Introduction to Searching for Information in the VCU LibrariesLiz Johns

Librarian for International Students

Finding Information – Where to look?

Google? Wikipedia? Library?

How do you choose?

When to use

What’s Online?

The Free Internet:

Wikipedia, YouTube,

etc.

Searchable by Google,

Yahoo, etc

What’s Online?

The Rest of

Internet:

Subscription Content

Professional Information

The Library can help!

The Free Internet:

Wikipedia, YouTube,

etc.

Searchable by Google,

Yahoo, etc

When to use the library• After you have an idea for your topic or research

question.

• You need to find scholarly information.

Types of Library Resources

•Books

•Reference Sources

•Journals

Books

Monographs

• A relatively lengthy work, often on a single topic.

• Good to get an overview of a topic.

• Examples: Pride and Prejudice, The Last Polar Bears.

Reference Materials

• Provides the basic, general information about a topic, often with key facts.

• Examples: Dictionaries, encyclopedias, atlases, handbooks, indices.

Periodicals – Journals and Magazines

Journals

• A publication, issued on a regular basis, which contains scholarly research published as articles, papers, research reports.

• Examples: Journal of Physics, Occupational Medicine, Agricultural History Review.

Magazines

• A publication, issued on a regular basis, containing popular articles, written and illustrated in a less technical manner than the articles found in a journal.

• Examples: Newsweek, Cosmopolitan, Southern Living.

An information source published in multiple parts at regular intervals (daily, weekly, monthly, biannually).

Periodicals - Newspapers

• A publication containing information about varied topics that are pertinent to general information, a geographic area, or a specific subject matter (i.e. business, culture, education). Often published daily.

Different Search Strategies

Type entire question

• What happens when you do this in Google?

• What happens when you do this in the library resources?

Use natural language

• Disagreement in the workplace

• Disagreement on workplace relationships

Searching in the Library

Pick a few main ideas

Disagreement

Workplace

Coworkers

Relationships

Workplace

Disagreement WorkplaceAND

ANDnarrows your search by connecting concepts

Call Numbers

“Available atCabell Library General

Collection”

A – M = 3rd floorN – Z = 4th floor

TitleAuthor

PublisherCall Number

Location

Call Number

Location

Available atCabell Library General

Collection

PN4756.W367

Available atCabell Library General

Collection

BL1255.D3513

Available at Cabell Library Reference

PN4725.J67

Available at Cabell Library Special

Collections and Archives

FC9127.R5 M6

Available at Tompkins-McCaw Library

QK99.A1 R2813 2005

Available atCabell Library See Circulation

Desk

T57.62 .W56 2007

Upcoming Workshop

Finding Information in the Library: Part 2March 19, 6pmNeed to know how to find scholarly or peer-reviewed articles?The library has access to information you can’t find on Google! Bring one of your class research assignments to work on.Location: Cabell Library, third floor, Library Instruction Classroom/Lab