HIST 100: Western Civilization I (Hendley)

Reference books, specifically encyclopedias and handbooks, provide brief, reliable information about a topic.  They are excellent starting points for research when you need to find background information, important concepts, names and dates.  These sources often include lists of books and articles for further reading.  Background sources generally do not count toward the number of required sources because they provide overviews rather than substantial information.

Students can request free photocopy of pages in reference sources at the Research Help Desk.  Staff members will attempt to make copies at the time of the request, but students should generally expect to pick up photocopies one or two days after the request has been submitted.  A scanner is also available in the reference area for copying information.  Assistance is available at the Research Help Desk.

Background Sources Categorized by Geographical Areas, Time Periods, Subjects, and Source Types

Geographical Areas

Time Periods

Subjects

Atlases

Biography

Chronology/Timeline

Course instructors often select library materials to be placed on reserve.  Personal resources can also be placed on reserve.  Materials on reserve have limited circulation periods, for example, two hours, two days, or seven days.  Professor Hendley’s reserve readings are good starting places because they provide information to further research on the questions assigned.

Click on Course Reserves under Student/Faculty Services on the library website.  Select words in Instructor Name in the drop-down menu under Search Type.  Enter the faculty member’s name, for example, Hendley.  Select appropriate titles and note availability.  Click on the title to see the full record for each item and note the call number and loan period after Location.  Take the call number and your SUNY Oneonta ID card to the Circulation/Loan Desk to check out the item.

Use the Classic Catalog link at the top of the library home page.  This is an index to the physical contents of Milne Library and to selected books, documents, and media available online.  For books in Milne, note the call number for the item and consult the information guide Library Floor Plans to determine the location of the item.  For electronic books, follow the link to the Electronic Book or Online Item.

Search Tips:

• Use truncation to search for variations of a word, including plural forms

Example:  myth* finds myth, myths, mythology, mythological, etc.

• Use quotation marks to search for a phrase

Example:  “middle ages”

A Words Anywhere search will bring up a list of items that might not all be on your topic.  For example, if you enter “music” in the search box, your results will include items with “music” anywhere in the record for the item, which could be in the title, author, publication information, contents notes, or subject headings.

In any list of results, the number of items owned by the library will be followed by the number of items in circulation, for example, (1 owned/0 out).  In this case, the book should be available in the library.  Click on the title to see more information about the item.  Click on terms after Subject for items that provide more substantial coverage of the topic.

WorldCat is an online database listing materials in the U.S. libraries and selected libraries throughout the world.  Holdings are indicated for Milne Library, and the Stevens-German Library at Hartwick College.  You can search by author, title, subject, and keyword.  If Milne Library does not own an item, you can request items by following the Request via Interlibrary Loan link provided on the record for an item in WorldCat.  Locate WorldCat in the alphabetical list of databases.  You can also check out items at Hartwick College with your SUNY Oneonta ID card.

For academic research, it is often important to use peer-reviewed (or refereed) journals rather than popular magazines. Peer review is the process by which a journal article is evaluated by experts in the field. An example of a peer-reviewed journal is the Renaissance Quarterly. An example of a popular magazine is People.

All of the following databases are listed on the web site in the alphabetical list under Databases.

Databases Covering Many Subject Including History

Gender Studies

History

When searching print and online access tools, use search terms such as SOURCES, CORRESPONDENCE, PERSONAL NARRATIVES, DIARIES, RECORDS AND CORRESPONDENCE, SERMONS, SPEECHES, and PAPERS.

Look for titles of primary sources in secondary sources and in lists included in bibliographies of secondary sources. Use text, class, and library bibliographies, as well as items on reserve for recommended titles or listings of primary sources. 

Locating the full text of the article in electronic form:

If there is no full text with the citation for an article in a database, click on Full Text Finder.  If the full text of the article is available in another database, there will be a link that connects to that database, in which the article can be found.  If the article does not appear, enter the article title in the search box to complete the search.

Locating the article in print or microfilm, if not available in electronic form:

Link to OneontaLocal, and then click on Is it here? Note available issues and location. Print periodicals are located on compact shelving, and microfilm is available in metal cabinets in the Microfilm Room, both of which are in the Periodicals Room in the library sub-basement (SB floor).  Help is available by calling the number on the telephone in the Microfilm Room.

Requesting an article on Interlibrary Loan:

If the article is not available at Milne Library in any form, request the article through the link Request through Interlibrary Loan.  Registration on the library web site is necessary to submit requests.  The Interlibrary Loan link is listed under the Student/Faculty Services tab. 

• Use the Journals tab at the top of the library home page.
• Enter the title of the journal or magazine, for example, Past and Present, in the search box and click on the magnifying glass icon. The title of the periodical, if available, will appear the top of the results list.  Click on the title of the periodical. ​​

• If the title is available in library databases, Full Text Access will link to databases that include the full text of the title.  Check dates of coverage to determine if full text for the needed article is available.  Click on the Database title and search for the needed volume and issue number of the periodical OR enter the title of the article in the search box to obtain the full text.

• If the title is available in print or microfilm, the link Print Journals in Milne Library will lead to information about the specific issues available in Milne Library.  Click on Is it here? Note specific library holdings, and locate the title in the library.  Print periodicals are located on compact shelving, and microfilm is available in metal cabinets in the Microfilm Room, both of which are in the Periodicals Room in the library sub-basement (SB floor). 

The EBSCO Discovery Service points researchers to appropriate databases, but is not a substitute for searching these databases.  EDS merely “scratches the surface” of selected library databases to produce a single list of results, including print books, electronic books, scholarly journal articles, magazine articles, research reports, documentary films, and much more. 

NOTE:  Because results include Open Source titles, not all materials are appropriate for college research assignments.

Click on the Advanced Search, and enter terms in the search box.  You can limit search results by unclicking boxes next to “apply related words” and “also search within the full text of the articles.”

Refining or Narrowing the Results:

The results from a search can be very large.  Use the limiters on the left side of the page to refine and narrow your results.  The most useful limiters are listed below:

Subject:

Click on Subject and then Show More to see a list of all subjects.  Subjects at the top represent the largest number of results.  Subjects at the bottom will give the fewest results.  The list can be alphabetized by clicking on Name.  You can select multiple subjects.  Update results.

Location:

Use to limit results to items owned by Milne Library.  Click on desired format(s). Update results.

Source:

Click on Sources and then on Show More for a selected list of databases in which results were found.  Select the most appropriate databases.  Update results.  Searching individual databases listed leads to additional results and is recommended for the most effective searching.

Use Databases tab on the library web site to link to alphabetical list of individual databases. Click on database name(s) and enter words in the search box(es).  Searching the individual databases improves search results because more refined searching can be done with appropriate subject terms.  

Date:

Use to limit results to particular dates.

Mary Lynn Bensen (MaryL.Bensen@oneonta.edu)
Milne Library, SUNY Oneonta
January 2017