University of Newcastle Library
DATABASE
SEARCHING
GUIDE
HyperJinks High
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INDEX
EBSCO MEGAFILE PREMI ER……3
PROQUEST ……7
eRESOURCES AND DATABASES
FOR HIGH SCHOOL STUDENTS … …
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DATABASE SEARCHING
EBSCO MEGAFILE PREMIER
WHAT IS EBSCO MEGAFILE PREMIER?
EBSCO's Mega File Premier Collection contains more than 20 multidisciplinary databases covering a wide
range of disciplines, for example, health, social science, religion, biology, geography and geology and
film studies.
Access to several EBSCO databases is available via your Council Library homepage.
HOW TO FIND EBSCO VIA THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY HOME PAGE
Please refer to the Walk-in Users Guide for access information using the University of Newcastle Library
facilities: http://www.newcastle.edu.au/Resources/Divisions/Academic/Library/our-users/walk-in-userguide.pdf
1. Use the dedicated Library Catalogue (NEWCAT) computer terminals, click on Library Home
2. Click on the Database & eResources link on the left hand side of the screen, under Library
3. Under Browse Databases by Title and click on the letter E for EBSCO
4. Click on Connect to EBSCO Megafile Premier
FINDING ARTICLES – SEARCHING THE DATABASE
 The database will open at the Advanced Search screen.
 Type your keywords into the search boxes.
 You can do several searches using different keywords and then combine the results of each of
search.
 EBSCO has a Search History/Alerts field which show the number of results for each search as well
as the keywords used.
 EBSCO also has a Subject: Thesaurus Term option which has suggested topics which you can use to
narrow or refine the search and will help reduce the number of results.
 Search results can be saved to a USB
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FINDING ARTICLES - AN EXAMPLE
1. Type social networks in the first search box and click on Search or press enter
1. Do a second search using the keywords interpersonal relations and click on Search
2. In the Search History/Alerts field, combine both searches by ticking S1 and S2 and click on Search
with AND. The results of the combined search will then display
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3. Refining searches to journal articles and a selected Publication Date. In the Refine your results
box, click on Scholarly (Peer Reviewed) Journals then type in selected year range. Click on Update.
The results will then display and the
Search History/Alerts box will reflect the changed results.
4. Refining search by using the Subject – Thesaurus Term. Click on the arrow to open the drop down
menu and select a term from the listing eg. Research, and click on Update
The results will then display and the
Search History/Alerts box will reflect the changed results.
5. Understanding your search results
Subject
terms can
be used as
keyword
searches
The details of journal article i.e. name of the
journal, the author and title of the journal
article, volume and issue number, year of
publication and page numbers
The PDF Full text is the
complete article as it would
appear in the journal
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6. How do I save my results?
You may save documents to a USB Drive, abiding by the University’s Copyright Guidelines which can be
found at http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/library/research/copyright/
To save to a USB:
1. Right click on the PDF Full Text icon and select Open Link in a New Window
2. Using the tool bar on the opened PDF document, click on the Save icon and save to USB
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DATABASE SEARCHING
PROQUEST
WHAT IS PROQUEST?
This database contains more than 20 other databases covering a wide range of disciplines: health, social
sciences, science, psychology, education, computing and Australian and New Zealand newspapers.
Access to the Proquest Database is available via your Council Library homepage.
HOW TO FIND PROQUEST VIA THE UNIVERSITY LIBRARY HOME PAGE
Please refer to the Walk-in Users Guide for access information using the University of Newcastle Library
facilities: http://www.newcastle.edu.au/Resources/Divisions/Academic/Library/our-users/walk-in-userguide.pdf
1. Use the dedicated Library Catalogue (NEWCAT) computer terminals, click on Library Home
2. Click on the Database & eResources link on the left hand side of the screen, under Library
3. Under Browse Databases by Title and click on the letter P for Proquest
4. Click on Connect to Proquest
FINDING ARTICLES – SEARCHING THE DATABASE
 The database will open at the Advanced Search screen. If this does not happen, click on the




Advanced Search link.
Type your keywords into the search boxes.
You can choose to search a specific subject area by using Search Forms Customized for each subject.
Proquest has a Thesaurus option which has suggested topics which you can use to narrow or refine
the search and will help reduce the number of results.
Use the Search Tips tab to give you tips, techniques, and information which can help you search with
precision and find what you need.
 Search results can be saved to a USB
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FINDING ARTICLES – AN EXAMPLE
1. Type Australian identity in the first search box and post Federation in the second search . Click on
Search or press enter.
2. The results from the search will then display. To limit to journal articles only, click on the Scholarly
Journals Link
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3. To refine a search by Subject, click on Subject tab. You can choose a subject from the list or click on
More Options to select subject to include or exclude in your search. Click on Apply.
4. To change date range, use either the sliding scale or click on Enter a specific date range, enter in
details. Click on update
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5. Understanding your results:
A. The Preview tab will give you the abstract of the article. This is handy as you will be able to see
if the article is relevant.
B. The Citation/Abstract tab will also give display the abstract plus display the Indexing (details)
ie: Author, article title, Journal title, volume, issue etc
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7. How do I save my results?
You may save documents to a USB Drive, abiding by the University’s Copyright Guidelines which can be
found at http://www.newcastle.edu.au/service/library/research/copyright/
To save to a USB:
6. Right click on the PDF Full Text icon and select Open Link in a New Window
7. Using the Acrobat tool bar which will display on the opened PDF document, click on the Save icon
and save to USB
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eResources and Databases for High School Student Borrowers
Suggested sites for users who have off campus access to the internet
FindArticles.com
A vast archive of published articles that you can search for free. Constantly updated, it contains articles dating back
to 1988 from more than 300 magazines and journal
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Google Scholar
http://scholar.google.com.au/
Google Scholar searches across many disciplines and sources: peer-reviewed papers, theses, books, abstracts and
articles, from academic publishers, professional societies, preprint repositories, universities and other scholarly
organisations.
Gosford City Council Virtual Library
http://www.gosford.nsw.gov.au/library/virtual.html
The Virtual Library provides access to a range of online subscription databases, plus a selection of useful and
authoritative web sites, journal and newspaper articles. These resources are clearly marked if they are free to access
or require a library card/password.
Internet Public Library
http://www.ipl.org/
Well organised, subject listing
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Lake Macquarie City Library
http://library.lakemac.com.au/research
Students need to become a member of the Lake Macquarie City Library to the eResources provided by the Library.
Most databases located in eResources and HSC and Study Guides are available from home by using your library card.
Maitland City Library
http://www.maitland.nsw.gov.au/Library/resources
Students will need to become a member of the Maitland City Library to access the resources and eresources
provided by the Library. Maitland City Library provides free public access to computing services and online resources
for research, study or leisure. Make your library card work for you 24/7 with our wide range of eBooks, eAudio and
eResearch resources. Maitland City Library provides access to a range of online research databases. Online resources
available to library members are detailed below and can be accessed at home, school or work using your library
barcode number.
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National Library of Australia
http://www.nla.gov.au/app/eresources/item/1109
Students can apply online to join the National Library and receive a library card. Access to eresources is
restricted to National Library of Australia registered users and/or users located in the NLA building.
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Newcastle Region Library eResources
http://www.newcastle.nsw.gov.au/services/newcastle_library/e-resources
Students need to become a member of the Newcastle Regional Library to access the eResources provided by the
Library. As a member, you have access to online journals and newspapers articles on a wide range of subjects
including Art & Literature, Management, Family History, Science & Environment and History. An e-reference and
statistics collection is also included. The Library holds computer training sessions for HSC resources. To check
timetable, either contact the library or log onto the library website.
State Library of NSW
http://www2.sl.nsw.gov.au/eresources/browse.cfm
To use the online databases and eresources held in the State Library of NSW, you must be a New South Wales
resident, registered as a State Library client and agree to the following Conditions of Access.
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