Getting started with the online library

Using our resources you will be able to:

• Read around your subject
• Find academic quality information for your assignment
• Find different viewpoints

The online library contains amazing resources and can seem overwhelming. This guide gives a very basic introduction. Over your years of study with us you will learn a lot more about resources and how to find and manage them.

To begin with though:

There are four main types of resource you need to understand:

1. ebooks - ebooks are like traditional books but available online
2. ejournals - ejournals are similar to a magazine but available on the internet; the content is rigorously checked for quality
3. articles - each issue of a journal contains a number of articles written by expert academics
4. databases - a database in the library context means a collection of ejournals or ebooks which can all be searched at the same time

In order to use databases to find information for an assignment you need to understand how ebooks, ejournals and articles are organised so look at those links first.