How to make the most of Birkbeck Library during your studies

June 2010A demonstration of Birkbeck Librarys eresources

What does the term eresources cover?Electronic books (ebooks)Electronic journals (ejournals)Full-text databasesBibliographic databasesStatistical dataImagesOnline exam papersInstitutional repositoryHow to access eresourcesGo to the Library website.Select eLibrary or search the catalogue for ebooks.Set the institutional cookie (lasts for 18 months).Select the resource you wish to use.Enter your IT Services username and password when prompted.Some courses use the Virtual Learning Environment- Blackboard - and you may also be able to link directly to items on your reading list from here.

3eBooksThese fall into two main categories:

Reference packages, covering dictionaries, encyclopedias, etc. http://ipac.lib.bbk.ac.uk/hipres/info/permalink.html?344644

Electronic versions of textbookshttp://ipac.lib.bbk.ac.uk/hipres/info/permalink.html?420044

e.g. Collins Dictionary of Economics from CredoThe Unconscious at Work Obholzer (via catalogue)4EjournalsBirkbeck Library provides access to over 20,000 ejournals via the eLibrary

If you know which ejournal you are looking for it is possible to quickly check if this is available.http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/elib/ejournals

If you want to find out what has been written on a particular subject or by a particular author you will find it useful to search one or more databases. http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/elib/databasesShow how to find content when you know what youre looking fore.g. on reading list:Hepple, B. (2009) The Right to Privacy and Crime Detection in Cambridge Law Journal Vol.68(2) p. 253-2565DatabasesThese can be:

Full-text you can read the complete articles straight away http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/elib/databases/arts/jstor

Bibliographic will give you the author and title details, plus often a summary (abstract) of what the article is about, but you may have to check elsewhere to find the full-text http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/elib/databases/science/sci

Or a mixture of the two - where some but not all resources can be read in full, e.g. PsycInfo

e.g. Full text - JSTOR global warming and globalisation / descartes and divine will

Bibliographic - PsycInfo cognitive development and babies6Statistical data and imagesData The Library provides access to a number of data sets, including the Census and statistics produced by the International Monetary Fund and Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/elib/databases/statImagesThe Librarys Visual Image Service provides access to a number of collections, as well as providing links via the library website to collections of freely available material. http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/elib/images

Statistical data Databases & Online resources Statistical databases scroll through what we have

Images eLibrary Visual Images Online

7Content produced at BirkbeckExam papersThe current archive stretches back to 2002 for some courses. http://www.bbk.ac.uk/lib/elib/exam

Institutional RepositoryA collection of book chapters and journal articles written by academic staff at Birkbeck. http://eprints.bbk.ac.uk/

eLibrary past exam papers select a year and department

Repository via eLibrary, Browse by school Computer Science & Informatics (for e.g.) 2nd result, English spellchecker / Roger Mitton has full-text pdf.8Any questions?