Come again? First, Google and Wikipedia are better than no source at all, which is what we have so far. Second, my googling includes Google Book Search, which is far more efficient for this type of random query than anything I ever did in libraries. Third, it sounds like you're assuming the story about Alexander is true, where "true" here can be taken to mean "comes from the traditional stories about Alexander". I'm suggesting that it doesn't. For one thing, Plutarch's life of Alexander doesn't mention the story. Plutarch would be the last person to leave out a good one like that.
I'm happy to be wrong, but showing that requires a source. As far as I can tell, the story was originally about Tariq ibn Ziyad (see my other comment in this thread) and subsequently hopped to Caesar, Alexander, and Cortes, probably because they were better known.
On second thought, you are right. I was thinking of Alexander having to build boats in India.
On the other hand, Google book search has never worked for me. But I do think Google is waaaay better then nothing. Howewver, I am not certain that Wikipedia, as it stands, is actually a net gain.
Okay, please cite the dead tree written by a credible historian. Near as I can tell, there are tons of claims about famous conquerors who burned their ships (Caesar, Alexander, Cortez), but the only reputable source I know about is the Iliad. Which was a very lovely piece of fiction, but nevertheless fiction.
I believe it was the Trojans who burned the Greeks' ships in the Iliad.
I want to archive this comment as evidence that in the year 2011 Google and Wikipedia still were not as good as books and libraries.