Find the library content you need with Summon! – St. Thomas Libraries Blog
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Find the library content you need with Summon!

(The following Bulletin Today article from Sept 09, describes how UST Libraries offers a new way to find library resources – Summon.)

Summon provides a new approach to searching millions of articles, books, book chapters and catalog records simultaneously. Considered a discovery tool, Summon allows users to get library resources through a familiar, Google-like, single search box; however, instead of searching the free Web, Summon searches library-subscribed resources (academic and trade journals, e-books, books, DVDs, etc.).

How it works: Serials Solutions, the creators of Summon, signed agreements with journal, newspaper and book publishers to index their content. Through UST’s library subscriptions, access is provided to tens of thousands of full-text e-journals and hundreds of e-books. Serials Solutions sees where the publisher’s agreements and St. Thomas’ subscriptions overlap and retrieves results based on what the university has in its possession.

Keep in mind that not all publishers have agreed to have their content indexed by Serials Solutions, and UST does not have subscriptions with all e-resource publishers. Summon is great for bibliographic content but not as good for statistics, country, company or industry information.

Faculty and students alike will benefit from Summon. Researchers who may have their favorite “go-to” databases will discover a greater quantity of relevant content by casting a search across library-subscribed resources. If you don’t know which specialized research databases to use, start with Summon and become familiar with subject-specific resources down the road.

Start finding library content by giving Summon a test drive. Learn more about Summon here.

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