EBSCOhost is a collection of periodical databases that provide access by author, title, and subject to the full text of articles, abstracts and citations.

About EBSCOhost

■ EBSCOhost provides indexing, abstracting and full text for over 15,500 periodicals. EBSCOhost is made up of Academic Search Premier, Business Source Premier, Health Source (Nursing/Academic and Consumer Editions), ERIC and several other reference works. These resources can be used together or separately.
■ Many academic and public libraries subscribe to EBSCOhost or other subscription services that are similar (such as WilsonWeb, First Search, Silver Platter).
■Indexing and abstracting databases are subscribed to by institutions on behalf of their students/patrons who need a username and password to get access to the database.
■These databases are accessed using a web browser and have their own search engines built into them.

Indexes

■ Indexes are used to look up articles by subject.
■ Abstracts are summaries of articles.
■ Indexes speed up the time it takes to locate articles on a specific topic. Electronic indexes cover multiple years.
■ Electronic indexes can be searched limiting results to a span of years, a specific periodical title, or combinations of search terms.

Accessing EBSCOhost

■ Like other indexing/abstracting databases – EBSCOhost is accessed using a browser (EBSCOhost link: http://search.ebscohost.com).
■ EBSCOhost has its own internal search engine which is similar to other search engines you may have used like in Google or Yahoo! (basically, a block to type in a term and a “Search” or “Find” or “Go” button)
■ Clicking on blue underlined hyperlinks will lead to other items on that topic or by that author, or in that issue of the periodical.
■ The Back and Forward buttons work the same as with a browser.

The basic search screen -- type your search term in the FIND
box and click on SEARCH to do a keyword search.

After clicking on SEARCH, you get a list of articles. You also get suggested subjects (left side of
screen) and the ability to select the type of publication (academic journals, magazines,
newspapers -- see explanation of the differences below) for narrowing your search.

Types of searches and refining your results

■ A keyword search (the default on the search screen) searches the title, abstract, subjects and full text of the article. This means that the word that you typed might be mentioned, but may not be the full focus of the article.
■ By clicking on one of the subjects in the column on the left, you will limit your search to articles that are completely on the topic you select.

Evaluating Information in Periodicals

■ Be aware that not all printed materials represent the same level of authority, research, accuracy, or depth. When doing technical research, professional journals and trade journals will probably be the most useful. When doing academic research, scholarly journals, news magazines and newspapers with national circulation will probably be the most useful.
■ EBSCO helps you narrow down the type of publication by providing links above the results. You can click on Academic Journals, Magazines, Newspapers or Books/Monographs to get the kind of information that is most useful to you.

■ Academic Journals

• will include the most in-depth information
• articles are likely to be longer
• have more references
• may include more charts, graphs and statistics
• articles are more heavily researched
• often include information about the author's background
• normally takes 6 months to a year to get published, so not the most current information

■ Magazines

• typically have less depth or complex information
• articles are likely to be shorter
• written with less technical terminology
• subject matter is generally more popular in nature and often based on what is going on in the news

■ Trade Journals

• will include information targeted at professionals working in the field
• will often include terminology specific to a field
• may include more diagrams, formulas, and illustrations
• articles are written by professionals in the field
• often include information about the author's background

■ Newspapers

• provide an overview of a topic or current news
• articles are likely to be short
• written with little or no technical terms
• subject matter is generally more popular or global in nature
• current information with little background
• normally written by staff reporters that have done investigative research, but are not experts on the topic

The detailed screen for each article includes the information you need to write a citation for your references list. For more information on APA citation format, go to Research Paper Format. •Clicking on the author's name will get you more articles by this author.
•Clicking on the title of the periodical (PC Magazine) will get you to a listing of all of the issues available in the database. From there, you can look at a table of contents for an entire issue. •Clicking on any of the subject headings gets you to other articles on that topic.

When you have located an article that you need you can:

■ Print any full text articles that are in HTML or .pdf format.
■ E-mail any full text articles that are in HTML or .pdf format to yourself or someone else.
■ Photocopy any article that appears in a print version of a periodical that is owned by the NEIT Library.
•Current Issues are shelved alphabetically in the Periodicals Room of the Library.
•Most Bound Volumes are shelved alphabetically in the Reference Room of the Library. Some are classified and placed in the stacks on the lower level of the Library.
•Microfilm is shelved in the black microfilm cabinet in the Reference Room of the Library. You can print a copy of an article from the microfilm reader.