Electronic Resources:

Electronic indexes and abstracts have made research much easier and faster than ever before, but there is a learning curve that is involved that most people don't realize. For instance, in order to use one of these resources, you must first know how to search the resource effectively. This involves the use of help screens, knowing how boolean operators work, and knowing how to put together a search strategy, before you can even begin to search for your topic.

But think of the time saved once you have mastered these concepts.  Before computers, researchers had to plow through volume after volume, month after month, of an index to make sure that they saw everything there was to see on a topic. Now, we have years worth of information at one's fingertips - and one can usually print off the information rather than hand copying it from print.

On the other hand, not everything is available electronically - despite what the IBM commercials would lead us to believe. Sometimes the best resource for one's topic is still in good 'ol print!

The following resources can be found on the Cline Library Indexes web page. Go to the Cline Library Home Page, click on Indexes, the chose the Title List for the complete listing on electronic databases we own.

** Academic Search Elite (EBSCOhost)
** Academic Universe (Lexis-Nexis)
** America: History and Life
** The Arizona Republic
** Biography and Genealogy Master Index
** Book Review Digest
** ERIC
** Expanded Academic Index (InfoTrac)
** NewsBank Newsfile Collection

*   Art Abstracts
*   Bibliography of Native North Americans
*   Books in Print
*   Business Source Elite (EBSCOhost)
*   Congressional Universe (Lexis-Nexis)
*   Education Abstracts Full Text
*   Encyclopedia Americana Online
*   Global Newsbank
*   Health Reference Center
*   Historical Abstracts
*   Mental Measurements Yearbook
*   MLA International Bibliography
*   National Newspaper Index (InfoTrac)
*   PCI - Periodicals Contents Index
*   Statistical Universe (Lexis-Nexis)
*   Ulrich's International Periodicals Directory
*   UnCover

#   Associations Unlimited
#   IDEAL
#   MathSciNet
#   Medline (AZHIN)
#   PAIS International and Select
#   PsycLit
#   Sociological Abstracts
 

Questions to consider:

Which of these Indexes or Abstracts have we seen in its printed version?

Which are strictly an index and which have abstracts?

Which of these titles are full text? (or at least some of the entries are full text?)

What are some of the advantages of using an online index rather than a printed one?

What is the interface like? Is it easy to understand how to work the system, or do you have to struggle with it?

Do you find the "help screens" helpful? Are they easy to find?
 
 

Sample Questions:  See General Indexes and Abstracts