Need to do Research? Use a Database!
A database is a collection of information, which you normally can’t get on the Internet. Sometimes the information is an electronic version of a book. Sometimes it’s information that you can’t get any other way.
A database might be
- A multimedia encyclopedia
- A collection of magazine articles
- Company information
- Articles from scholarly journals
- Maps and geographic information
- Biographies of famous people
- Genealogical information
- Information about your favorite author
- Or almost anything else!
The reason that databases are so special is that they’re not free. If you wanted to get them yourself, it would cost a lot of money. So the library buys them, and lets you use them with your library card!
Use the databases in the library or you can login with your library card number, and PIN from outside the library. Click on “description” next to each title, to learn more about that database, or click on the title to go to that database.
You don’t even need to know which database to choose. Use our “Federate Search”, it’s like a Google search! Another option is to search databases by subject, fast and easy. Go to the top of the Databases A-Z page, and type in your keywords. Then, click on a format type or a subject (topic) , from the list below the search box. Then click Go. The computer will search through several databases on that topic, and give you all the most revelant results. Then just choose the articles that are most interesting.
K-5th grade students may want to try the Library’s Kids Databases A-Z to make doing homework fast and fun! These databases are design just for this age group!
The top ten library databases right now are:
- HeritageQuest
Audience: Adult
Description: A huge collection of genealogical resources, including copies of the US Census data from 1790 to 1930! - Biography Resource Center
Audience: Middle school through adult
Description: Biographies of people from ancient history to now. The information is drawn from 130 books published by Gale Group, from 265 magazines, and from Marquis’ Who’s Who. Find out about people by name, or by occupation, ethnicity or nationality. This is an electronic version of print resources, so this counts as a “book” for your bibliography. - Health and Wellness Resource Center
Audience: Middle school through adult
Description: One stop shopping for medical and health information. Need to know about a disease or condition? Want to find out about the drug your doctor just prescribed? Don’t know what a medical word means? Want to find out what your risk of breast cancer is? This is the source to use! - Reference USA
Audience: High school through adult
Description: A nation-wide telephone directory, covering the United States and Canada. This includes both residential and yellow page information. You can also find out who lives close to an address. Includes EDGER information for business listings! - Learning Express
Audience: Elementary school through adult
Description: A test preparation program. Learn how to take a particular test, before you actually take it! Includes academic skills for all grade levels including SAT/ACT, firefighter/police/EMS, nursing, real estate, civil service, citizenship, Advance Placement exams, GED, cosmetology, and more! - Business and Company Resource Center
Audience: Adult
Description: One stop shopping for business information. Business news, company and industry rankings, market share data, financial reports and much more! - Literature Resource Center
Audience: High school to adult
Description: Find out about authors, books, stories and poems. Find literary criticisms. Check a timeline, and see what the world was like when a story was written. Find out where your favorite author will be speaking next! - Opposing Viewpoints
Audience: Middle school to adult
Description: Find out about social issues, such as capital punishment and terrorism. The perfect tool for a homework assignment, or if you need to “one up” your brother in law at dinner next week. This information is drawn from the “Opposing Viewpoint” books, and from magazine articles, so this counts as a “print” source for your bibliography. - Newsbank
Audience: Middle school to adult
Description: Archived copies of the Las Vegas Review Journal back to 9/26/1996, the Reno Gazette Journal to 1/1/1999, and a huge number of newspapers from all over the country and all over the world! This includes Noticias en Español, Spanish language papers! - Academic Search Premier
Audience: High school through adult
Description: Your source for scholarly articles. Access to nearly 3500 scholarly journals, including peer reviewed journals and full text articles.
How do I get the full-text of the article?
You successful find a citation for a magazine or newspaper article in one of the library’s databases and you’ve got to have the full text. What do you do?
Many of the databases index the same magazines. Some provide full-text of the articles and others do not. Here are some tips & tricks to find them:
- Search for the magazine, journal or newspaper titles available online in Find Newspapers, Magazines & Journals.
- Check the Library’s Magazine List- this lists which libraries in LVCCLD have the print version of the magazine or journal.
- Check the Library’s Newspapers Subscriptions – this index lists which libraries in LVCCLD have the print version of the newspapers.
- If all else fails do an InterLibrary Loan Request (ILL – Journal/Newspaper article request).
Help! My Teacher says I can’t use the Internet for my report.
Databases use the “Internet” as a way to get to the information, they are not the same as a Website. If your teacher states that you can only use one Internet source, the Library’s databases do not count as that Internet source.
The Library databases are made up of digitalized copies of books, magazines and newspaper. They have the exact same content as the paper copy so they are considered a print resource. You will need to cite any articles used out of them as an online. Look for citation help in the database, most of them provide it for you.
Google vs. Library Databases
Why should I use the Library’s databases instead of information found via an Internet search?
| Free Web | Library Databases |
| Shallow information on many topics | In-depth research on many subjects |
| Long, unorganized lists of links | Well-organized by topics |
| Often biased, unreliable, or inaccurate | Authoritative, accurate, checked by experts |
| Best information is proprietary and often fee-based to patrons | All database information free |
| Do-it-yourself searches only | Professional librarian assistance |
