PGCC Library Resources Overview and Instructions

The following videos can help walk you through a few of the resources available at the PGCC Library.

Database Overview

Credo Reference

This database is a great place to start your research, especially if you are unfamiliar with a topic. Credo is a reference database. This means that all resources are reference (or tertiary) resources, such as dictionaries and encyclopedias.

Proquest

Proquest is a large-scale database that contains other, discipline or subject-specific databases within it. It works best to find sources once you have a good idea of the very specific type of information you need. Or once you already have isolated effective keywords. It is difficult to use if you are just starting on an unfamiliar topic, but it is very useful if you are already well underway on your research.

Gale General OneFile

General OneFile is a general, all-purpose database that especially is useful for finding sources from newspapers and magazines. It does contain scholarly journal articles, but search results from this database tend to include more mass-market or popular press sources, rather than scholarly journals. This is a good database if you know what you need to find already. It’s keyword visualization feature also makes it a good database to get you started on breaking a topic down into sub-topics for research.

Gale Academic OneFile

Academic OneFile uses the same interface as Gale General OneFile. That means that once you master one, you can use both easily. Academic OneFile Contains a large number of resources, but is especially helpful in isolating scholarly, peer reviewed sources. It also has a keyword visualization feature to help you understand the topic and subtopics related to a subject.

Opposing Viewpoints in Context