VU Libraries, Vincennes University (updated 5/2010)
http://www.vinu.edu/Majors and Academics/Libraries/Find Books
There are over 9,500 electronic books available for on-campus or off-campus use. These are especially useful for Distance Education classes. The VU Libraries ebook collection ranges from single monographs to large multi-volume reference works and covers almost any academic topic desired by major and small publishers.
For off-campus access, first log on to your MYVU or Blackboard accounts, just as you would to access other VU Libraries subscription electronic resources when you are not physically on a VU campus.
1. Accessing Ebooks via WebCat, VU’s Electronic catalog:
All Ebooks are listed in WebCat, the electronic catalog for VU Libraries available under the Find Books page. Instructions: Go to the VU home page at http://www.vinu.edu, then click on Majors and Academics/Libraries/Find Books/VUWebCat. Locate ebooks by doing keyword searches as the following examples show:
• Basic Search (default screen): Use keywords Ebook and your choice of words or phrases, as:
ebook stress
ebook “stress management” (note phrase searching in quotes)
• Using Advanced Search: After selecting Advanced search, choose Locations: Shake Electronic Resource, then use the menu for keyword/title/subject searching, etc. with your words search.
After you find a listing of ebooks, simply click on the book’s title to see the citation, then to see the ebook itself, click within the listing on Click for Linked Resource(s):An electronic book accessible through the NetLibrary Vincennes University collection; click for information . (In this case, you will be automatically taken to the NetLibrary collection to read the ebook.)
2. Accessing Ebooks Using Simultaneous Searching via VU Library Search, the Federated Search Engine
Want to search all the VU electronic reference books at once? VU Library Search, which is Shake Library’s Federated Search Engine, can help you find your way through a confusing array of different electronic resources so you can specific electronic or print books, or journal, magazine, or newspaper articles. This is a good tool to use when you don’t know which resource to search for a particular topic, or would like to save time by searching numerous resources simultaneously. VU Library Search is found near the top of the Find Books or Find Articles web pages.
Directions: Go to http://www.vinu.edu, select Majors and Academics, then Libraries, then Find Books or Find Articles (the federated search engine called VU Library Search is at the top of both pages).
Once the VU Library Search page appears, select Basic or Advanced searching, type your search terms in the search blanks, and be sure to choose the subject category Books below. (Note: by selecting the VU Library Catalog your results will include print holdings as well as full-text for ebooks.) After you generate a listing of content in ebooks, you can also filter your results by checking the Full Text box, which will screen out print books, for instance.
3. Accessing Ebooks by Collection/Publisher via the Find Books Page VU Libraries Electronic Book Collections Link:
Using the VU Libraries Electronic Book Collections link is especially useful for searching electronic Reference Books individually or by collection, in a similar manner to how you would consult a print book such as an encyclopedia in the library’s print Reference Collection. Instructions: Go to the VU home page at http://www.vinu.edu, then click on Majors and Academics/Libraries/Find Books/VU Libraries Electronic Book Collections. You will see the following listing, each link containing a variety of ebooks:
• ABC - CLIO - History and social science reference books
• AccessScience -- Online version of the highly acclaimed McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science & Technology
• Credo Reference - Collection of reference books
• Encyclopedia Britannica Online
• Gale Virtual Reference Library - Collection of reference books
• Opposing Viewpoints Resource Center
• Oxford Digital Reference Shelf - Collection of reference books
• R2 Library - Collection of health/nursing books
• VU netLibrary Collection - Access to over 9,200 electronic books
Example: Let’s search the
International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences , 2nd ed., 9v, 2008, which is a major, multi-volume encyclopedia considered a core library resource. Directions:
Click on Gale Virtual Reference Library, then choose the Social Science heading to see a listing of ebooks available. Click on
International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences , 9v, 2008.
Use the Search Within This Publication blank (Advanced Search is another option for searching individual books or the entire VU Gale collection) and find articles about your research topic. For instance, the term Racism pulls up 67 articles with the most relevant being listed first:
Racism.
International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences. Ed. William A. Darity, Jr. Vol. 7. 2nd ed. Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2008. p44-47.
• Full-text
• 4 PDF page(s)
This is just one way to search the Gale Virtual Reference Library collection. Other choices include Index search where you can search or scroll through the ebook’s index, or the alphabetical eTable of Contents.
You can also search all the ebooks simultaneously in the Gale Virtual Library by using the Basic or Advanced Search screens before selecting your individual book as was done in the International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences example above.
Remember, each of the collections above are by different publishers and have different looks and search features.
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