Library databases offer a more organized information access system than search engines like Google. Databases offer superior searching capabilities and make it easier to evalute sources. The table below identifies some of the strengths of library databases and search engines.
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Library Databases |
Search Engines |
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General Information |
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Looking up specific facts |
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Most up-to-date information on developing news |
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Numerous options to narrow or modify a search to find relevant information |
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Identifying source types (book, newspaper, journal, etc.) |
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Finding up-to-date scholarly information |
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Identifying authors/creators and their qualifications |
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Identifying edited and reviewed sources |
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Identifying purpose of a source (informative, persuasive, commercial, etc.) |
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Providing an open forum for expressing opinions |
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NEIU Library (1:23)
Search engines like Google work for some purposes, but for academic projects library databases are more efficient and productive tools.
NEIU Ron Williams Library
On the library's home page use the Quick Search option to access PRIMO Discovery Service. Quick Search searches the library's catalog and a number of the library's databases simultaneously.
General databases cover many topic areas and are excellent resources for undergraduate research. Three general databases available through Briggs Library are listed below.
Briggs Library provides access to over 100 databases. General databases cover a broad range of topics. Other library databases limit their coverage to certain topic areas. These are valuable for in-depth and scholarly research. Consult the library's Research Guides to identify recommended databases in your subject area. Below are just a few examples of subject-specific databases.
If you are not using a networked computer on the SDSU campus when you click on an electronic resource (database) on the Briggs Library site, you will be asked to enter a username and password.
SDSU Students
Password Help: SDSU Computer Support Desk 605.688.6776 or SDSU.SupportDesk@sdstate.edu or contact SDSU Librarians.
