Library Instruction
ENGL 1301/1302 –Freestanding
Library Home Page http://rattler.tamucc.edu
Portal—Bell Library’s online catalog
Look for references to books, videos, and print journal titles here
Begin with a Word search
Use Subjects to find similar items
Journals List—very long list of all periodicals to which the Bell Library subscribes
Search here if you know the title of the journal you need
Use the list to verify whether or not we subscribe to a particular (sometimes the linking
software does not work)
Shows electronic access as well as print/microfilm holdings
Be sure to check the dates
Databases—Electronic indexes of print and online journals…NOT just a huge data set
Tells you where, i.e. in which journal, an article is located
Bell Library subscribes to electronic and print journals—not everything will be online!
Some have full text, others do not
Some are linked to other databases that do have full text (look for S.F.X. or Full-text linking
icons)
Categorized by subject
Quick Search—benefits and drawbacks
Bell subscribes to ~250 databases, owned by dozens of companies (vendors) such as Ebsco,
CSA, ProQuest, Wilson, etc.
Useful databases for this class include:
Academic Search Complete (Ebsco)—scholarly, multi-disciplinary, 6000 journals indexed
JSTOR – archived full-text scholarly journals from History and the Social Sciences
Points of View Reference Center –Overview, Point and Counter Point and Guide to
Critical Analysis and great Writing Resources
Lexis Nexis Academic –find current news and information here (NOT scholarly)
Credo Reference – full-text citations from Reference Books—authoritative alternative to
Wikipedia.
***See Subject Guides for more in-depth descriptions of databases in all disciplines.***
InterLibrary Loan (ILL)—don’t pay for articles!
The ILL office can get your article or book from another library
You may not get it immediately or in electronic format, but it’s free!
mark.pfeifer@tamucc.edu
Evaluation—http://rattler.tamucc.edu/E.html
Save, Print, E-mail
Most databases have a way for you to keep track of citations and articles. Look for check
boxes (mark this record) or folder icons (add to folder). If a PDF is available, you may have to
open it and save, print, or e-mail the document from the PDF toolbar.
mark.pfeifer@tamucc.edu
Evaluation—http://rattler.tamucc.edu/E.html