Sadly, the semester is coming to a close. This is the end of my journey in Online Information Retrieval, but in a way it is just the beginning of my searching career. What a journey it has been! I feel that I have learned so much this semester and have developed into a more well-informed information seeker. Even in areas where I already had a limited bit of expertise (such as the use/existence of Boolean operators) I feel that my technique has been honed. I hope that you, dear reader, have enjoyed following my progress and learning from my mistakes and that you will somehow benefit from my documentation of this process.
A few of my favorite things: A semester-long summary
Content-wise, the most important thing I learned this semester (I suppose it is not necessarily my favorite thing...) was that libraries are not doing enough to support individuals with disabilities in their quest for information. This may be because of a lack of library outreach programs (as mentioned in my "JSTOR" post), poor staff training (as I mentioned in my "LexisNexis" and "Video & Social Media Databases" posts), or because the resources themselves are not set up in an accessible manner (as detailed in my "Science Direct" post). This makes me wonder what I could be doing now to help me better prepare for my career of serving a wide variety of patrons in the future. I was very happy to learn that there were organizations out there like DO-IT (detailed in my "DIALOG" post) and Utah Assistive Technology Program (mentioned in my "Video & Social Media Databases" post) to assist libraries with making their services and spaces more accessible to users with disabilities.
Searching-wise, I learned how to develop a command string for specialized searching (mentioned in my "LexisNexis" and "DIALOG" posts). I also learned about the existence of a new type of search limiter command – the "proximity search" limiter (described in both the "LexisNexis" and "DIALOG" posts). Finally, I learned about the importance of knowing common vocabulary terms used within your chosen subject area before conducting a detailed search (discussed in my "PsychInfo," "JSTOR," and "LexisNexis" posts; applied successfully in my "Video & Social Media" post). Database "search helps" can come in handy when they are available, but sometimes it is necessary to do the leg work yourself and research your topic before you begin your search.
If this is the first entry you are reading on my blog, this is no means all-encompassing of what I explored and learned this semester. There were many other interesting things I discovered along the way that I did not describe here. Hopefully this has piqued your interest enough to continue reading on!
While this blog will no longer be updated with new searches, I do hope you will be willing to comment, discuss, or drop me a line anytime on anything you found interesting during your perusal of this blog. I always look forward to hearing from other individuals who are interested in the field of library science!
- Crystal
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