Now that you've explored the preliminary databases and have collected some background information on your topic, it's time to begin conducting some reference research, and OneSearch is just the tool to use for that.
The first step you should take is to watch the OneSearch Basics video.
NOTE: If the video is the first time you've encountered OneSearch or you'd like to brush up on your skills using this resource, complete the OneSearch Tutorial. This tutorial will take 15-30 minutes to complete. You can also receive a certificate of complete if you score 75% or higher, and it will make a long-term difference in your ability to effectively search and find relevant sources, and that translates into time and energy saved!
Follow these steps to access it:
Once you've watched the video (and have completed the tutorial), you'll be ready to dive into OneSearch, and you can start by using the 1-3 keywords that you used in the preliminary databases, but now you can also add more relevant keywords to refine your topic (see the Search Tips box below).
If you'd like to see some of the search tips used in action, watch the Quick Tips & Shortcuts for Database Searching video (NOTE: The database used in this video may look a bit different from OneSearch, but it the tools are the same).
NOTE: To login from off-campus, you will need your eServices username (w+student ID) and password.
Search Tips:
Using Parentheses: Use these around keywords separated by the word "OR" to expand your search and get more results.
Example: dating (underage OR legal minor)
In the example above, we are running two searches at once:
dating underage and dating legal minor.
Using the Asterisk (*): Use this to shorten a word and search for all possible endings of a root word. This will give you more results
Example: poverty child*
This is searching for the keyword poverty and the keywords: child, children, childhood, etc.
OneSearch can search just about all of the Los Rios Libraries databases simultaneously. Find the best books and eBooks, academic articles, news articles, videos and more in one simple search!
Sample Topic: Potential employers should/should not be able to request access to your password-protected Facebook account.
Sample Searches:
Remember to take advantage of the limiters on the left of your search results to ensure you are getting current resources that you can access!