Find Articles in Steely Databases

Searching for Articles on the Web?

While sites on the Web like Google Scholar can sometimes be helpful in locating articles, you should NEVER pay money to access articles, because Steely Library has several options for retrieving them and almost all articles can be made available to you FOR FREE via Steely Library.

Access Steely Library’s Databases

Go to the Steely Library Webpage then the Library Quick Links dropdown and choose Articles & Databases.

Helpful Tips

You can search Articles & Databases by discipline or choose a database title from the alphabetical listing.

Not sure which databases to choose? Go to the Research Guide for your particular discipline and click on the Articles tab.

When not on NKU's campus, you'll be prompted to put in a username and password after clicking on a database. Your username and password will be the same as those you use for NKU Webmail.

Four Ways to Access an Article From a Database
A Step by Step Guide

First Step

Do you want a full-text search? In many databases articles will be available in full-text:

  • html full-text,
  • pdf full-text, or
  • linked full-text.

Full-text is the option you would choose if you want articles you can instantly pull up on your computer. You can access these articles by simply clicking on the full-text link. Many databases will let you put a checkmark next to "Full-text only" within their advanced searching options. However, for some upper-division or graduate research, you may not want to miss valuable articles by limiting to full-text. Full-text may not be the best option for you in some situations.

There are several other steps for retrieving articles when full-text is not available. These are outlined below. Some take a few extra seconds, and one option could take up to 2 days. However, almost any article can be in your hands within 48 hours - which is still pretty quick.

Second Step

If your article is not available full-text in your current database, you can check to see if it's available electronically in another database. You can determine this by clicking on the

LinkSource logoCheck LinkSource for More Information

link directly below the article in your database. If it is available in another database, you will see a link for it in a pop-up box.

You can also see if the journal is available electronically by putting the journal title in the search box in Electronic Journals.

For the article citation listed below, there was no success searching in LinkSource or putting the journal title (Voices from the Middle) in Electronic Journals. Now step 3 is necessary.

Citation from Ebcohost: Wilhelm, Jeff; Smith, Michael W.. Voices from the Middle, v13 n4 p29-31 May 2006.

We will be using this citation as an example in our next step.

Third Step - Library Catalog

The next option is the library catalog - NKUIRE. Click on "Check for source in NKUIRE catalog" below the article to see if the journal might be available in print, microfilm, or microfiche format in Steely Library.

Clicking on the "Check for source in NKUIRE catalog" takes you to the library catalog and automatically runs a search on the journal's ISSN number. With our example, NKUIRE determines that Steely Library DOES have the journal title in question. However, this is not a guarantee that the article is available - it's necessary to look at the exact citation from the article in your database and make sure that this volume and issue of the journal is in NKUIRE. Then, you must determine where and in what format it can be found.

It’s necessary to look at the citation and match it with the NKUIRE record:

Citation

Wilhelm, Jeff; Smith, Michael W.. Voices from the Middle, v13 n4 p29-31 May 2006.

NKUIRE Record

This location information is found at the bottom of the catalog record:

Library Has: v.1-12 1994-May 2005 BOUND 3RD FLOOR
v.12- June, 2005- UNBOUND 3RD FLOOR
Recent Issues: v. 17, no. 2 (2009 Dec.)
v. 17, no. 1 (2009 Sept.)
v. 16, no. 4 (2009 May)
v. 16, no. 3 (2009 Mar.)
v. 16, no. 2 (2008 Dec.)
v. 15, no. (2008 Nov.-Dec.)
v. 16, no. 1 (2008 Sept.)
v. 15, no. 4 (2008 July/Aug.)
v. 15, no. 3 (2008 Mar)
v. 15, no. 2 (2008 Mar/Apr)
v. 15, no. 2 (2007 Dec.)
v. 15, no. 1 (2007 Sept.)
v. 14, no. 4 (2007 June)
v. 14, no. 3 (2007 Mar.)
v. 14, no. 2 (2006 Dec.)
v. 14, no. 1 (2006 Sept.)
v. 15, no. 4 (2006 May)
v. 13, no. 3 (2006 Mar.)
v. 13, no. 2 (2005 Dec.)
v. 13, no. 1 (2005 Sept.)

This match confirms that Steely DOES have it (but there appears to be a typo in the database's citation, since it seems to be volume 15, not 13. Sometimes this happens. Not all citations are entered correctly.

Now, it's possible to go to Steely Library and retrieve the item from the Unbound area on the third floor, since that's the location listed for this particular volume. All print journals can only be accessed in the library and cannot be checked out. There are copy machines nearby on the third floor.

Distance & Online Students can obtain articles owned by Steely Library, through SourceFinder. To find out if you qualify, read the eligibility requirements.

Fourth Step - SourceFinder (Interlibrary Loan)

If there has been no success with the earlier three steps, the final option for accessing an article would be SourceFinder. There is a "SourceFinder Request" link below the article. If you do not have a SourceFinder account, you will be directed to a page where you can register. SourceFinder is NKU's Interlibrary Loan option, and most journal articles can be delivered electronically within 48 hours. You are contacted by email when your article arrives. If the item is available in Steely Library, in any form, your SourceFinder request will be cancelled and the SourceFinder staff will let you know where in the library the item can be found.

Depending on the format and availability of your particular article, sometimes you can access it easily by using step 1. However some articles require additional steps: 2, 3, or 4. If you ever encounter problems as you follow the various steps to locate an article, be sure to use the Ask Steely Library! services for assistance.