Information Studies 501: Foundations of Library and Information Science: FAQs

1. How do we find LIS research databases?

Information Studies databases.

2. Where is the list of all the databases that UWM offers?

Databases A-Z is a complete list.

3. Can you narrow the databases down by subjects like history, education, etc.?

Yes, search resources (databases) by subject.

4. How long do Interlibrary Loan (ILL) books take?

This varies depending on which library the item is coming from. There is an option to do a rush request on articles (takes 24-48 hours).

Frequently Asked ILL Questions.

5. How do you return e-ILL material?

Electronic Interlibrary loan (ILL) materials are available through your ILLiad account (Interlibrary Loan account). They come in a PDF format and are available for you to access for a certain amount of time (will specify this in your account). You may access articles from here and print them out if desired.  You do not have to "return" the electronic articles. They will be removed from your ILLiad account after your "loan period" has expired to access them.

ILLiad log-in page.

6. What is RefWorks?

RefWorks is a web-based tool that helps you manage citations, create bibliographies, and import references from databases. It can convert stored citations into formatted bibliographies. Formatting styles include APA, Chicago, and MLA. To store your citations, you are required to register with the site. Creating an account is free. RefWorks is not "necessary" if you have a grasp on your citations, but it can be a useful organizational tool. The RefWorks Quick Start Guide can provide further information.

7. Is Boolean search usually a better system? How does it work?

Boolean searching is the use of AND, OR and NOT in your searches.  It is helpful in narrowing your search to get more accurate results.

AND, OR and NOT examples:

•  If you want to research public libraries and teens, you would want to enter in "public libraries" AND teens in order to get information covering both of these subjects.  If you leave out the AND, you might get articles only on public libraries or only on teens unrelated to libraries. (Note you would also want to use different terms than teen as well such as youth, adolescent, young adult, etc. in your search)

•  If you wanted to search a topic using various synonyms for it (like our teens and adolescents example), you can use the Boolean operator OR to do this. For example, we could modify our search to "public libraries" AND (teens or adolescents)

•  If you want to exclude something from your search, you can use the Boolearn operator NOT.  For example if you wanted to search for children's services at the library and not adult services, you could use NOT to exclude adult services: libraries AND (children's services NOT adult services).  This will exclude adult services from your results.

More information on searches and Boolean Operators.

8. Do you have an area of the library for fiction books?

The Browsing Collection in the lower level, west wing of the library has a variety of newer fiction books along with other new arrival items. This is intended to be a section for "leisurely reading." However, there are fiction books in the main collection of the library as well. You may search the catalog to find out where items are located.

9. How do you search how two things relate to each other? For example: For our project, we need to discuss how a person has impacted LIS. So, we'd need to search for the person and LIS and how they are related.

See this page on Search strategies.

10. Can you give us the rundown of the Golda Meir Library Setup?  or What are the differences between the two wings of the UWM Library?

See ​Building Information and Floorplans and also, for an interactive map, see Google Maps. (Use the numbers in the lower right of the screen to navigate the floors in Google Maps.)

11. Are all your books housed in the library itself or are some off site?

Some of our materials are in remote storage. Students may also request that some items be retrieved from the stacks

12. What database should I use to find biography information about an author.

See tab at the top of this Course guide.

13. How do I access EBSCOhost?

EBSCO is a provider of several databases (67 as of 8/1/18) the UWM Libraries subscribes to. A full list is available on the A-Z Database list.