What is a library database?
- A library database is an electronic (online) catalog, index, and/or full-text of published items
- Library databases are searchable
- The library subscribes to many databases so the Cal State LA community has access to these resources. When you're searching a database, you are not searching "the web".
What types of items are covered by library databases?
- Articles in Journals/Magazines/Newspapers
- Reference Information (i.e. entries from Encyclopedias, Dictionaries, etc.)
- eBooks
- Documents including primary sources
- Media including streaming videos, streaming music, images, and art works
- Data, data sets, and statistics
- Open Access journals, magazine, and ebooks that you can access without login
What types of information do library databases provide?
- Databases provide citation information about the items they index. A citation typically consists of:
- Author's name
- Title of Article
- Source (i.e. Title of the Journal/Magazine/Newspaper)
- Publisher
- Date of Publication
- Some library databases also provide abstracts of the items they index. An abstract is a brief summary of the article.
- And some library databases provide the full text (the entire article) for items they index.
How do library databases differ in what they cover?
While most library databases index items from a specific subject (i.e. academic discipline), some index items from many subject areas.
If you're not sure which database to choose, the Academic Search Complete database is a good place to start.
