Library Definitions

Abstract
A summary of the contents of a periodical article or book.

Bibliography
A list of citations of works an author refers to in a text (e.g., journal article or book) or a list of citations to works on a particular subject. Subject bibliographies can often be found in the Reference Room.

Bound Periodical Volume
Several issues of a periodical bound together in book form.

Call Number
A unique combination of letters and numbers assigned to most library materials to provide an orderly arrangement and means of finding material. Some call number systems like the Library of Congress Classification, which OhioLINK uses in most cases, are based on subject content and group similar subjects together.

CD-ROM (Compact Disk-Read Only Memory)
A type of technology that stores information on a compact disk. The information can then be accessed with a personal computer and CD-ROM reader.

Circulation
The area where library borrowing takes place.

Citation
Information required to identify a particular text. A book citation includes author, title, publisher and year of publication while a journal citation includes author, article title and periodical title, date, volume and page numbers.

Database
Information that has been collected and stored to permit organized information retrieval. One type of a database is an online index.

Government Documents
Materials published by local, state, and federal government entities. Many OhioLINK libraries have state and federal documents.

Index
A collection of citations of articles that have appeared in magazines, journals, and newspapers. May be found in print, CD-ROM, or online versions.

Interlibrary Loan (ILL)
The service which permits current validated patrons to request books from other libraries that are unavailable at their library or through OhioLINK.

Journal
A scholarly publication containing information written by experts on current research in a given field. (Finding Scholarly Journals)

Keyword Search
A broad natural language search strategy which allows patrons to locate citations to individual records containing a word or combination of words in designated fields from an online catalog or database. A keyword search retrieves the greatest number of records, some of which may be irrelevant.

Magazine
A periodical published primarily for a general audience. It usually does not contain scholarly articles. (Finding Scholarly Articles)

Microform
Printed material that has been photographed and reduced to a film format to help preserve the material and decrease the space needed for storage. Special equipment is needed to access stored information. Typical formats include microfilm, microfiche or ultrafiche.

OhioLINK
A computer network sharing numerous electronic resources and connecting over forty college and university libraries in Ohio.

Periodical
A publication with a unique title that is issued at an established interval (weekly, monthly, quarterly). Examples include newspapers, journals, and magazines.

Power Pages
Full-text articles currently available through ABI/Inform and Periodical Abstracts (OhioLINK Research Databases). Current faculty, staff, and students may request full-text articles from their library and from remote access for 10¢ a page.

Reference
Area where patrons can get help not only using the library but also locating library materials.

Research Databases
Online indexes and abstracts as well as informational databases available through OhioLINK. ERIC, Medline, and Newspaper Abstracts are some examples.

Reserve
Materials (books, journal articles, and sample tests) which faculty make available for a particular course.

Subject Heading
A list of standard search terms assigned to an item to identify its primary content. Using the correct subject heading is an important part of an effective search. Consult the Library of Congress Subject Headings when using your library's online catalog or OhioLINK, or consult the appropriate thesaurus for a specific database.

Subject Search
A controlled search which gathers records with a specific subject heading. This search strategy typically results in a high number of relevant records.

Thesaurus
A list of subject headings assigned in a particular database, index, or online catalog.

World Wide Web (WWW)
Information system using the Internet to access hypertext documents.

Adapted From the Maag Library Online Library Handbook

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