Reference at Newman Library

Year: 2012

Library Lit and LISTA Merged into New Database

If you go to the databases page or the list of reusable database links in LibGuides, you’ll no longer see a listing for Library Literature or for Library Information Science & Technology Abstracts (LISTA) but instead just one for Library & Information Science Source. When EBSCO acquired H.W. Wilson last year, it was announced that overlapping products would be merged into new, larger databases. Those mergers are now finally rolling out this month.

Any permalinks you’ve bookmarked or put on web pages will still take you to the right record in the old databases; it’s likely that at some point in the future, EBSCO will automatically redirect you from any old permalinks to the same record in the new database.

New Database – Statista

Statista is a portal for business, government and demographic statistics and reports.  What sets this database apart from others is that it features data as infographics, samples of which can be seen at their free “Chart of the Day.” All graphs/tables can be downloaded, saved or e-mailed.

Statista gathers statistical information from over 10,000 different sources in 23 major industry sectors. Their sources include reports from market researchers, trade and scientific organizations, and government sources.  Some sources come free from the web like World Bank data and reports from the EIA and FCC and other federal agencies. Others are subscription-based sources like Gartner, IDC, and ComScore. Reports from accounting firms Deloitte and PwC are included as are analyst reports from Credit Suisse, Jeffries, Deutsche Bank and others.

Geographic coverage is worldwide with excellent resources covering the U.S. and Europe (Statista is based in Germany) and expanding content for Asia and Latin America especially Brazil, India, and China.

Statista also aggregates data from multiple sources in company and industry Dossiers.  These are lengthy reports (some are 70 or more pages) in PPT and are free for download. They cover both U.S. and international companies and markets. Have a look at the company dossier on Apple  or the industry dossier on Beer Production and Distribution for example.

All graphs/tables come with “Reading Support” that explains the numbers, cites the source, and links directly to the source where available. Data can be downloaded to Excel, in JPG format or as a Powerpoint.

The big Goggle-like search box works well. Search results can be filtered by region or type of data (for example, rankings, forecasts or time series). Results can be sorted by date or by relevance. Browsing by category or keyword is available by clicking on the “Markets” tab. Opening up a “Category” will give direct access to data and reports on that industry category as well as a search box for searching within that category.

I’d especially recommend this database for students doing industry research because of its wide coverage of specialized industry research sources.

Format Citations from Google Scholar Search Results

Google announced today a new feature that lets you format a citation for items on your Google Scholar search results page. Just look for the link “Cite” that appears in the snippet of text below the article:

If you click “Cite,” you get a new window with citations for that item in MLA, APA, and Chicago formats as well as options to export the citation into various citation management systems (e.g, RefWorks, EndNote, etc.)

Two New Databases with Very Old Content

Thanks to funding from CUNY Central, we recently gained access to a couple of databases from Gale that contain unique historical collections:

  • National Geographic Magazine Archive offers the every single page (even the ads) from the magazine published between 1888 and 1994. It’s a blast to browse.
  • 17th-18th Century Burney Collection Newspapers, the new champ for the database with the longest name, is best known for providing the largest collection of British newspapers. It also includes pamphlets, broadsides, etc.

How to handle requests for materials on Scribd in which there is a cost for the material

Yesterday I helped a faculty member who was looking to obtain something on Scribd, a digital collection in which individuals, and others, can upload articles, books, etc.  The contents can then be downloaded by other readers. 

Sometimes there is a fee involved.  I inquired about how such requests, if they involve a purchase fee, should be handled.  It was agreed that such requests should be made as ILL requests.  In the notes for the ILL request, please indicate that the requested material was located on Scribd.  Silvia Cho, of ILL, said they will check other resources to see if the material is available in resources other than Scribd.

Although yesterday’s request didn’t involve a fee, I was only succesful in downloading the article when I used the Internet Explorer browser.  The article was an unique memoir of an event during World War in China that the faculty member was pleased to be able to access.

This is the second request I have had this year regarding material found on Scribd.  I would be interested in learning if others have had such requests.