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Table
of Contents
Most
libraries offer their users access to electronic databases. These
databases deliver fulltext articles and reference resources in
an easy-to-use fashion. It's good to become familiar with what
databases are available to you!
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There
are hundreds of proprietary electronic databases
on the World Wide Web available only if you or your organization
has purchased access to them. If you were a high school student
recently, it's likely you had several such databases available
to you through your high school library. Your local public library
offers several.
Unsure what a database is, or why databases are so important in
libraries? Then, go to What is
a Database & Why are Databases Important?
To
use such databases from off-site (i.e., when you are
not physically in the specific library), you
need to identify yourself as someone associated with the subscribing
organization using (usually) a user name or ID, which is often
your library card number.
Cabrillo
College Library subscribes to a number of these databases. Proprietary
databases include extra information or extra services that help
the searcher. For example:
- They
usually allow you to download information easily,
providing printer-friendly versions of articles, and ways to
email articles to yourself
- They
are often fulltext. That is, they include the
complete text of the article, which you can read, print, or
download
- They
provide information and articles that are not available
free on the Internet
Some database
contents are general or interdisciplinary in nature. Others cover
a specific discipline, such as art, literature, music. The databases
offered to you as a Cabrillo College student include
Subject-specific
databases |
| art |
Grove
Art |
| biography |
Biography
Resource Center |
| health |
Health
Reference Center |
| literature |
Literature
Resource Center |
| music |
Grove
Music |
|
General
databases |
| Academic Search Elite from
EBSCOhost -- large database of magazine & journal articles |
| National
Newspaper Articles from ProQuest -- Contents of 5
major U.S. national newspapers |
And there
are others!
You will
use some of these databases to find quality sources for your research.
Explore
the databases just a bit!
- Go
to the Cabrillo College Library homepage <http://libwww.cabrillo.edu>
- Click
on Fulltext Articles Remember:
If you are accessing this from home, your library card number
is your user ID
- Briefly click through
and examine 2 of these online databases. Try
looking something up!
- Biography Resource
Center
- CQ Researcher
- Health Reference
Center
- Literature Resource
Center
Go
to the Bulletin
Board for this class. Once you are there, click on 
Put in your name, and then write a response to the following question
(100 words minimum):
How do you
think you might be able to use these databases? Write a brief
description of one of the databases.
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