(Example of a citation)
What?
"What are indexes and abstracts?"
Indexes...
Indexes point the user to articles in periodicals such as magazines, newspapers, trade publications and journals, as well as to books, pamphlets, conference proceedings and other sources. Indexes supply the user with citations for articles. The typical index citation includes author, title of article, title of journal/magazine, volume, date published and pages. Using this citation, the user can then locate the desired article in either the library collection or its electronic database.
Indexes cover different kinds of subject areas:
General subjects: These databases cover a variety of subjects: ABI/INFORM Global, Academic Search Primer, Alt-Press Watch, Expanded Academic ASAP, Readers Guide, Wilson Omni, Project Muse.
Specific subjects: These cover specific subjects such as science, music, or the humanities: Black Thought and Culture, Music Index Online, Pubmed, Library Literature & Information Science, Library Literature and Information Science Retrospective, Rand California, Social Sciences Full Text, GreenFile.
Newspapers: These indexes point to newspaper articles: Pro-Quest Historical Newspapers, Pro-Quest Newsstand, Ethnic NewsWatch, InfoTrac Custom Newspapers, San Jose Mercury News.
Citation: Citation indexes are invaluable to research, as they answer the questions “Who has cited my article?” and “Who has my article cited?”. These indexes show how frequently an article has been cited in subsequent articles, linking articles with common topics. Web of Science is an example of a citation index.
Special materials: These indexes are targeted at such materials as maps, pamphlets, dissertations, and so on: Pro-Quest Dissertations, Theses Full-text (which goes back to 1861!).
Literary: Literary indexes point to literature: Literature Resource Center, LitFinder, Shakespeare Collection.
Reviews: Indexes pointing to reviews of books, films, and other media: Book Review Digest Plus and Book Review Digest Retrospective, ChoiceReviews.onine, Reader’s Advisor Online.
Abstracts are summaries of articles, books, dissertations, reports, and so on. They highlight the main points of a document so that the user can determine its relevance. Unless the original document is a dissertation or other long paper, most abstracts accompanying college papers will be fewer than 250 words. Where an abstract is located also depends on the document, but in most college papers, abstracts are placed after the title page and before the main text.
Here are the abstract databases available through the King Library:
NCJRS Abstracts Database
Library, Information Sciences & Technology Abstracts with Full Text (LIST)
Analytical Abstracts
Aluminum Industry Abstracts
RILM Abstracts of Music Literature
Linguistics & Language Behavior Abstracts
Engineered Materials Abstracts
Corrosion Abstracts
Criminal Justice Abstracts
Ceramic Abstracts/World Ceramic Abstracts
Biological Abstracts
"Any more interesting index and abstract information?"
Author, title, subject and/or keyword are common access points used to search indexes and abstracts.
For indexes, a controlled vocabulary designed by the indexer is used. This allows for more relevant results because synonyms are not a factor--the choice in search words is made for you.
Abstracts can also be searched using keywords taken from the article. This allows more freedom in searching, but you may not get as many relevant results due to choosing the "wrong" search words/terms. Keywords in abstracts are in bold type.
Databases, AKA Electronic Indexes, are replacing print indexes. They have the advantage of being current, easily accessed, frequently updated, and searchable through more than one access point. Databases may include citations, full text, or both (such as EBSCO's Academic Search Premier). Databases are leased or sold to libraries, in online or CD-ROM format, by vendors such as OCLC and EBSCO.
CD-ROM databases available through SJSU include Tiger Census Tract Street Index, Standard & Poor’s Analysts’ Handbook, and Simmons Study of Media and Markets. These (and more!) are located at the King Library, 2nd floor CD-ROM stations.
Indexes and abstracts may also be available in open access, which means that anyone can retrieve them without needing access through a subscription. Examples of open access indexes in our database listing at King Library are Find a Book with Lexiles, California Room Local History Database, and WorldCat. Check out the library site for more open access databases.
A fabulous resource for finding periodical indexes is Ulrich’s Periodical Directory.
A public library is more likely to have the general indexes such as the Readers Guide, plus perhaps some specific subject ones, such as PubMed and others, depending on community interests. Book and movie review indexes are often carried in print and/or electronic form by public libraries.
Special libraries and school libraries may offer what are called “Vertical File Indexes”, special materials indexes which point to items such as pamphlets, charts, posters, maps, and other nonbook materials.
Reviews: Indexes pointing to reviews of books, films, and other media: Book Review Digest Plus and Book Review Digest Retrospective, ChoiceReviews.onine, Reader’s Advisor Online.
Abstracts...
Abstracts are summaries of articles, books, dissertations, reports, and so on. They highlight the main points of a document so that the user can determine its relevance. Unless the original document is a dissertation or other long paper, most abstracts accompanying college papers will be fewer than 250 words. Where an abstract is located also depends on the document, but in most college papers, abstracts are placed after the title page and before the main text.
Here are the abstract databases available through the King Library:
NCJRS Abstracts Database
Library, Information Sciences & Technology Abstracts with Full Text (LIST)
Analytical Abstracts
Aluminum Industry Abstracts
RILM Abstracts of Music Literature
Linguistics & Language Behavior Abstracts
Engineered Materials Abstracts
Corrosion Abstracts
Criminal Justice Abstracts
Ceramic Abstracts/World Ceramic Abstracts
Biological Abstracts
"Any more interesting index and abstract information?"
Author, title, subject and/or keyword are common access points used to search indexes and abstracts.
For indexes, a controlled vocabulary designed by the indexer is used. This allows for more relevant results because synonyms are not a factor--the choice in search words is made for you.
Abstracts can also be searched using keywords taken from the article. This allows more freedom in searching, but you may not get as many relevant results due to choosing the "wrong" search words/terms. Keywords in abstracts are in bold type.
Databases, AKA Electronic Indexes, are replacing print indexes. They have the advantage of being current, easily accessed, frequently updated, and searchable through more than one access point. Databases may include citations, full text, or both (such as EBSCO's Academic Search Premier). Databases are leased or sold to libraries, in online or CD-ROM format, by vendors such as OCLC and EBSCO.
CD-ROM databases available through SJSU include Tiger Census Tract Street Index, Standard & Poor’s Analysts’ Handbook, and Simmons Study of Media and Markets. These (and more!) are located at the King Library, 2nd floor CD-ROM stations.
Indexes and abstracts may also be available in open access, which means that anyone can retrieve them without needing access through a subscription. Examples of open access indexes in our database listing at King Library are Find a Book with Lexiles, California Room Local History Database, and WorldCat. Check out the library site for more open access databases.
A fabulous resource for finding periodical indexes is Ulrich’s Periodical Directory.
Where?
"Where can I find the different types of indexes and abstracts in different types of libraries?"
Academic libraries are likely to offer both the general information indexes and abstracts, which are good ‘jumping off’ points for research, along with specific subject indexes and abstracts tailored to individual majors/graduate programs. For example, SJSU offers several library and information science databases relevant to MLIS students. Universities are also going to be carrying citation indexes such as Web of Science because citing other sources is so crucial to research. Special materials indexes such as Pro-Quest Dissertaions & Theses FT will be vital as well for an academic library. And literary indexes such as Literature Resource Center are included in many academic libraries as well.
A public library is more likely to have the general indexes such as the Readers Guide, plus perhaps some specific subject ones, such as PubMed and others, depending on community interests. Book and movie review indexes are often carried in print and/or electronic form by public libraries.
Special libraries and school libraries may offer what are called “Vertical File Indexes”, special materials indexes which point to items such as pamphlets, charts, posters, maps, and other nonbook materials.
"Where are indexes and abstracts found at SJSU, both online and in the library itself?"
Online (follow the links!)...
Go to http://sjlibrary.org/gateways/academic/
On the left-hand side, select:
SJSU Articles and Databases
From here, you have several options:
General Subjects—Education & Library Sciences
You get databases relevant to MLIS and Education.
A-Z Titles
Lists all the different databases available to students and faculty.
SJSU Electronic Journals Index
This tool is useful if you know the journal you want to look at, and need to see which databases offer it. The index lists all the journals carried in various databases accessible to SJSU students and faculty. For example, say you want to peruse the Reference and User Services Quarterly. You go to the electronic journals index, look under “R”, and find the title. You will also see a link to the Ulrichsweb.com entry giving information about the journal, and then a list of which databases include the journal.
Web Links by Subject
Either type in your subject of choice or choose from the menu. Also offered is an A-Z topics list of websites arranged by subjects such as Biography, Movies, Sports, and Television. The Librarians’ Internet Index categorizes by subject such as Arts & Humanities, Media, and Science with links to sites handpicked by librarians and considered reliable.
Another option from the left side of the Gateways page is to select SJSU Research Topics
From that starting point, you can go to:
Library and Information Sciences and from the left-hand side, choose Articles and Databases
This page takes you to categories for Primary Library & Information Science Databases/Business & News Databases/Book Reviews/Background & Reference Sources/Encyclopedias and Dictionaries/Other Useful Databases for Library & Information Science.
New York Times Index (AI21.N44)
Social Sciences Index (AI3.S62)
Reader’s Guide to Periodical Literature (AI3.R48)
Book Review Index (Z1035.A1B6)
Alternative Press Index (HN1.A43)
Arts & Humanities Citation Index (AI3.A63)
Comprehensive Dissertation Index, 1861-1972 (AI3.A63)
Columbia Granger’s Index to Poetry in Anthologies (PN1022.H39 2002)
Magazines and newspapers are located on the lower level.
On the left-hand side, select:
SJSU Articles and Databases
From here, you have several options:
General Subjects—Education & Library Sciences
You get databases relevant to MLIS and Education.
A-Z Titles
Lists all the different databases available to students and faculty.
SJSU Electronic Journals Index
This tool is useful if you know the journal you want to look at, and need to see which databases offer it. The index lists all the journals carried in various databases accessible to SJSU students and faculty. For example, say you want to peruse the Reference and User Services Quarterly. You go to the electronic journals index, look under “R”, and find the title. You will also see a link to the Ulrichsweb.com entry giving information about the journal, and then a list of which databases include the journal.
Web Links by Subject
Either type in your subject of choice or choose from the menu. Also offered is an A-Z topics list of websites arranged by subjects such as Biography, Movies, Sports, and Television. The Librarians’ Internet Index categorizes by subject such as Arts & Humanities, Media, and Science with links to sites handpicked by librarians and considered reliable.
Another option from the left side of the Gateways page is to select SJSU Research Topics
From that starting point, you can go to:
Library and Information Sciences and from the left-hand side, choose Articles and Databases
This page takes you to categories for Primary Library & Information Science Databases/Business & News Databases/Book Reviews/Background & Reference Sources/Encyclopedias and Dictionaries/Other Useful Databases for Library & Information Science.
In the library...
For those wanting to consult print indexes and abstracts, the King Library carries A-Z indexes on the 2nd floor in the reference area. Here are some examples: (Call numbers in parentheses).
New York Times Index (AI21.N44)
Social Sciences Index (AI3.S62)
Reader’s Guide to Periodical Literature (AI3.R48)
Book Review Index (Z1035.A1B6)
Alternative Press Index (HN1.A43)
Arts & Humanities Citation Index (AI3.A63)
Comprehensive Dissertation Index, 1861-1972 (AI3.A63)
Columbia Granger’s Index to Poetry in Anthologies (PN1022.H39 2002)
Magazines and newspapers are located on the lower level.
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