As well as searching for electronic books on Locate (library catalogue) there are also databases you can use. Ebrary and Myilibrary are the main ones, but you could also try the E-book collection from EBSCO. These can be found on the Subject Databases link on Locate.
The main advantage of searching these databases is that it enables you to search within the book and find chapters or part of chapters in the book. You will not be able to do this on Locate. This is particularly useful if you are looking for a book on a narrow topic and there is unlikely to be a whole book written about it.
When you have run your search the most relevant books will be at the top of the list, where the whole (or majority) of the book is about the searched topic. Further down, there will be chapters, followed by parts or mentions of your topic.
Tuesday, 1 May 2012
Thursday, 12 April 2012
Refworks
Recently there seems to be increased interest in Refworks.
Refworks is a really useful tool to help you to store, manage and correctly insert references into your work. It is quite easy to use and there is a workbook that you can download to guide you through its features. This is available on the Referencing and Copyright section of the library webpage.
There are a number of different ways to use Refworks. You can use all of it or just part of it. You can simply use it as a place to store useful references that you have found and organise them into folders that relate to your assignments or projects. You can also use it to create a list of references that you can add to the end of your work. This is very easy to do. However, if you use it fully with the Write 'n Cite plug-in you can use it to insert references into your work and it will create the reference list at the end of your work. This will be in the correct CU Harvard style.
If you are an undergraduate student or don't have too many references in your work, you might choose to just create the list of references and not use the Write 'n Cite option. Using Write 'n Cite is probably most beneficial for post-graduates, researchers and anyone who has to manage a large number of references.
It is also possible to create accounts for collaborative projects, so if a number of people are searching for literature they can all add to it.
I have used it myself and found it to be a really useful tool that could potentially save a lot of time and effort and you know the references are going to be in the correct format.
A word of warning; you will need to use it when you first start searching for literature and begin your project. It will not save you much time if you try to add everything in afterwards; you would be just as quick doing it manually.
Refworks is a really useful tool to help you to store, manage and correctly insert references into your work. It is quite easy to use and there is a workbook that you can download to guide you through its features. This is available on the Referencing and Copyright section of the library webpage.
There are a number of different ways to use Refworks. You can use all of it or just part of it. You can simply use it as a place to store useful references that you have found and organise them into folders that relate to your assignments or projects. You can also use it to create a list of references that you can add to the end of your work. This is very easy to do. However, if you use it fully with the Write 'n Cite plug-in you can use it to insert references into your work and it will create the reference list at the end of your work. This will be in the correct CU Harvard style.
If you are an undergraduate student or don't have too many references in your work, you might choose to just create the list of references and not use the Write 'n Cite option. Using Write 'n Cite is probably most beneficial for post-graduates, researchers and anyone who has to manage a large number of references.
It is also possible to create accounts for collaborative projects, so if a number of people are searching for literature they can all add to it.
I have used it myself and found it to be a really useful tool that could potentially save a lot of time and effort and you know the references are going to be in the correct format.
A word of warning; you will need to use it when you first start searching for literature and begin your project. It will not save you much time if you try to add everything in afterwards; you would be just as quick doing it manually.
Friday, 27 January 2012
Finding Case Studies
I am from time to time asked to find case studies on various business related topics. These can be found quite easily. Many textbooks will contain case studies, although sometimes these will be fictitious ones used to illustrate a point. You can also search on databases such as Business Source Complete or Emerald.
When searching on BSC you can limit the document type to 'case study' or put case study as a search term with your keywords. This will then retrieve articles that are case studies. When searching in Emerald, search in the advanced search on the Journals tab, rather than Case Studies, (our subscription doesn't cover these). Then just use case study as a search term and you will find journal articles that use the case study methodology.
There are a number of websites where you can get case studies, but most of these will charge you. However, the Times 100 Business Case Studies is free http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/case-studies/ It has lots of case studies and is organised in a very user friendly way. You can search by topic, company or industry sector. Topics cover different areas of finance, marketing, operations, people, strategy etc. Industries include automotive, construction, financial, retail and public sector giving case studies from companies such as Barclays, British Gas, Asda, M & S and BP. This website has been added to the Company Information subcategory of Business and Economics in Subject Databases on Locate.
When searching on BSC you can limit the document type to 'case study' or put case study as a search term with your keywords. This will then retrieve articles that are case studies. When searching in Emerald, search in the advanced search on the Journals tab, rather than Case Studies, (our subscription doesn't cover these). Then just use case study as a search term and you will find journal articles that use the case study methodology.
There are a number of websites where you can get case studies, but most of these will charge you. However, the Times 100 Business Case Studies is free http://businesscasestudies.co.uk/case-studies/ It has lots of case studies and is organised in a very user friendly way. You can search by topic, company or industry sector. Topics cover different areas of finance, marketing, operations, people, strategy etc. Industries include automotive, construction, financial, retail and public sector giving case studies from companies such as Barclays, British Gas, Asda, M & S and BP. This website has been added to the Company Information subcategory of Business and Economics in Subject Databases on Locate.
Wednesday, 18 January 2012
Information on the local economy
I have found that a good place to search for information about the local economy is on the Council's website, http://www.coventry.gov.uk/ . This is certainly true for Coventry City Council and will probably be the case for other local authorities.
To find this information on Coventry City Council's website, go to 'Your Council and Democracy', then choose 'information and statistics' from the links at the side. Here there are a number of different reports and links to statistics under the headings of 'Facts about Coventry, Key statistics and 'State of the City'. The statistical material from the Office for National Statistics covers Coventry and the West Midlands/Warwickshire area.
Under these sections you will be able to find information about the local economy, population, demographics, labour market and unemployment, Coventry's top employers and links to census information. There is also information here about health, education and housing.
If you are looking for information about the local economy, businesses, workforce, employment etc for your assisgnment or dissertation, then this website is definately worth a look.
To find this information on Coventry City Council's website, go to 'Your Council and Democracy', then choose 'information and statistics' from the links at the side. Here there are a number of different reports and links to statistics under the headings of 'Facts about Coventry, Key statistics and 'State of the City'. The statistical material from the Office for National Statistics covers Coventry and the West Midlands/Warwickshire area.
Under these sections you will be able to find information about the local economy, population, demographics, labour market and unemployment, Coventry's top employers and links to census information. There is also information here about health, education and housing.
If you are looking for information about the local economy, businesses, workforce, employment etc for your assisgnment or dissertation, then this website is definately worth a look.
Tuesday, 10 January 2012
Palgrave Dictionary of Economics
The Palgrave Dictionary of Economics is so much more than a dictionary giving brief definitions. The articles on the topics which are written by key economists are very detailed with links to other articles. They are excellent for getting a good overview on a topic, so good to use in essays. It also contains a lot of information on key economists, giving biographical details as well as details about their work and publications.
The Palgrave Dictionary of Economics is very easy to use and you can narrow your search using the categories on the left-hand side. There is also an A-Z and topic browse facility. Not only are there lots of links to other cited articles, there are links to related topics, making it very easy to explore. At the end of each article there is citation information, "How to cite this article".
So for essays on economics and finance related topics or just getting started on dissertations to get a good overview on a topic or person, this database is highly recommended.
The Palgrave Dictionary of Economics is very easy to use and you can narrow your search using the categories on the left-hand side. There is also an A-Z and topic browse facility. Not only are there lots of links to other cited articles, there are links to related topics, making it very easy to explore. At the end of each article there is citation information, "How to cite this article".
So for essays on economics and finance related topics or just getting started on dissertations to get a good overview on a topic or person, this database is highly recommended.
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