Information Sources: Digital Library Resources
The Digital Library subscribes to a number of different online resources which offer access to different kinds of information resources. These Digital Library resources are often called databases.
What Is a Database?
A database is an organised collection of data information that's set up for easy access and retrieval. Database are a big thing in computing, but in terms of information sources, a database is a collection of detailed records of items that appear in different types of information sources and include records from:
- scholarly journals
- trade magazines
- magazines
- newspapers
- dissertations
- reports
- grey literature
- books
If you've used Excel before, then you know that an Excel page (or spreadsheet) is arranged in columns and rows. So are databases. There will be a column containing all the headings that describe the content of the rows. Each row is an individual item from a particular information source. The cells in the header columns are called fields. Most fields are set up so that you can search for the contents of a field in each of the rows. For example, there might be a column heading "title". The database will be organised so that you can search for records that have a specific title or specific words and phrases in a title,
Fields for a particular item might include:
- publication title
- article title
- authors
- keywords (that describe the content of the article)
- abstract (a brief summary of the article)
- year of publication
Why Should You Use a Digital Library Resource?
- Unlike the general web, the content of Digital Library Resources is selected by specialists and is nearly always trustworthy, factual information
- They contain a huge number of records and so provide comprehensive coverage of subjects
- They are very often easier to search for the type of information that will be useful to your study and your coursework
- They are updated regular (often daily)
- There are lots of customisation options, e.g., save your search history and have new results emailed to you
- They help you to see what has been published in the subject area of the course you are studying and can help you with your study and your coursework.
- Most information sources contained in Digital Library Resources databases are not available or not freely available on the general web
- The use of generative AI to create web content has led to a decline in the accuracy and truthfulness of information available on the web. This will only worsen as the amount of AI-created content on the web increases. Generative AI produced material does not normally appear in Digital Library resources
What Information Sources are Available in Digital Library Resources?
Academic Journals (Scholarly Information)
- British Nursing Database
- Business Source Elite
- Communications and Mass Media Complete
- GreenFile
- ProQuest Computer Science Database
- ProQuest Education Database
- ProQuest Publicly Available Content Database
- UK & Ireland Reference Centre
- Vocational Studies Complete
Books (Scholarly and Popular Information)
- EBSCO eBooks for FE Subscription Collection
- ProQuest eBook Central
Magazines & Trade Publications (Mostly Popular Information)
- British Nursing Database
- Business Source Elite
- Communications and Mass Media Complete
- GreenFile
- PressReader
- ProQuest Computer Science Database
- ProQuest Education Database
- ProQuest Publicly Available Content Database
- UK & Ireland Reference Centre
- Vocational Studies Complete
Newspapers (Popular Information)
- Global NewsBank
- Irish Times Historical Archive (Irish Times only, obviously!)
- PressReader
Videos (Scholarly Information)
- Academic Video Online
- Siren Films
What Kind of Information Sources are Digital Library Resources?
Digital Library Resources are tertiary information sources - they bring together and organise primary and secondary source material, and are good for finding authoritative and reliable primary and secondary sources to use for study or coursework.
