Tutorial of Online Databases
Gates Memorial Library
When seeking information at the Gates Memorial Library,
there are three ways of starting a search:
1. LSCPA Card Catalog
2. eBook Collection-NetLibrary
3. Subscription Databases
How to search for materials that are located
in the Gates Library
The online LSCPA Card Catalog
By starting at the LSCPA homepage, the online catalog is available
through a drop-down menu that includes Online Databases. The user
then clicks on the blue link for the LSCPA Card Catalog.
There are three types of searches available in the Gates online catalog: Browse
Search, Simple Search, and Power Search. Users need to be aware of their basic
differences:
1. Browse Search: allows the user to search records by title, subject, or
author’s name. A single drop-down menu under Look for provides
other options.
2. Simple Search: allows keyword searching. Of all three types, this one
allows for the broadest possible search. However, a Show search
options link provides ways of limiting searches.
3. Power Search: Simply put, this type is a combination of a Browse
Search and a Simple Search and can provide for the most limited
searches.
The homepage of the catalog looks like this. The Search tab in the
navigation bar at the top has an embedded drop-down menu, listing the
three types of searches available—Browse, Simple, and Power. The
default search mode is the Browse Search.
This is a Browse Search. Under the phrase Look for, a drop-down menu
limits a search by Subject, Title, etc. Next, the user types a word (or
phrase) into the spacebar to the right. In this example, the user is going
to search for all records in the catalog in which the word Hurricane is the
subject. Finally, the user clicks on the orange Go box.
Here, the user wants to take a look at the two records available for the
subject heading Hurricane Camille, 1969. (Hits refers to the number of
records.) To see other pages dealing with hurricanes, click on the third
red arrow above the word Hits.
This is the page that the user sees after clicking on the orange Find
button. Each record contains basic bibliographic information, such as
title (highlighted in blue), author’s name, and call number.. Please note:
author names are listed last name first, and Availability lets the user
know whether or not an item is on the shelf. To begin a new search, the
user must click on the black Start button near the top.
This is how the page will appear for a Simple Search. By scrolling down
the page, the user can read more about performing simple searches.
Here, the user wants to search for records containing the keywords poets
and england. The next step is to click Go.
The original search produces 22 results (Unique Hits). By clicking on the
blue Show search options link below the search bar, the user can
possibly narrow the number of records retrieved. The next screen shows
how to do this.
There are various ways to limit search results. In this example, the user
has entered the years 2000 and 2010 into the space bars below
Publication Year. In so doing, the catalog will retrieve the records of just
those items published between 2000 and 2010, thereby limiting the
search results. The user then clicks on the orange Go button.
Now, the user can work with a smaller set of records--seven, to be exact.
All of the records represent books that are in the Gates collection. By
looking at Availability in each record, the user can determine whether or
not a particular item can be checked out. After clicking on the Start
button once more, the user can perform a new search.
Now, the user wants to perform a Power Search. This page appears after
the user clicks on the Show search options link below the search bars.
Here, the user is going to perform a highly limited search by entering the
following criteria: witchcraft as a Subject, salem as a Subject, and 2004
as the Year (of publication). Finally, the user limits the search by
selecting DVD in the Media drop-down menu near the bottom of the
page. The orange Go button is then pressed.
Unsurprisingly, the catalog retrieves just one record. This particular
record is for a DVD of the motion picture The Crucible. However, it has
been checked out. Not to worry…the user can place a hold on this item
by one of two ways: by clicking on the Hold Request Form link in the
middle of the blue left-hand column, or by asking at the circulation desk
in the library.
In case an item is not on the shelf, the eBook CollectionNetLibrary is certainly an option.
In the event that a user wanted to go beyond the scope of the LSCPA
Card Catalog, the library’s eBook collection would certainly be an option.
By default, the Basic Search appears once the eBook collection option
has been selected. However, an Advanced Search is also available.
Either way, a drop-down menu to the left allows the user to search by
Keyword, by Title, etc. The next screen shows the records retrieved for a
keyword search of vampires.
The first record that appears is the eBook Dracula. A summary of the
book appears, but the user can view the entire book online by clicking on
the blue link View this eBook located below the summary.
Upon clicking the View link, a Table of Contents of the eBook appears at
the left. The user can easily scroll down a list of chapters. In the main
screen to the right, the user can view any selected chapter, with the page
number in red in the top right-hand corner. At the top of the screen,
pages can easily be changed by using the Previous and Next buttons or
by typing the number in the space next to Page.
Question: in the quest for information, what does the user
need?
Does the user need a book or a video?
or… Does the user need something online, like an article or
an image?
This time, let’s say that the user wants to find online articles
through the Gates Memorial Library…How?
Subscription Databases
Below the link to the LSCPA Card Catalog is a list of database links. By
clicking on any one topic (underlined in blue), the user can find a
synopsis for each database.
If the user clicks on Academic Search Complete, this is the page that
appears. In the toolbar located in the top right-hand corner, a Help
button provides access to a tutorial for all EBSCOhost databases,
including Academic Search Complete.
The user would click on the EBSCOhost Tutorials link in the left-hand
column. Each tutorial is a how-to video about a certain function, like
basic and advanced searches, visual searches, and reading an article.
If the user clicks on the Dictionary of Literary Biography, this is the page
that appears. In the toolbar located on the left-hand side, a Help button
provides access to a helpful tutorial.
The user can select any one of the links in the above list to find out how
to perform certain searches.
This is how the homepage for Literature Online appears. In the upper
right-hand corner, there is a Help button that provides access to a helpful
tutorial.
After clicking on Help, another window appears. This window contains
links to various search functions.
SIRS, which stands for Social Issues Resources Series, is a database of
information pertaining to various social, scientific, health, historic,
economic, political, and global issues. The Help link at the top of the
page can provide more details on how to search.
In addition, a two-minute online video serves as a tutorial for the SIRS
database. To find this tutorial, the user must first go to the following web
address: http://www.proquestk12.com/videotraining.shtml. Then, the
user would have to click on the arrows next to SIRS Issues Researcher,
shown in the above example.
A. Performing searches
Using Academic Search
Complete as an example, one
can search for a full-text
article by using the Cited
References tool at the top of
the screen.
Above is a shot of the screen that appears once the user selects Cited
References. Within the appropriate search fields, the user types the
information that is provided in the second bibliographic citation. Kuh is
the author’s last name, the article appears in the journal Change, and the
publication year is 2001.
Record number 12 is the one that the user needs. In order to view a fulltext copy of this article, the user must select either the HTML Full Text
option or PDF Full Text.
B. Citation examples
Whenever the user locates
relevant information, such as
an article, some of the online
databases will show how to
properly create a citation.
MLA and Chicago/Turabian
are common citation formats
used.
If the user wanted to see how
to cite the Kuh article, for
instance, the title (in blue)
would have to be clicked.
By then clicking on the Cite tool on the right-hand side of the screen, the
user can see various citation formats,
Above is an article located in the SIRS (Social Issues Resources Series)
database. To the right is a Citation link, which allows the user to see how
to cite this particular article in the MLA format.
Another tool that might be useful is the Audio MP3 link (below Citation).
Various databases are equipped with this tool, which allows the user to
listen to an article being read.
Finally, a number of links near the top allow the user to share this article
with other researchers. For example, one can share the article through
email, print, Facebook, Twitter, or MySpace, just to name a few.
In searching for information in the Gates Memorial Library,
there are three main databases available:
1. LSCPA Card Catalog
2. eBook Collection-NetLibrary
3. Subscription Databases
The subscription databases, especially, might prove useful
during the course of the semester. Although this tutorial
highlights key features which exist, there are many other
applications to explore. This depends on the database being
used and the needs of the user.
In case the library staff can be of further
assistance, please call at (409) 984-6220 or
984-6224.