Database research at Auraria

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Database Research at Auraria Library

.... Auraria Library has over 300 databases to choose from !

.... Library staff can show you how to search !

.... You can conduct your research at the Library, a lab or at home!

Internet vs. Auraria Library

Are you tired of doing your research on the Internet
and finding too much, or not enough on your topic?

Next time start your research using an Auraria database !

Link to databases now !

A Few Search Tips

Spelling. Spelling counts. If you spell a word incorrectly, you will only bring up other incorrectly spelled words. Also, if there are multiple spellings of a term, use all of them to bring up appropriate sites, for example: Qadhafi or Gadhafi or Qaddafi as in a boolean search string.

Help Screens. Learn to read and use help screens - they are the keys to being able to search effectively.

Capitalization. Use lower case to match words in either upper or lower case. For exact matches (usually in the case of proper names, like New York) use the upper case.

Evaluate. Know your sources for information. Who is the author or the organization represented? Be critical and double check information.

Be Specific. Use the most specific term, for example use the term Poodle instead of dog.

Looking for Articles? Start with the Databases page at Auraria Library. Remember, Search engines such as Google are NOT very useful for finding full-text articles in published sources, unless you use Google Scholar with the special Auraria login.

Save Your Search Results. Look for database features that let you save your search results. Use a flash drive to capture articles or citations, or learn to e-mail them.

Topic Research

More search tips:
Use one of the top three Auraria databases

Begin with a general keyword search to get a feel for what's there Then make your general search more specific by adding words or using subject headings If you've searched for more than 20 minutes and found little, ask at the Reference Desk for help

"Value-Added" research using Auraria databases

Information in proprietary databases at Auraria is "value-added." By value-added we mean that it has been selected, indexed, described and packaged in a way that you can't always find for free on the web.

Proprietary databases offer more powerful searching options than internet search engines.

As an Auraria student you never have to pay when using an Auraria database subscription.

Become familiar with databases such as LexisNexis, Web of Knowledge, and Google Scholar. It will be considered a plus on your resume.

Advantages of using Auraria databases

Online access to full-text, peer-reviewed journal articles at no cost
Resources that you can trust !
Ask your Reference Librarian to show you how !

Your tuition at work - Plain talk about database research at Auraria

Your tuition dollars work for you when your Auraria Library purchases database subscriptions and provides Reference Librarians to assist you in your research. Take advantage of these resources while you are enrolled here.

Many students neglect to use the Auraria Library databases and Reference help because they can't get free printing.

Most of the databases feature e-mail capability. You can often e-mail journal articles and citations to yourself at no cost. You can also save articles to a temporary folder on your workstation and attach them to an e-mail.

Most databases offer the option to save your articles, your searches and research links to a removable "flash drive," at no cost. "Pen drives" are inexpensive. Carry one with you; use it the library or in your labs.

Many documents indexed in databases are retrieved and displayed "full-text," in either HTML or Adobe .PDF format. PDF files can be saved and read with Adobe Acrobat Reader, a free software program.

.... Still not convinced ?

Stop by the Library and let the helpful people at our Reference Desk
show you the advantages of using Auraria databases vs. the open internet !

Database research at Auraria .... begins with ....

Then ... proceeds to specific databases ....

Your Auraria Library has databases that search on-line journals, books, documents and images.
The next time you have research to do, ask one of our Reference Librarians, "How do I conduct a successful database search ?"

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