Why Should You Use the Library's Databases?

You have a research project assigned for one of your classes.

You think, "I'll have to find some articles for this.  Where should I start looking? Hummm... the Internet!!"

Next, you open a browser and "Google" your search.

Could there be a better route to take to get more accurate, 

more timely, and less costly research results?

                                               

                                                                                                         
Using the library's databases is THE place to start!

Why? Why not just use the Internet, then you don't have to figure out how to use the databases or anything?

Because there is a better way...

The FAQ page from the Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University has the answers to that and these same (slightly altered) answers apply to the library at Tarleton State.

Use the chart below to quickly compare library databases to the world wide web.

Library Databases	The Internet
Paid for by the library so that you can have free access to scholarly information.	Some resources are free, but others require you to pay for them.
Content is evaluated for authority and accuracy.	Information is not evaluated for accuracy and may be incorrect, misleading, or biased.
Information is stable.	Websites come and go.
Through Subject Research Guides it is easy to find databases that relate specifically to your topic (and get connected to an expert if you need guidance).	The internet is a vast sea of information with no organization.
Library databases offer options to quickly limit or expand your search to find the articles you need.	A search engine (like Google) often returns an overwhelming number of results with no quick way to narrow them down or ensure they relate to your topic.

In short, you should use library databases in order to quickly find relevant scholarly information that you can use in research papers or other course projects. We also have several library databases that include music, videos, and art! Take a look and you're sure to find something that relates to you!

Things That Happen on the Internet Every 60 Seconds

Did you know that every 60 seconds on the internet...

• More than 168 million emails are sent
• 695,000 updates & 510,040 comments are published on Facebook
• Google serves more that 694,445 search queries
• 370,000+ minutes of voice calls done by Skype users
• 20,000 new posts are published on Tumblr
• 13,000+ hours of music streaming flows from Pandora
• More than 13,000 iPhone apps are downloaded
• 6,600 images are published on Flickr
• 600 videos (about 25 hours of content) are uploaded to YouTube

Check out the infographic at http://www.mediabistro.com/alltwitter/files/2011/06/internet-60-seconds-infographic.jpg

Malware - Think when on the web!

I want to share this information with everyone and remind you to THINK when you use the internet.  Often times you don’t even have to click a button to get infected with Malware (viruses).

A new Dasient report says that the number of Web sites infected with malware has doubled in the past year. That means we’re now just short of 1.2 million Web sites out there infected with malware.
Big deal, you say. Some 1.2 million Web sites out of the entirety of the Web can’t be so bad, right? Well, that means that in about three months of Web surfing the average person now has a 95 percent chance of running into malware.
   
From CrunchGrear

You Signed Up -- Now How Do You Opt Out?

"Deleting accounts you've created on Facebook, MySpace, AOL, and elsewhere on the Web isn't always easy." To help people manage their online accounts, Eric Griffith at PC Magazine offers the article "How to Delete Accounts from Any Website," which gives step-by-step instructions, phone numbers, fax numbers, links, consequences and tips for how to opt-out of these sites:

• Amazon.com
• AOL/AIM
• Apple’s MobileMe
• Audible.com
• Blockbuster Online
• Blogger
• Classmates.com
• eBay
• Facebook
• Flickr
• Friendster
• Google
• iTunes
• LinkedIn
• MyLife.com (formerly Reunion.com)
• MySpace
• Netflix
• PayPal
• Photobucket
• Twitter
• Windows Live ID
• Yahoo
• YouTube

Top Ten Tuesday – Top Internet Search Engines and Directories

Do you use the internet? Do you know where to go to find information that is useful and easy to locate? It's Top Ten Tuesday again, so I thought I would share the "Top Internet Search Engines and Directories" from SearchEngineWatch.com

• Google
  
• Yahoo
  
• Ask
  
• AllTheWeb.com
  
• AOL Search
  
• HotBot
  
• AltaVista
  
• Gigablast
  
• Live Search
  
• LookSmart
  

Some of the others mentioned are Lycos, Netscape Search, and Open Directory. To read the entire article and find out why/how your favorite was ranked, go to http://searchenginewatch.com/2156221

One of the metasearch engines I use most did not make the list at all – DogPile.com! Do you have a favorite Internet Search tool? Post a comment and share it with other library users. I bet they will appreciate the help!

Tips for searching the Internet

Which internet browser do you use? I use both IE (internet explorer) and Firefox. There are lots of others out there. Whichever browser you use, here are some good tips on searching the interest.

Tips for searching the Internet:

In this article

* Use the Instant Search box
* Use the Address bar
* Use more than one search provider
* Search more efficiently"