About
FirstSearch
FirstSearch
is an electronic service that provides information about books, journal
articles, videos, computer software, and other types of material in a
wide variety of subjects. It
consists of several general and many subject-specific databases.
Getting
to FirstSearch
FirstSearch
is available from any library PC.
In order to use FirstSearch, it will be necessary to have a
member of the library staff enter the authorization number and password.
This will take you to the "FirstSearch Home" screen.
Select
a Topic or Database
The
"FirstSearch Home" screen lets you choose a topic or database
to search. On the left side
of the screen, click on a database area. Database areas are general
subject categories into which databases are grouped.
Database
Areas:
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Clicking
on a database area displays a list of the databases for that area, with
the name of the area at the top. To
view a list of all available databases regardless of subject category,
click on "All Databases." To search a database, click on the
name of the database.
WorldCat
WorldCat
is a general database that will appear among the list regardless of
which Database Area you choose. WorldCat
is the OCLC Online Union Catalog. It
contains more than 39 million records describing items owned by
libraries around the world. It
is produced by the OCLC Online Computer Library Center and describes
these types of items: books, computer programs, films and slides, journals,
magazines, maps, musical scores, newspapers, sound recordings, videos.
Searching
Basic
Search
: Once
you have chosen the database that you want to search, enter one or more
words or a phrase in the search box.
Use the Keyword Index box to choose an index. The pull-down menu
lists the keyword indexes available for the database you are using. For
example, you can choose to search by author, title, publisher.
The subject index is the default search.
FirstSearch
responds to a search by displaying a Search Results screen containing a
list of the records found by your search.
In the Basic Search, you can limit the results at the Search
Results Screen. Options for
limiting search results are years, type of material, language and
subject heading.
Advanced Search
: The Advanced Search gives you the option of using several search boxes
to enter multiple words or phrases using the pull-down menus to choose
which indexes to search for each search box.
You can also limit your search by years, type of material,
language and subject heading on the Advanced Search screen before
calling up the results list rather than at the Results Screen as in the
basic search.
For additional assistance in using any of the individual databases,
click on "help" at the top of each screen.
Results
After entering the search terms click on the "Start Search" to
obtain the results list of the records found by your search.
Clicking on one of these records brings up the full record that,
depending on the database being used, may contain an abstract or summary
describing the item. The
record can be printed from the computer or sent to your email account.
Most records do not contain the full text of the item.
Locating
Materials
Since
it will not usually be possible to obtain materials directly from
FirstSearch, it will be necessary for you to look in the library catalog
under the title of the journal, book, video or other material to see if
it is available in the library. Periodical
articles may be available in text, microfiche, microfilm, or ProQuest.
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