Todays lecture was about using online libraries and databases. An online library is essentially a place on the internet that holds books, journals, articles, enclyclopedias etc, that are available for use online. A database is an organised colection of information. In both the libraries and databases, you can type in what you want know about eg: plants and the websites will show you all relevant materials in their collections that are related to plants.
Advantages of online libraries :
- Convenient - you can access it from home
- Electronic Format - easy to put into notes
- Currency - journals are always up to date
Disadvantages of online libraries :
- Some content is hidden - need a subscription to most of them
- Hard to find - most search engines do not show up the libraries
Advantages of databases :
- Comprehensive -contain alot of information
- Current - mostly updated on a regular basis
- 24/7 access - can be accessed anytime anywhere
Disadvantages of databases :
- Some content is hidden - subscription only
- Advertising - contains alot of it
- Information overload - too much can be a bad thing
- Difficult to navigate -hard to find the information you are looking for
The are many types of online libraries and databases. The libraries generally hold text repositories, journals, electronic books or collections of music or artwork. Whether as, with the databases you can search for people, look through email directories, government information and statistics or even news and media articles.
In conclusion I think both online libaries and databases will be vital for use in university research because they are both an extremely useful source of information . Although many are only available through subcription many are also free. Mostly all of these websites are up to date; current information not old irrelevant information is needed to comply with the university standard when writing an assignment.
Tutorial Overview :-
1. Log into the ECU Library service at http://www.ecu.edu.au/library/ and explore.
Here i looked at the various search functions and went through the support services. This library seems very easy to navigate and will be a good resource for my future university studies.
Screenshot of Library:-
By danijolly22 at 2008-04-17
2. Find a journal article on a online journal on the economic impact of global warming on business
I could not find any articles relating to this topic on the ECU journal database but after looking through a few other sites, i have located an article found in the BBC News - World Edition journal database, titled "The economic impact of global warming" which was in the business section.
Screenshot of Journal Article:-
By danijolly22 at 2008-04-17
The following is a list of ten different functions that can be useful when on the ECU library site:-
Journal article database = This is where you would search for books, journal articles, statistics annual reports etc.
Books = This is catalogue of all the books that are available at the different ECU libraries. Search on here if you are looking to hire out books for referencing for an assignment.
Websites = This is a list of key websites differentiated by subjects and is compiled by the librarians. Can be a usefool tool for locating important information.
MetaQuest = MetaQuest is an access portal for library databases that can search up to 10 databases simultaneously.
Quick Catalogue Search = The easiest way to quickly locate information on your topic.
Resource by faculty = If the topic of your assignment was for the faculty of business and law, here you would click business and law, and all the subjects realted to this subject would appear. You would then click on the subject relating to your assignment and the databases, websites and guides for this subject will be shown.
Reserve readings = eReserve is an online collection of high use materials made available in digital format via the Library’s Catalogue. More than one student may need the same book if it is in high demand so it is made available digitally here.
Liberty = This is an information package that will help students learn how to use the library's information sources.
Academic tip sheets = These are sheets that provide information on how to do many things in university and will help you in every aspect of submitting correct university work.
Podcasts = Podcasts are audio files that can be downloaded and played on your MP3 player, or through your PC. ECU library's podcasts include audio tours of each metro campus library, as well as information about using your ECU library.
4. Visit the MEDline plus website - http://www.medlineplus.gov/ and spend some time going through the health topics and drug information.
Screenshot of MEDline plus:-
By danijolly22 at 2008-04-18
5. Is there a particular condition or drug you are interested in? Use the built-in search engine to find out more about it.
I decided to look up dementia because this is what my grandad has and it would be interesting to find out more about it. I found that the website provided alot of information on this topic.
Screenshot of Dementia Page:-
By danijolly22 at 2008-04-18
6. Write who you think might use such a service and what you think they might get from it?
This website provides substantial information relating to all facets of health. It includes pictures and diagrams, definitions, drugs and supplements and also directories for local health services in your area. I think it will be very useful for someone wanting to find out anything about health or health related topics because it is very thorough in the information it gives. It would be also be useful for people who have a medical condition or who know someone with a medical condition because they could come on this site and find out more about it, giving them more of an understanding of what is involved with that condition.
Reading Overview :-
1. Finding out what you want on the webThis is an article by Bill Thompson and is found on the BBC website in the news section. He goes on about finding other forms of searching the internet besides the major engines such as Google. He says databases are a good form of searching as these contain the information that the search engines wont show. However it is hard to locate good databases without knowing about them first. This is where he found blogs came in handy. They contained credibable information that was linked to other online resources. Some databases online are blocked by firewalls and subscription services, but he says it is wise to join subcription because then you know you are not recieving information biased by advertising. Good online research has to involve more than just typing a couple of words into a search form and clicking a button. It is currently impossible to thoroughly search the internet because it is far to large for any search device to sort through. Bill says Google will continue to be his main search engine but will now also use other forms so he can access information from the parts of the internet google doesnt look through.
2. Basic Search Tips
This page showed the different ways of using signs and capitalisation in the search phrase to effect the outcome of websites found. For example :-
Use the plus (+) and minus (-) signs in front of words to force their inclusion and/or exclusion in searches.EXAMPLE: +meat -potatoes(NO space between the sign and the keyword)
OR
Use truncation (or stemming) and wildcards (e.g., *) to look for variations in spelling and word form.EXAMPLE: librar* returns library, libraries, librarian, etc.EXAMPLE: colo*r returns color (American spelling) and colour (British spelling)
OR
Combine phrases with keywords, using the double quotes and the plus (+) and/or minus (-) signs.EXAMPLE: +cowboys +"wild west" -football -dallas(In this case, if you use a keyword with a +sign, you must put the +sign in front of the phrase as well. When searching for a phrase alone, the +sign is not necessary.)
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