheses.
Burka, Lauren P. "A Hypertext History of Multi-User
Dimensions." MUD History. 1993.
http://www.utopia.com/talent/lpb/muddex/essay
(2 Aug. 1996).
Telnet Sites (Sites and Files available via the telnet protocol)
List the author's name or alias, last name first (if known); the title of
the work (if applicable), in quotation marks; the title of the full work or
telnet site (if applicable), in italics; the date of publication or creation
(if known); and finally the protocol (i.e., "telnet") and complete
telnet address, any directions necessary to access the publication, and the
date of the visit, enclosed in parentheses. Separate commands from the address
with a single blank space.
traci (#377). "DaedalusMOO Purpose Statement." WriteWell.
telnet://moo.daedalus.com:7777 help purpose (30 Apr.
1996).
Synchronous
Communications (MOOs,
MUDs, IRC, etc.)
Give the name of the speaker(s) and type of communication
(i.e., Personal Interview), the address if applicable and the date in
parentheses.
Include the name or alias of the author or speaker (if known); the type of
communication (i.e., "Personal interview") or, for synchronous
conferences, the session title (if applicable), enclosed in quotation marks;
the site title (if applicable), in italics; the protocol and address, including
any paths or directories, the command sequence (if applicable), and, in
parentheses, the date of the conversation.
Kiwi. "Playing the Jester Is Hard Work." DaMOO.
telnet://damoo.csun.edu:7777 (4 Dec. 1996).
GOPHER Sites (Information available via gopher search protocols)
List the author's name (if known), last name first; the title of the paper
or file, enclosed in quotation marks; the title of the complete work (if
applicable), in italics; and the date of publication (if known), including any
previous publication information (if applicable). Include the protocol (i.e.,
"gopher"), the address, the gopher search path or directories
followed to access the information (if applicable), and, in parentheses, the
date the file was accessed (if applicable).
African National Congress. "Human Rights Update
for Week No. 10 from 5/3/96 to 11/3/97."
gopher://gopher.anc.org.za:70/00/hrc/1997/hrup97.10
(1 Jan. 1998).
Email, Listserv, and Newsgroup Citations
Cite the author's name (if known) or the author's email or login name (the
part of the email address before the @ sign), followed
by the subject line of the posting, enclosed in quotation marks; the date of
the message if different from the date accessed; and the name of the discussion
list (if applicable), in italics. Next, give the address of the list, or the
protocol and address of the newsgroup, followed by the date accessed in
parentheses.
Crump, Eric. "Re: Preserving Writing." Alliance
for Computers and Writing Listserv. acw-l@
unicorn.acs.ttu.edu (31 Mar. 1995).
Electronic Publications and Online
Databases
List the author's name, last name first (if known); the title of the
article, in quotation marks; and the title of the software publication, in
italics. Next, list any version or edition numbers or other identifying
information, the series name (if applicable), and the date of publication.
Finally, cite the name of the database (if applicable) and the name of the
online service--both in italics--or the Internet protocol and address, any
other publication information, the directory path followed (if applicable),
and, in parentheses, the date accessed.
Christopher, Warren. "Working to Ensure a
Secure and Comprehensive Peace in the Middle
East." U.S. Dept. of State Dispatch 7:14,
1 Apr. 1996. FastDoc. OCLC. File
#9606273898 (12 Aug. 1996).
Software Programs and Video Games
Cite the name of the author or corporate author (if available); the title of
the software program, in italics; the version number (if applicable and if not
included in the software title); and the publication information, including the
date of publication (if known).
ID Software. The Ultimate Doom. New York:
GT Interactive Software, 1995.
1Margins and line breaks on
examples have been forced to simulate hanging indents in print, while trying to
preserve margins for various sized browser windows. For a more complete discussion
of citation formats for both humanities styles and author-date styles,
including in-text citations and specific examples, see the Columbia Guide to
Online Style by Janice R. Walker and Todd Taylor (1998).
For more information on finding and using electronic sources, see the Longman English Pages
For information on citing sources in the text using parenthetic notations, see http://www.cas.usf.edu/english/walker/parenthetic.html
Source: http://www.columbia.edu/cu/cup/cgos/idx_basic.html