Activate MSU Net ID     Other MSU Net ID services AFS Space Ask a Question Books Borrowing materials from another library Catalog Distance Learning Services E-Resources Electronic Resources Index Searching Tips Interlibrary Loan Journals Journal Articles Library Catalog Library Instruction Library Distance Learning Services Off-campus Connections P drive in Library/Campus Computers Proxy Server Research/Peer-Reviewed Journals Services and Forms List Web Searching Tips New for Fall, special pages geared to the needs of Undergraduates Graduate Students Faculty

     This is a brief introduction to the various options on the Michigan State University Libraries Home Page. In addition to a discussion of finding books and journal articles it briefly introduces several important Library services. Remote users should find this information particularly helpful.

Finding Books and Journals

Finding a Topic: Advanced Keyword is the most precise search option for finding books on a particular topic. Keyword searching looks for combinations of terms by using Boolean and/or proximity operators, truncation, and other methods. The examples below provide a brief introduction to some of the most useful search techniques:

	Instructions	Examples
BOOLEAN OPERATORS	And narrows a search by requiring that both words are found. Or broadens a search by looking for any of the search terms. And not excludes words. Use parentheses to group words together when using more than one operator.	bernstein and conduct* great lakes or inland lakes art therapy and not music therapy (feminist or women) and science [finds items with words "feminist and science" OR "women and science"]
TRUNCATION	Words can be right-hand truncated using an asterisk (*) to look for 1 -5 characters after a word stem. Use a double asterisk (**) to search for an unlimited number of characters (in one word). A question mark (?) can be used to look for an unknown character within a word.	environment*  polic* huck** finn wom?n [use within words, finds woman, women, and womyn]
ADJACENCY	The order of words matters. Multiple words are searched together as one phrase. For a record to be retrieved, all the words must appear in exactly the order entered. If a multiple word phrase finds no hits, the search repeats using Boolean and.	canadian studies cambridge university press
PROXIMITY OPERATORS	Use near or within to specify how far apart words can occur. Word order is not specified. Near retrieves records that contain the specified words within ten (10) of each other. Use within # to specify the maximum number of words that may appear between the specified words. (The value of"#" has no limit.)	wind near gone gone within 3 wind school near administrat *

Finding a Journal (any type)

      MSU Libraries subscribe to thousands of journals. Use the Library catalog to search for the title of the journal you need. If we have a subscription to an online version, you will find a link. It is important to use our links because in most cases access is limited to subscribers. Our links include the Proxy information that allows users to be identified as subscribers.

       MSU Libraries purchase web access to the full text of journals and journal articles from many different vendors. If the catalog has not pointed you to an electronic version, you may wish to double check in the A-Z Title List of Electronic Journals listings to look for a link to the MSU access point for a journal. Note: Some journals can only be accessed from within a database (WilsonSelectPlus and Lexis/Nexis are two prominent examples).

       If none of these methods is successful, it could be that MSU does not have access to the journal in any format. In that case we will request copies of individual articles for you from another library.

Finding Journal Articles

     The Resources tab includes the Indexes the Library offers. The indexes allow subject searching for individual journal articles. Many users gravitate to Proquest, Gale's General OneFile or WilsonSelectPlus because they are the indexes with the most full-text on a wide variety of topics. They are not always the best choice, especially for in-depth research. Contact Reference Services for suggestions on the best index for a particular topic.

     An index search should provide a list of articles on the searched topic. (Contact Reference for help with searching.) How each index links to the full text articles varies, but often MSU will have electronic access to titles that does not show up within the index. To determine whether MSU has a journal available, look for the "Find text at MSU" link to search in the Library catalog for call numbers and links to online issues for most journal subscriptions (See Finding a Journal above for information on accessing paper journals in our stacks. Online students or students taking classes at remote campuses may contact Distance Learning Services for access to materials on our shelves.) More details at Finding Articles in the MSU Libraries.

Electronic Resources

     Clicking on the Resources tab and then selecting E-Resources will put you into a general page that groups some of our electronic holdings. We are working toward getting most things in the Catalog, so these lists supplement that resource. In the right-hand column there are links to some of our most heavily used subscriptions, including the basic indexes: Proquest, Academic OneFile or WilsonSelectPlus. Contact Reference Services or use the Getting Started Guides for index suggestions in specific disciplines.

     Other major collections of online materials listed under E-Resources include:
In the center column

• An A-Z Title List of Electronic Journals to which MSU has electronic full-text subscriptions
• A pull down listing of major university disciplines that allows you to browse by subject for electronic resources of any type.

• Indexes (to searching for journal articles)
• A listing of all the Newspapers we have via electronic access
• A partial listing of electronically available Texts & Links (many of the book length items are listed in the Library Catalog )
• A listing by subject of the Research Guides prepared by MSU Librarians

Off Campus Connections

     Most of the resources MSU Libraries make available electronically require a subscription. Users will need to demonstrate their affiliation with MSU (student, faculty or staff) in order to be able to gain access. Most resources verify MSU affiliation by IP address. IP verification means the vendor looks at the physical location of the connecting computer. The library provides a Proxy Server to enable off-campus users to access these resources. The Proxy server will require a MSUnet ID and password. (New students will need to activate their MSUnet ID before using it to access Library resources.)

    Library Distance Learning Services also provides forms and services for students in off-campus and virtual courses. Distance students may consult their pages to request books and journals not available to read online.

Identifying Library Services

     MSU Libraries attempts to provide all desired information for MSU faculty, staff and students. To do this we recall checked out material, retrieve material from remote storage, get items from other libraries, and send materials to persons who cannot come in. A more complete listing of Library services and the forms used to request service can be found in the How To and FAQ sections of the library web page.

     Additional information about how to use the library is available on our Library Instruction page.