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How to use CD-ROMs and other databases |
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What will I learn in this tutorial?In this tutorial you will learn the essentials of using electronic databases. You will be able to:
The best time to do this tutorial is immediately before you start searching in a database, so that you can test your new skills straight away. Many databases are available on the world wide web and can be accessed from the Databases page. There are also tutorials on using specific databases. What are electronic databases?An electronic database is an organised list of published information sources (usually journal articles), either giving directions (a citation) to where you can find the full information or containing the information itself (full-text databases). Each information source has an individual record. Each record is made up of fields. Each field contains a different piece of information about the source. The database searches for information contained in these fields. Databases do not all function in the same way, but the same basic skills and knowledge will allow you to use most databases. What's the difference between the databases?Databases differ in subject matter, in forms of material included, the availability of full-text and in the access method. There are three ways of accessing databases at Monash (some databases can be accessed in more than one way):
There is no direct cost to the Monash user for accessing these services. They are provided for the purpose of making the learning, teaching and research activities of Monash staff and students easier. What can I find in a database?In databases you can find details of material (journal articles, product reviews, documents, conference papers and in some cases, books) that can form the basis of, or add greater depth to, your research. You can also check bibliographic information about journal articles. You might also find:
Important copyright note: Use of data extracted from electronic databases for purposes other than academic research or teaching/learning may be forbidden or restricted under the terms of our licences. Please consult with library staff if you wish to use the data for other purposes. Which database should I use?Most of the electronic databases available through the Library are sorted into subject on the Databases page. There is a wide variety of databases for every subject area. Many popular databases are available through the Library's database network or on the world wide web. When choosing a database you need to check:
Some databases might be more useful than others for particular topics, even if they deal with the same subject area. Always try more than one if possible. More details about each database is available from its library catalogue record, or the Databases pages. What am I looking for?To search effectively it is important that you consider exactly what question you are trying to answer. This is called developing a search strategy. Following these steps will help you to simplify your question:
When you complete these steps you will have a list of search terms to start with. Be willing to add and subtract from your list. If you do not understand all the terms involved in your topic consult an encyclopedia or dictionary, or ask a fellow student, tutor or a librarian. To increase the likelihood of finding relevant material, you need to think about alternative terms that can be used to describe the same concepts. You should think about:
Many books, journals, webpages and databases are produced in the United States and therefore favour North American spelling and terminology, so include these in your alternative expressions if appropriate. Sometimes using a thesaurus or specialised dictionary might help, particularly if you aren't clear about some terminology or concepts. How do I get into a database?Just as there are different types of database, so there are different ways of getting into them. The best way to find out about any special requirements (e.g. passwords) is to consult the Databases page. Databases can be accessed from these locations:
To find out which category the database you want falls into, check its record on the Databases page. The most heavily used databases are available via the World Wide Web. How do I search in databases?Essentially searching is simple - type a term (or terms) into the search window and click on the "Search" button. You will usually get some records (hits) in return. But by using a few simple techniques you can make your searching more effective. To search databases effectively, with the maximum number of really relevant records being returned to you, you need to understand and apply the techniques described on the next few pages. Not all techniques will work in all databases, but if you understand these steps you will have the skills to search most of them. Using ORYou can combine multiple terms into one search to get more records or "hits". You do this by using the Boolean operator OR. Most databases offer Boolean searching. For instance, if you type in itch or scratch the search engine in the database will find all the records that have either of these words or both words in them. So you should get quite a lot of hits. Boolean is library terminology (derived from mathematics). All you need to know is that Boolean searching allows you greater control over the way that you search.
Phrase searchingSometimes you might want to search for a phrase, rather than individual terms, especially if the terms are common words. This is called phrase (or proximity) searching. Not all databases do this, but some do it by default if you do not put a Boolean operator between the terms. Others allow you to specify how close the two terms are to each other. Phrase searching allows you to combine words so that you only get records where the words are next to each other in the order specified. For example, if you were looking for records about the High Court you would get more precise results by using the phrase high court than if you used high and court. When you first use a database it is a good idea to establish whether the default setting is a phrase search. Some databases automatically insert AND between words, others assume they are a phrase. In some databases you can specify that the terms are NEAR one another (eg. smith near jones), sometimes even how near they are to each other. Consult the help screens of the database to see if this is possible. Using ANDYou can combine your search terms to try and limit the amount of material or "hits" you get, or to make them more specific to your search. To do this you can use a Boolean operator, AND. The AND operator is used to reduce the number of hits you get. When you use AND the search engine only returns records that have all the specified terms in them. For instance if you use fish and chips the database engine will only return records with both the word fish and the word chips in them.
FieldsA catalogue or database record is divided into fields. Each field contains a different detail about an information source. Fields (and their names) vary between databases, but the most important ones are: author, title, source (which make up the citation you will need to find the information), abstract and subject headings. You should take note of:
Other fields can help you to find material on the same subject, or can give you additional details about where the information you want can be found. Revising your termsAs you search you should be prepared to revise your search terms, and add to or subtract from them as necessary. Check the records you obtain for useful terms to use in further searches. Some general tips on improving your search: The database you are using will affect the effectiveness of your search strategy e.g. using music in a music database will return almost everything, while using symphonic in a general arts database might restrict you too much. You may find that the terms you have chosen are too broad so you will need to be more specific, e.g. use classical music instead of just music. Some terms might be too specific, and will return too few hits, e.g. try rock music instead of grunge. Remember to use the subject headings or descriptors from records you think are useful to look for similar records. Use them in completely new searches, or link them with terms from your original search using AND and OR. Identifying what you findSome databases list material other than journal articles, such as books, book chapters and conference papers. To find this material you need to know which part of the record to look at:
For more information on identifying different information sources, see the How to decipher and use your reading list tutorial. What should I be writing down?Once you have found records that you think will be useful you need to note down where to find the information. You can do this by writing it down, or you can use the database to save the results to a floppy disk. If you are writing down the results it is essential that you take note of the the author, title and source (including the volume, issue, date and page numbers) fields so that you can find the information later. If you are using a database in the library it is always a good idea to bring formatted floppy disk with you. Most databases will allow you to save records to a floppy disk so that you can refer to them or print them out elsewhere. The saved records can be viewed in virtually any word processing software. Some databases have the facility to email the results to an address that you specify. Check the help screens of the database you are using to find out the exact method of downloading. How can I improve my search?Your first attempt at searching might not be successful. You may retrieve too few relevant records, or too many to be useful. The next few pages describe some tactics you can use to improve your search. If you retrieve too few relevant records it could be that your search needs to be less restrictive. If you retrieve too many records to be useful it is likely that your search has not been specific enough. These are some ways of improving your search result. Experiment to see which works best for a particular search. TruncationMany searches can be made easier by using truncation (sometimes called wildcarding). To do this you use a symbol in place of a letter or letters in a search term. For example, in the library catalogue you can key in Australia? and find all the words in the database that begin with Australia eg Australia, Australian, Australians. In other databases Australia$ might have the same result. Most databases and search engines offer truncation, although the truncation symbol varies. They could be a $, ?, *, or #, if in doubt, check the Help files in the database you are using. You can also use truncation to look for alternate spellings of terms eg colo?r would find both color and colour. This function is not available in the library catalogue, you need to specify the alternate terms eg color OR colour. Using NOTYou can combine your search terms to try and limit the amount of material or "hits" you get, or to eliminate irrelevant terms. To do this you can use a Boolean operator, NOT. The NOT operator is used to reduce the number of hits you get. When you use NOT the search engine only returns records that do not have any terms that you do not want in them. For instance if you use music not jazz the database engine will only return records that have the word music but do not have the word jazz in them. Use with care as you may be eliminating useful records. In the example above you would miss out on records that have information about types of music including jazz. NOTE: in some search engines and databases you need to type AND NOT to achieve this. NestingYou can construct complex searches by using brackets to combine terms into nests. In this way you can limit or add search terms to each other for greater control. Nesting can be tricky, so use with care. One use of nesting is to combine two synonyms using OR, then limit your search by combining the results with an AND search. For example, the search string: When you are nesting you need to be careful that:
No hits?If you get no hits try the following:
If none of these help, you may be using an inappropriate database for your needs. See what others are available. Many databases offer a thesaurus or index of all the terms within the database, or even build a tree-like hierarchical structure of these terms to help you narrow down what you are searching for, especially in the Sciences. This is often a good way to find out which terminology a database is using eg heart attack or heart arrest. Not enough hits?If you get too few hits try the following:
If none of these help, you may be using an inappropriate database for your needs. Check what others are available. Many databases offer a thesaurus or index of all the terms within the database, or even build a tree-like hierarchical structure of these terms to help you narrow down what you are searching for, especially in the Sciences. This is often a good way to find out which term a database is using to describe something eg heart attack or heart arrest. Too many hits?If you get too many hits try the following:
If none of these help, you may be using an inappropriate database for your needs. See what others are available. Many databases offer a thesaurus or index of all the terms within the database, or even build a tree-like hierarchical structure of these terms to help you narrow down what you are searching for, especially in the Sciences. This is often a good way to find out which term a database is using to describe something eg heart attack or heart arrest. SummaryThe key points to remember about using databases are:
if you need more help contact the library. |
