James A. Duda Memorial Library
Research Sites and Tips
Online Catalog & Subscription Databases
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DMS Library Catalog
All
library materials including books, periodicals, and AV materials can be
accessed through our Destiny catalog. It is now available online.
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This
resource provides databases storing thousands of articles originally
published in magazines, newspapers, and journals. This is an EXCELLENT
resource for just about any topic. Read below to find out what types of
resources you can access!
*The EBSCOHost password is available in the library.
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This database contains:
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The American Heritage Children's Dictionary
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Picture Search
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Funk & Wagnalls New World Encyclopedia
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Middle Search Plus Magazines
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Encyclopedia of Animals
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Primary Search Magazines
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This resource allows you to search for novels by title, series, author, plot, keyword, and genre.
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You can find publication information, summaries, and book reviews of the books.
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You can also find fiction award winners and lists of books by type (ex. mystery, horror, etc.).
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"Each
subject-specific database offers students and researchers an
unprecedented depth of coverage - with extensively hyperlinked full-text
records, citation information, and a wide range of printable teacher
resources. Our online content is indexed by subject experts and updated
regularly to ensure accuracy and currency."
*The Facts on File password is available in the library.
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Searching Tips
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- Don't forget to try print AND online resources to find your information!
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- Before
you begin your research, think of broad and narrow search terms to use.
It helps to have several different terms for the same topic in case you
try to search on a lesser-used term. For example, if your project is on
Crime Scene Investigation, possible search terms could be: CSI, crime
scene investigation, forensics.
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- When searching in online databases or with Internet search engines, there are a few helpful tricks to remember:
- If
you want to search for a specific phrase, put it in quotes (i.e. "crime
scene investigation"). This prevents the search engine from bringing up
sites or articles with just the words "crime" or "scene" or
"investigation" in them. It will only return hits containing the entire
phrase.
- Use Boolean operators to refine your search (and, not,
or). For example, if I entered the search term (CSI or "crime scene
investigation") the database or search engine would return hits
containing the achronym "CSI," hits with the phrase "crime scene
investigation," and hits containing both. If I used one of the following
two search strings, (CSI and forensics), I would ONLY
get web sites containing BOTH terms (not web sites containing either and
both). Boolean operators are important because they can help filter out
useless web sites and they can ensure the inclusion of relevant ones.
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- **Different
web sites and databases use other operators to filter or broaden
searches. The tips on this page represent the most common operators.
Read the introduction to the web site or database before you search in
it to get the best results.
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