Appendix F: Research with Dalton State Library Resources
While Chapter 5 gave you some basic information about conducting library research, this appendix was written specifically for Dalton State students to provide additional details about using Roberts Library. The Roberts Library home page can be found at daltonstate.edu/library.
“GIL-Find,” the Library Catalog
GIL-Find is the name of Roberts Library’s catalog, and it provides a searchable listing of all the books, e-books, and resources like audiovisual media and government documents owned by the library. Access to the library catalog is available from the library’s home page.
You can search the library catalog using keywords about your topic. The search results pages will show materials in all formats, and if you would like items only in a particular format, you may narrow the search using the facets on the left side of the screen. This “Refine my results” section also lets users narrow their search by date, author, subject, and more.
Each item listed on the results page gives you the information you need to access these sources. For items physically available in the library, “Get it” lets you know the location, call number, and item status. If you are trying to view an e-book or streaming media, “View it” provides links to full access. The library’s catalog has a variety of helpful features, including an integrated option to order books from other schools if the Dalton State copy is checked out.
Users can log in to GIL-Find using their MyDaltonState credentials to save searches and items for future reference, and see their checkout history, as well as renew items online.
GALILEO
GALILEO, also accessible from the library’s website, is a portal to hundreds of databases, each containing hundreds of journals, each journal consisting of hundreds of articles, which means that there are millions of possible sources in GALILEO. What you need is probably there; it’s just a matter of finding it. GALILEO takes a little more time and effort than using an Internet search engine, but it will provide you much more reliable information.
Most of the content in GALILEO is articles from periodicals. Although GALILEO does index newspapers and popular magazines, for college-level research, it is best used for accessing academic journals.
Many students like to use Google Scholar to find journal articles, and it is a good source for finding the publication information, but often users can not actually access the full article because a subscription fee must be paid. You will not have that problem in GALILEO.
If you are on campus, you will go directly to the GALILEO page; if you are off-campus, you will have to sign in with your username and password for MyDaltonState. You might also be prompted to type in a specific password for GALILEO, but that password changes each semester, so you will have to consult your instructor or the library to obtain it.
From the GALILEO page, you will have several options (see the box in margin). The large search box featured prominently on the page can be a good place to start, but does not include all the content and features of many valuable databases, which is especially helpful for in-depth subject re-search, such as that done in upper-level classes. The search box defaults to a basic search, but “Advanced Search” will allow you to select your preferences before you start.
From the results page, you can read the articles by clicking the “Full Text” option at the bottom of the record. Some search results do not show any full text options. This means you will have to click the blue “Find It” button to check for access. If none is available, don’t worry—the library can order a copy using Interlibrary Loan (see box in margin).
Not only can you find articles from multiple databases at once by using the GALILEO search box, you can access articles by searching individual databases, some of which catalog articles from journals in specific disciplines, such as psychology, education, medicine, or literature.
One database that many public speaking instructors like to recommend to their students is Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center (OVRC). This database covers hundreds of topics, the listing of which you can browse through to figure out which topic you’d like to research.
Even better, OVRC will provide articles from a variety of periodicals (magazines, newspapers, and academic journals) that explore both sides—pro and con—of current issues. For example, if you want to research the subject of raising the minimum wage, OVRC will provide articles on why it should be raised and why it should not be raised from moral, economic, practical, and political viewpoints. One of the values of OVRC is that when you are preparing your persuasive speech you will need to know the arguments of the “other side” so that you can bring them up in your speech and refute them.
To access Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center, use the “Databases A-Z” option on the main GALILEO page, then click on “O” and find it in the list.
Once in the database, you can browse the subject categories, or search by keyword. Note that many of the tools offered in GALILEO, such as email, print, and cite, are available in this database as well.
As mentioned in Chapter 5, librarians are a valuable resource for researchers. Luckily, Dalton State College has friendly librarians who are happy to help!