Finding books * Finding articles * Finding facts * Finding Web sites Need a print version of this guide? Select "Print This Page" in the gold navigation bar above to reformat, then print.
If you have any difficulty locating what you need, you can contact a reference librarian by telephone at 885-1772, via email, or by coming into the library during reference service hours.
The library subscribes to many Web-based databases for use by OIT students, staff, and faculty. Access to these databases is limited to users connected to the Web from an OIT computer. If you are using a non-OIT Internet Service Provider (such as AOL, CDSNET, CVC, etc.) you will need to use your OIT email username and password to access the databases from off-campus.
If you have any difficulty locating what you need, you can contact a reference librarian by telephone at 885-1772, via email, or by coming into the library during reference service hours.
The library subscribes to many Web-based databases for use by OIT students, staff, and faculty. Access to these databases is limited to users connected to the Web from an OIT computer. If you are using a non-OIT Internet Service Provider (such as AOL, CDSNET, CVC, etc.) you will need to use your OIT email username and password to access the databases from off-campus. Check the library's Interlibrary Loan (ILL) webpage for information on getting loans of books or copies of articles from other libraries. Finding Books - catalog See Tips for using catalog databases
Use Hedgehog to locate books and journals in the OIT Library. Hedgehog is a Web database containing records for items in the library's collection. OIT purchases books on communications from many publishers.
Use Summit to locate and request books at other academic libraries in Oregon and Washington. The books requested are delivered by courier to the OIT Library, usually within three to four working days.
Use World Cat to locate books, government documents, CDs, videos, and other items at libraries across North America and elsewhere in the world. A  symbol appearing next to a reference retrieved by a search indicates that the OIT Library owns the item. If the book is not at OIT, students, staff, and faculty can make an online ILL (interlibrary loan) request. Books are usually sent to the OIT Library via U.S. mail so may take a week or more to arrive.
Finding articles- databases See also Tips for using index databases
Use an index to identify articles in journals. Indexes are Web databases containing references to specific journal articles. These databases are produced by several different companies and have different search software, so remember to check the help screens to find out how to do the most effective search. The following indexes contain significant numbers of references on communications- related subjects.
| ComAbstracts
Includes more than 28,000 article and book abstracts and bibliographic records from the professional literature of the communication field. | | | Communication & Mass Media Complete
Provides research solutions in areas related to communication and mass media; for students, researchers, and educators. Some of the articles are indexed without including full text, but there is also a significant amount of full text available. This database originated with the acquisition and subsequent merging of CommSearch (formerly produced by the National Communication Association) and Mass Media Articles Index (formerly produced by Pennsylvania State University). | | | Computer Database
Indexes articles on communications via the Internet. Contains many full-text articles. Click on "Library Holdings" to see what issues of the source publication the OIT Library has in print. Indexes articles providing computer-related product introductions, news, and reviews in areas such as hardware, software, electronics, engineering, communications, and the application of technology. Covers from 1980 - present. | | | PsycINFO
Provides an index and abstracts of articles on the psychosocial aspects of communications, including nonverbal communication, mediation, and interpersonal and group dynamics. Some full text is available. Coverage is worldwide, and includes references and abstracts to more than 1,900 journals and dissertations in more than 35 languages, and to book chapters and books in the English language. Popular literature is excluded. Check Hedgehog to see if the OIT Library owns the source publication. Covers from 1872 - present. | | | Social Sciences Index
Indexes articles on social issues related to communications, such as censorship, media influence on society, and socioeconomic aspects of information. A symbol appearing next to a reference retrieved by a search links to the OIT Library catalog and shows what print issues of the source publication the OIT Library has. | | |
Finding facts - reference resources See also Tips for Using Reference Sources and Reference Database Information The library reference area has books with addresses, definitions, data tables and other factual information. Some reference books you may find useful include:
HF5718.5 .P63 1989.
THE POCKET PROPOSAL STYLE MANUAL : FOR WRITERS AND EDITORS OF GOVERNMENT PROPOSALS / [BY ROSS PIPES AND ASSOCIATES, INC].
REF HF5726 .A49 1996.
THE AMA STYLE GUIDE FOR BUSINESS WRITING / FROM THE EDITORS AT THE AMERICAN MANAGEMENT ASSOCIATION.
REF LB2825 .H223 1988.
GETTING FUNDED : A COMPLETE GUIDE TO PROPOSAL WRITING / MARY S. HALL.
REF P87.5 .I5 1989.
INTERNATIONAL ENCYCLOPEDIA OF COMMUNICATIONS / ERIK BARNOUW, EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ... [ET AL.].
REF T11 .A88. 1995
MEMBERSHIP DIRECTORY / ATTW, THE ASSOCIATION OF TEACHERS OF TECHNICAL WRITING.
REF T11 .O94 1991.
THE OXFORD DICTIONARY FOR SCIENTIFIC WRITERS AND EDITORS.
REF T11 .S378 2001.
SCIENCE AND TECHNICAL WRITING : A MANUAL OF STYLE / PHILIP RUBENS, GENERAL EDITOR.
REF T11 .S386 1994.
SCIENTIFIC STYLE AND FORMAT : THE CBE MANUAL FOR AUTHORS, EDITORS, AND PUBLISHERS / STYLE MANUAL COMMITTEE, COUNCIL OF BIOLOGY EDITORS.
REF T385 .L38 1995.
THE DICTIONARY OF COMPUTER GRAPHICS AND VIRTUAL REALITY / ROY LATHAM.
REF Z253 .G53 1999
MLA HANDBOOK FOR WRITERS OF RESEARCH PAPERS / JOSEPH GIBALDI. Finding Web sites See also Tips for using Web search engines
These are some sites providing search capability or links with information on communications: The American Communication Association: Communications Studies Center
Society for Technical Communications
The Virtual Library - Communications and the Media
Besides using one of the many Web search engines (some good ones are available as links from the OIT Library's Web Search Engines page), there are other ways to identify higher-quality web sites on your topic. The following two sources include lists of web sites compiled by librarians:
INFOMINE: Scholarly Internet Resource Collection
Librarian's Index to the Internet
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