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Questions or comments may be directed to: reference@barton.edu
HOW TO FIND ARTICLES USING AN INDEX

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There are two steps to finding an article in a journal or magazine. The first is to locate an appropriate article; the second is to find the journal or magazine that contains it.

  1. Finding Articles: Using an Index

  2.  Sample Search of an Index
     Choosing the Appropriate Index(es)
     Scholarly Journal Articles v. Magazine Articles

  3. Finding Journals and Magazines

  4.  Access to Journals / Magazines in Paper or Microform
     Access to Electronic Journals / Magazines
     Journal Finder


bulletFinding Articles: Using an Index

The best resource for locating articles in a journal or a magazine is an article index. These indexes are databases that arrange articles by subject and provide information on what journal, magazine, or newspaper contains them.

 Searching an Online Index for an Article: A Sample Search

Suppose you were searching for articles on "year round school". If you consulted the index Academic Search Premier, just one of the many indexes the library subscribes to through the internet, you would find about 68 articles listed under the keywords "year round school".

  • Understanding the Search Results
    • As indicated in the example below, Citation #7 reads: Year-round school.; By Warrick-Harris, Elaine. Childhood Education, 1995 Annual Theme, Vol. 71 Issue 5, p282, 6p 1 chart, 2 graphs, 2bw:
    • Screen shot of citation for an article on year-round school in the Academic Search Premier database

    • Interpretation of the Citation:
    • Title of Article: Year-round School
      Author of Article: Elaine Warrick-Harris
      Journal Title: Childhood Education
      Volume in Journal: 71
      Issue in Journal: 5
      Page of Article: 282
      Date of Article: 1995 Annual Theme Issue
      Other Information: 6 pages long, includes 1 chart, 2 graphs, 2 black & white pictures

  • Obtaining Access to the Article
  • To find out whether we have the journal Childhood Education (or any journal, magazine, or newspaper you are looking for), consult Journal Finder in one of two ways, either by:

    • Clicking on the "Check Journal Finder for full-text availability" link beneath the article reference in a database list, like in the above example, or
    • Going to the "Journal Finder" section on our library home page and typing in the name of the journal or magazine title.

    (For more information about how to use Journal Finder, see the Journal Finder section on this page.)

bulletChoosing the Appropriate Index or Indexes

  • Subject-Specific Indexes
  • Hackney Library provides access to many indexes on a wide variety of subject areas. The types of journals and magazines included in an index determine what topics it covers most effectively.

    For example,

    Although some indexes may have a number of features in common, such as general format and purpose, no two indexes are exactly alike. It is important to know the scope, general characteristics and unique features of the indexes you use in order to benefit fully from them.

  • General Indexes

    In addition to many indexes in subject areas, Hackney Library provides access to two "general with full-text" indexes: Academic Search Premier, which is an NCLIVE database, and OmniFile Full Text Mega Edition, which is not an NCLIVE database. They both cover journals in all academic disciplines and have the added benefit of providing complete articles for many of the citations.

    • Both databases are listed in the "Find Articles" section of our home page. (Academic Search Premier is accessible in the NCLIVE EZ Search area via the Search a general full-text article index: Academic Search Premier link, and OmniFile Full Text Mega Edition is accessible in the "Find Articles" section via the OmniFile Full Text Mega Edition link
    • .


 Finding Journals and Magazines:

Hackney Library has holdings for approximately 1,100 journals and magazines physically housed within the building in three different formats: paper, microfiche, and microfilm. Three hundred fifty-five of these are current subscriptions. The remaining titles are for journals and magazines to which the library no longer subscribes but keeps the back issues.

The library also subscribes to over 14,500 electronic journals and magazines, most of which are available online from both on and off campus.

 Access to In-House Journals and Magazines: Paper, Microfiche and Microfilm

 Access to Journals and Magazines: Electronic Format

Hackney Library also has access to a large number of online databases in which the full text of journal and magazine articles is provided. These come both from NCLIVE databases and from individual databases that our library purchases separately from NCLIVE (for example, PsycArticles and MLA International Bibliography).

 Journal Finder

To determine what journals, magazines, and newspapers are available within the library (in paper, microfiche, or microfilm format), or are available full text online, click on Journal Finder--Basic Search in the "Journal Finder" section of our home page, as pictured below:

Image of the Journal Finder logo

(You may also access Journal Finder from within many databases by clicking on the "Check Journal Finder for full-text availability" link in the results lists resulting from searches, as highlighted in blue below:)

Screen shot of the Journal Finder link within a database

How to Use Journal Finder

  • Type in the title of the journal, magazine, or newspaper you are looking for in the space provided, as illustrated below, then click "search":
  • Screen shot of the Journal Finder search screen

  • Examine the holdings information that gives you information on the format and dates of coverage for each title, as pictured below (note that Journal Finder pulls up every title containing the word(s) you typed in, so make sure to choose the correct title!):
  • Screen shot of Journal Finder results displaying all titles containing the search word(s)

  • In Journal Finder, access to the full text of the journal:
    • through online databases is denoted by a computer monitor icon Image of computer monitor icon
    • within the library is denoted by an open book icon Image of open book icon
    • In some cases, we have a journal or magazine full text in both print and online versions, so in those cases, you have a choice of format, as in the Newsweek example above.

  • If a periodical title is not available either in-house or online, the resulting Journal Finder screen gives you the following options:
    • Clicking on the envelope icon Image of envelope icon, from which you can request the article through an interlibrary loan.
    • Clicking on the yellow car icon Image of yellow car icon to search the catalogs of other libraries in the region to see if they have access to the journal in which the article you want is published.
    • The following message appears if the journal is only available through interlibrary loan (ILL):
    • Screen shot of 'Search Results' screen indicating that an article is available only through Interlibrary Loan

How to Access Journals through Journal Finder

  • To access the online version of a journal article, do the following:
    • Click on the computer monitor icon Image of computer monitor icon
    • Then, click on the journal title (in the example below, Newsweek) to enter a database providing that journal full text:
    • Screen shot of the 'Online Access' screen indicating databases in which 'Newsweek' is available full text

      (Note: Several databases provide full-text access to Newsweek, so take note of the "Full-Text Begins" and "Full-Text Ends" dates of coverage on the right side of the Journal Finder screen to make sure that your article is included in the range of issues in the database you choose! If there is no "Full-Text Ends" date, then it is available through the most recent issue):

      Screen shot of 'Full-Text Begins' and 'Full-Text Ends' screen

    • Depending on the database:
      • Click on the appropriate year, then on the appropriate issue for your article, and browse to find your article; or
      • Refine your search further by date by typing in the month and year of your article in the "refine search" screen. Then view the results, browsing for the title of your article.

    (For help with accessing articles online, consult a reference librarian at x6502 or at reference@barton.edu.)

  • To see what journal or magazine issues we have within the library, do the following:
    • Click on the open book icon Image of open book icon
    • Look to see what format and what range of dates we have from the holdings screen in our catalog for that journal title. (Print is denoted as paper, microfilm as microfilm, and microfiche as microfiche in our catalog), as pictured for Newsweek below:
    • Screen shot of  the catalog record for 'Newsweek' indicating its availability and format

    For more information about Journal Finder, see the About Journal Finder page. For online help specific to Journal Finder, see the Journal Finder Help page.

Are you looking for books instead of articles? See our Finding Books page for assistance with that search. For additional assistance, see our general Help page, or contact the reference desk at (252) 399-6502 or at reference@barton.edu.
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Last updated February 19, 2008
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