LIS 663 Basic Database Searching Selecting software platform and databases Session 11. Dr. Péter Jacsó Fall 2015

Jacsó  Not a choice if you have one software platform in the library (e.g. EBSCO)  Not a choice even when several platforms available but the best dbs are only on one  ERIC, MEDLINE, PsycINFO are usually on several platforms  Should your system preference wag the database choice?  Can you be competent and efficient in 20+ professional search software ?  One db is often not enough for comprehensive research

INTRA-SYSTEM OPTIONS - Jacsó  Search syntax is the same but db prefixes & suffixes JN, AU, DE are NOT  Be careful with descriptor searching  Many inconsistencies in Journal, Author, Institute, Country name formats

Jacsó  How many databases can be searched in one fell swoop in OCLC (3), Ovid (5), EBSCO (all), ProQuest (depends on type – consider Historical NewsPapers issue)  De-duplication of results  Whose record is kept in the final set  How the duplicates are presented (Ovid rules the waves) - INTRA-SYSTEM OPTIONS -