Let’s go on a (Pro)Quest!!

One of the Ritz Library’s more widely used databases, ProQuest, has a new look this year – please don’t panic! The database’s designers have redone the interface to make searching for specific topics more effective when you do your research, and most of the same search options are still available and can be easily found on the Advanced Search page. The good news is that there are several brand new features that can also help you focus your search to find more specific results.

Most of the new features can be found over to the right of your search results list or when you bring up an article. There’s a Thesaurus which will help you find terms that are similar to those you’re searching on. When you’ve searched and brought up your list of results you’ll find the Sidebar containing additional functions that will allow you to limit your results to specific dates, source types (publication types), titles, companies and specific names. There’s also a new Share box which connects to social networking sites and services like Facebook, Twitter or StumbleUpon.

If you have any difficulties or you have any questions about the new ProQuest, please be sure to contact the Ritz Library Reference staff via email, phone or Meebo. We’ll be happy to help you out.

With the introduction of the new Ritz Research Guides comes a new way to search our databases: 360 Search. You’ll find it on most of the research guides we’ve created to streamline searching our resources in order to get you the right information faster.

360 Search is a “federated” search engine, which means that it can search several databases on a single subject at the same time. So, instead of the more traditional way of searching your subject in all the applicable databases, 360 allows you to search them simultaneously and lists the results according to relevance.

You’ll notice that results come up in a list that is categorized according to database. At the top to the right above the shaded search summary area is a box to check if you’d like full text articles only. There is also a box to check for peer-reviewed articles if your interest is in getting articles written by professionals in a specific field.

The 360 Search does not appear on every RitzGuide, however, you can spot it by looking for a box at the top of the middle column, titled Search all [Subject] Databases. Enter your words in the search box, separated by “and” unless they form one term and click the search button to right.

If you have any questions about 360 Search or any of our other resource, please contact us at (845) 431-8634 or refdesk@sunydutchess.edu.