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About Databases

The following quick-start guide has been created for CSUN students and researchers. For more information on using FirstSearch, consult FirstSearch Online Help.

Jump to: Restrictions & Requirements | Searching | Results

Description

Scope

FirstSearch1; and FirstSearch2.; have 11 databases including WorldCat (books), CSU holdings, and journal indexes.

If the campus access is very slow you can try using http://www.oclc.org/firstsearch/; and choose on the right Access, Log on via IP recognition if you are on a CSUN campus computer.

FirstSearch1 - Subscription Databases

• ATLAReligion -- indexes articles, reviews in 1400+ religious studies sources, 1940-
• WorldCat -- books and other materials in libraries worldwide.

FirstSearch2 -CSUN pays a per-search fee. This is a partial list

• AHSearch -- Arts & Humanities Citation index, 1980-
• AltPressIndex -- indexes 300 cultural, economic, social change journals, 1991-
• AltPressIndexArchive -- indexes journals covering cultural, economic, political & social change, 1969-1990
• Dissertations -- (Dissertation Abstracts) indexes dissertations from 1861-, abstracts from 1980-, and thesis abstracts from 1988-
• EconLit -- abstracts 620 sources; Cambridge's AWPE, 1969-
• GEOBASE -- abstracts to 2000 geography and geology sources, 1980-

REMEMBER: Check FirstSearch1 and FirstSearch2 for the most current DATABASE LISTING.

Additional FirstSearch Databases

• Anthropology Plus -- combines two resources: Anthropological Literature from Harvard University and the Anthropological Index of the Royal Anthropological Institute. Provides extensive worldwide indexing of over 5,500 journal articles, reports, commentaries, edited works and obituaries in the fields of social, cultural, physical, biological and linguistic anthropology, ethnology, archaeology, folklore, material culture and interdisciplinary studies. Coverage: late 19th century to the present.
• Chicano Database -- comprehensive citation index covering a variety of Mexican-American and Chicano-related topics in art, labor, bilingual education, language, education, literature, health, mental health, history, and politics from over 2,470 sources. Portions of the Chicano Database have been published as the Chicano Periodical Index, 1967-1988; the Chicano Index, articles and books added since 1989; Arte Chicano: an Annotated Bibliography of Chicano Art, 1965-1981; the Chicano Anthology Index; the Chicana Studies Index: Twenty Years of Gender Research, 1971-1991; and Hispanic Mental Health Research: A Reference Guide, 1920-1980. Coverage: 1960s-plus selective coverage dating back to the early 1900s.

Restrictions and Software Requirements

CSUN users (students, faculty, and staff) only

Searching

FirstSearch Search Tips

• Click for help in constructing a search.
• Advanced Search works best for constructing and limiting a search.
  • Follow directions on screen.
  • Use quotes to search a phrase, for example, "holistic nursing".
  • The Boolean operator and is used to narrow a search. It is implied so it does not have to be typed, e.g. politic* scandal+.
• Some databases have a icon which offers you access to the database's thesaurus or specialized vocabulary.
• Search should NOT be limited to Items in my library (CNO).
• CSUN's electronic periodical holdings are identified by External Resources: button in each item's full record.
• Combining search terms (Boolean)
  X and Y; X or Y; X not Y
• Plurals, truncation, and wildcards
  Use + for plurals (s and es)
• Use * for truncation
• Use # for a wildcard character
• Use ?N for up to N characters, N=number of letters ?3

Results

Managing FirstSearch Search Results

The symbol in a List of Records indicates that CSUN (CNO) owns the title but CSUN also has access to many more items online and those may be reached using the External Resources: button in the full record.

To find out about electronic access first use the Find Text button on a record's full display. Choose the title link to display the Detailed Record for desired item.

Find Text also offers a link into the Library Catalog to look up its call number as well as indicating if item can be accessed online. Choose for a lookup menu for article access and availability.

The Detailed Record only shows partial Ownership:. If it says Check the catalogs in your library, after checking SFX and the Library catalog, select the icon to see if item is readily available at a nearby library.