Viewing EBSCO as the Maine Mall!
EBSCO is the vendor from whom the Wellehan Library (and indeed, most Maine colleges & universities) leases access to the many subject specific databases available for the campus community. From the EBSCO homepage (www.ebsco.com), you learn that "EBSCO Information Services is a worldwide leader in providing information access and management solutions through print and electronic journal subscription services, research database development and production, online access to more than 100 databases and thousands of e-journals..."
From the library homepage, there are two ways to access the databases--via a title or subject list. Unless you know the specific name of a database, you would be best served clicking on the subject list, and choosing a specific database from there. You should receive, under any subject, several databases from which to choose to begin your search. For a thorough search, you may wish to search all of the suggested databases, and given a specific topic, you may wish to search even more.
Some disciplines, such as Psychology, Sociology, Education, Nursing and Medicine, use "controlled vocabulary" to index the material in their area. While keyword searching makes this somewhat less important, using the controlled vocabulary terms of the discipline makes certain that the best results are returned from a search. In order to use the thesaurus while searching online, it is recommended that you search only the primary database in that discipline. When you do this, the thesaurus (or in Soc Index--subject terms) function is available on the green toolbar if the initial search screen you receive. Enter your keywords in the lower search box, typically marked "Browse." This should provide access to the controlled vocabulary. For example, if one searched "Learning disabilities" in the ERIC thesaurus and then clicked on that term, a definition and scope note are provided as well as related terms. You might decide to focus your search on "disallows" or "attention deficit disorders," rather than the broad topic of learning disabilities.
EBSCO now also provides citation creation service after the searcher has marked the records useful to the search. If one clicks on the folder and then the email function, a column will be included labeled " include when sending." Pull down on the "Industry Citation Format" and
click on the format which is desired for the citation. Enter your email address and you will receive the marked citations (as well as the full text of the article if available) in the desired format!
From the library homepage, there are two ways to access the databases--via a title or subject list. Unless you know the specific name of a database, you would be best served clicking on the subject list, and choosing a specific database from there. You should receive, under any subject, several databases from which to choose to begin your search. For a thorough search, you may wish to search all of the suggested databases, and given a specific topic, you may wish to search even more.
Some disciplines, such as Psychology, Sociology, Education, Nursing and Medicine, use "controlled vocabulary" to index the material in their area. While keyword searching makes this somewhat less important, using the controlled vocabulary terms of the discipline makes certain that the best results are returned from a search. In order to use the thesaurus while searching online, it is recommended that you search only the primary database in that discipline. When you do this, the thesaurus (or in Soc Index--subject terms) function is available on the green toolbar if the initial search screen you receive. Enter your keywords in the lower search box, typically marked "Browse." This should provide access to the controlled vocabulary. For example, if one searched "Learning disabilities" in the ERIC thesaurus and then clicked on that term, a definition and scope note are provided as well as related terms. You might decide to focus your search on "disallows" or "attention deficit disorders," rather than the broad topic of learning disabilities.
EBSCO now also provides citation creation service after the searcher has marked the records useful to the search. If one clicks on the folder and then the email function, a column will be included labeled " include when sending." Pull down on the "Industry Citation Format" and
click on the format which is desired for the citation. Enter your email address and you will receive the marked citations (as well as the full text of the article if available) in the desired format!
posted by Wellehan Library | 11:58 AM
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