| Finding
journal, magazine and newspaper articles |
- The book catalog
includes the titles of journals, magazines and newspapers
(periodicals) that the library subscribes to but not the
individual articles that have been published in that periodical.
For example: a search of the book catalog for new york times
will show that we subscribe to that newspaper but will not
show you a list of articles published in it.
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So, in order to find what articles have been published
in a particular journal, magazine or newspaper you need to consult a
periodical index. |
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Periodical Indexes
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A periodical index is just like an index you would find
in the back of a book that lists people, places, subjects etc. that
are mentioned in that book. A periodical index contains information
about articles published in periodicals and provides citations to
those articles so that you can know where articles on your subject
have been published. |
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- Periodical indexes
at GCCC Library are generally electronic
- Electronic
periodical indexes are also called journal databases
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Journal Databases |
| A database is
an organized collection of information. A journal database is a
periodical index that is accessible online for ease of searching and
access. GCCC has divided up the list of
databases into "librarian selected" (the most popular) and "Title
sorted" which has a complete list of all of the databases available to
you. Begin your research with the librarian selected. |
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| Features
of Journal Databases |
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Subject Coverage |
Usually a journal database will
be subject specific e.g. Health and Wellness Resource Center
indexes articles from health related journals only. However,
databases can cover a broad range of subject areas e.g.
Academic Search Premier indexes articles from business, social
science, general science and the humanities. |
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Content |
Databases can contain citations
to articles, citations with abstracts, and the text of the article
itself (known as full-text) depending on the database. |
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- Choose the right
database for your needs.
- You may need to search
in more than one to find all the information you need.
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| Gulf Coast Community
College Library subscribes to a number of journal databases. You can
access these from the library's web site at
http://library.gulfcoast.edu/databases/journals.html . |
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- Each database that GCCC Library subscribes to is
listed with a description of the subject areas covered and the type
of information included in it (e.g. full-text availability,
citations only etc).
- Select the best one for your needs.
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Academic Search Premier
is a great place to start.
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| Access |
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Who? |
Access to GCCC
Library databases is available only to students of GCCC, FSU-PC
and Troy State students enrolled at Tyndall Air force Base. |
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How? |
When prompted for
a 'borrower identification number' you will need to enter the
first initial of your first name, the first initial of your last
name then the last 4 digits of your social security number. For
example Matt Burrell's log in would be mb9999. |
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Problems? |
If you receive a
message such as 'Invalid borrower identification number' or any
other error message please
contact us. |
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| You will use the same set of
search skills whether searching an online book catalog, journal
database or the internet. Most electronic search screens will share
the same functions and features so once you know how to search one
database you generally know how to search them all. |
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| Common Search features: |
- A basic search box that will conduct a
keyword search.
- Search limiters which allow you to limit your
search by date or by material type (full-text, peer-reviewed
etc).
- Additional search screens that allow expanded
search options. Here you can limit your search by author, title,
subject, journal etc.
- Help files that provide search instructions
and tips.
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| Tip: |
| It is always a good idea to read
the Help pages of any electronic resource you are searching as some
specific search features can vary in different resources. You will
also discover new search techniques. |
| Look at these help files: |
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Step by step instructions:
1. Start by clicking on
Find Articles from the library's
homepage
2. Choose Academic Search Premier from the list
3. Log in using your first name initial and your last name initial and
last four digits of your social security number. For example, John R.
Smith would use js9999 (the last 4 digits of John Smith's social security
number).
4. Still having trouble logging in? There is another way to get to the
database. Go to the Book Catalog,
then click on LinccWeb on the top right. You will need to enter your
social security number and then the last four digits of that number as
your pin. Make sure you select Gulf Coast as your college. When the page
loads go through the steps to sec=arch the database Academic Search
Premier.
5. You will be connected with Academic Search Premier and see a page
like this:
6. Enter your search term(s) in the Find box, then click on Search. You
will get a page with results like this:
7. Click on the title of the article for more information. The results
list will include different kinds of full text, or just have a citation.
HTML Full Text is a fast loading page with the entire article. PDF Full
Text is an exact image of the article (and looks just like you photocopied
the pages on a photocopier).
8. If needed, go back and add additional terms to your search. Continue
to advanced research about articles.
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