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What am I searching in the Library Catalog?
The NOVA Libraries Catalog searches physical and electronic items, including books, eBooks, articles from academic journals, magazines, and newspapers, streaming media, and much more. This search includes multiple sources, including physical items on the shelves, eBook collections, and many of our subscription databases. While this is a very powerful searching tool, it does not cover all of our library resources.
The white circle above represents the Library Catalog. The yellow circle represents NOVA Libraries collections of books, eBooks, audiobooks, etc. This yellow circle is within the white circle, representing that all of those items are able to be searched in the catalog. The green circle represents articles and databases, which is only partly within the white circle. This placement of the green circle represents that only a portion of our databases and articles are searchable in the library catalog.
Which databases can I search in the catalog?
For a quick look at which databases are searchable in the Library Catalog, go to the Database AtoZ list and look for the following icons next to resources:
- Articles from resources with this icon are searchable in the Library Catalog
- Journals from resources with this icon are searchable in the Library Catalog
- eBooks from resources with this icon are searchable in the Library Catalog
- Multimedia from resources with this icon is searchable in the Library Catalog
Keep in mind that the library catalog changes often (usually making more items available). We continually update the catalog to ensure that it has the most up to date information possible.
When should I use the Library Catalog for article search?
If you are doing a general search, the Library Catalog can be a great tool to search multiple databases at once. However, if you want specialized information in a discipline or subject, search one of our Subject Databases directly or go to one of our Subject Guides.
Have more questions?
Use the "Ask a Librarian" box on the left-hand side of this page to instantly connect to a librarian who can answer any questions you may have about the catalog, researching, or anything else!