Library Orientation English 1A, Prof. Minahal Laney College Ann Buchalter, MLIS

What LIBRARY Information Sources Should I Use? Books –in-depth coverage –written by specialists –Historical background Reports (Issues, CQ, etc.) –Present both sides of an issue –great for background info –Cover popular topics & current events –Timelines, facts, further reading Journal Articles –Facts with hard research/numbers –Current information –written by specialists Magazine Articles –Facts –very current information –written by journalists who may or may not be specialists (depends on the magazine)

Feeling Overwhelmed?

1.How to search for books in the Laney Library online catalog. 2.How to search for journal and magazine articles in Laney Library’s online databases. 3.How to evaluate a website to determine if it’s academically acceptable. Today we are going to cover:

1) Keyword search 2) Title search 3) Author search You can search the catalog in many different ways, but we are going to keep it simple:

Before searching we need a “strategy” or words to enter into the search box: Let’s say your Topic Question is: How does the media affect one’s body image?

I did NOT select How does the OR affect one’s ---Why do you think I didn’t include those words?

Because these words don’t describe my topic – To find the BEST results, you want to use ONLY the essential concepts. We will type media and body image into the search box in the catalog… Laney Library

Selecting a book before you even see it: Contents: lists the chapters in the book

If you decide you want to look a the book, you will need to get the copy information Check availability Call Number and Floor

Use the “Subjects” category to find more books on your topic: If you see an interesting Subject, click on it and it will take you to other books that are on similar topics

Periodical/Journal Articles? Where do I begin?

Laney College Library Full-Text Journal/Magazine Online and Report Databases CQ Researcher Opposing Viewpoints Issues & Controversies Academic OneFile Laney Library

To look at magazines click on the tab To make your search more specific use the Refine Results box college

Title of Article # of pages

Title of journal Abstract (summary) To look at the article, click on the title

Here are your keywords for this search Subjects can be very useful—click on them if you other helpful keywords To or Save to flash drive

Evaluating Web Sites Authority Relevance Appearance Domain Sponsor