Part Two, Study Skills

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Part Two, Study Skills Using the Library and the
Internet

• Objectives
• This chapter will show you how to use the library
  and its
• Main desk
• Catalog
• Book stacks
• Periodicals indexes
• Periodicals area
• Online databases
• In addition, this chapter will teach you to use
  the Internet to
• Find books on your subject
• Find articles on your subject

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• For most research topics there are 2 basic steps
  you should take
• Find books on your topic
• Find articles on your topic
• You can find these resources by using the library
  or the Internet.

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Libraries provide study space, word-processing
facilities, and copy machines. The librarys
reading area contains recent magazines and
newspapers. The heart of the library the main
desk the library catalog of holdings book
stacks periodicals storage area
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Main Desk The main desk is usually located in a
central spot. Here, you can often obtain a
brochure that describes the layout and services
of the library. Library Catalog The library
catalog is your starting point for any research
project. A catalog is a list of all the holdings
in the library. Book stacks Book stacks are
library shelves where books are arranged
according to their call numbers.
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Periodicals Magazines, journals, and newspapers.
Periodicals often contain more recent or more
specialized information about a topic than you
will find in a book. Online Databases Online
search services and CD-ROM databases are quick
ways to find hundreds of periodicals and
full-text articles on your subject. You can often
print them for a fee, or e-mail them to your own
computer at home. Other reference materials The
reference area includes reference materials such
as dictionaries, atlases, yearbooks, almanacs, a
subject guide to books in print, anthologies of
quotiations, and the like.
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Three ways to find a book Author Title Subject
Call number a number that shows you where to
find the book in the library. This number
identifies one specific book. It appears in the
catalog entry and on the spine of the book.
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Using the Internet The Internet is a giant
network that connects computers at tens of
thousands of educational, scientific, government,
and commercial agencies around the world. The
World Wide Web is a global information system
which got its name because countless individual
websites contain links to other sites, forming a
kind of web. A search engine is a tool that
combs the Web looking for sites or articles your
research needs. You type in one or more keywords,
and the search engine provides you with a list of
hits, or links, to websites and articles
containing your keywords.
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• To use the Internet, you need
• A personal computer
• A modem (a device that sends and receives
  electronic data over a telephone line for the
  cost of a telephone call)
• A subscription to an online service provider
• You may be able to search your schools library
  resources from home if they are online.
• You can do searches for books on your topic at
  large online bookstores.
• You can make a bookmark to allow you to return to
  favorite Websites without having to remember the
  URL or Internet address.

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Abbreviations in URLs or Internet
addresses .com commercial .edu educational
institution .org organization .gov
government .net Internet service providers and
some businesses