A library database is an electronic collection of information, organized in a way that allows users to be able to search and access. There are different kinds of databases at Rolfing Library which provide full-text articles, abstracts, and reference information.
Library databases contain:
At Rolfing Library, we select databases based on the academic programs offered at Trinity International University. Trinity users will be able to find relevant resources in the databases specific to our academic and research needs. For more information about how to conduct a search in databases, please visit our Database Basic Search page.
Even though the search is done online, internet searches and database searches are different.
| Internet | Library Databases | |
|---|---|---|
| Content | Mostly popular sources, some scholarly and trade; mostly current information but unpublished material | Popular, scholarly, and trade sources; relatively current information and historic sources published |
| Organization | Loose or no organization of pages | Indexed by subject, title, author, publication, material type, and format |
| Credibility | Authority often unverified; no evaluation or peer-review process for information; often self-published | Many sources evaluated for accuracy and credibility; reviewed before publication |
| Access | Available to anyone; many scholarly resources charge fees | Available to current Trinity users |
| Search Results | Can't be filtered and ranking of results unclear | Results can be filtered by year, document type, or subjects |
