Abstract - summary of an article. The full-text article may or may not be included.
Ask a Librarian - sometimes referred to as virtual reference or LRC Live. You can actually ask a librarian through email, online chat, phone, or in person.
Authority - credentials or qualifications. When you evaluate a web site, you want to determine the authority of the person or organization that published the information. See web-site evaluation criteria.
Bibliography - list of sources or references.
Book Catalog - the database that shows all of the books, as well as films and recordings, owned by Brown Library. Available on the library home page.
Call number - a unique number assigned to a library book that enables you to find the book on the shelf. Our call numbers are based on the Library of Congress Classification System.
Circulation - place in the library where materials are checked out. In Brown Library the circulation desk is located on the top floor. Go there to get a library card, check out books, find reserves, and find distance learning tapes. See the circulation policies page.
Citation - information that fully identifies a publication. A basic citation for an article usually includes an author, title of article, source periodical, volume, date, and pages. A basic citation for a book usually includes the author, title of book, place of publication, publisher, and date of publication. The purpose of a citation is to make it possible for the reader of your paper to go back and find your original information. The purpose is also to give credit to the source.
Consortium - a cooperative arrangement among groups or institutions. The Virginia Western library belongs to a consortium of Virginia college and university libraries known as VIVA.
Database - an electronic index to articles from periodicals and other sources. The database may include both full-text articles, references with abstracts, or just references.
Descriptor - another word for subject, used in Factiva.
Encyclopedia – a work that contains information on all branches of knowledge or treats comprehensively a particular branch of knowledge. For more information click on encyclopedias from the Brown Library home page.
Free Text - another word for keyword, used in Factiva
Full text - as opposed to abstract or reference. A full-text article is one that is right there on the computer screen. You don't have to go anywhere else to find it.
General encyclopedia - an encyclopedia that covers a wide range of topics. Examples include World Book and Encyclopaedia Britannica.
Icon - A visual, graphic representation of an object, word, or concept. In the library databases, click on the printer icon to format a page for printing.
Index - a list of references to articles in periodicals. Searchable by keyword as well as subject, author, and title. An index may or may not link to full text. If there is no link to full text, you must note the information about the article and try to get it somewhere else. An index may be in either print form or electronic form or both. InfoTrac OneFile is an example of an index that is available only in electronic form. The Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature is an example of an index that is available in both print and electronic form, although in this library we have only the print form.
Interlibrary loan - a service by which the library will borrow books or obtain copies of articles not in its own collection for patrons who need them.
ISBN - International Standard Book Number. This 10 or 13-digit number uniquely identifies each book title in the publishing world. The ISBN is usually present in the book's catalog record, and you can even search by ISBN if you already know it. The ISBN should not be confused with the call number.
ISSN - International Standard Serial Number. This number uniquely identifies each periodical title in the publishing world.
Journal - a periodical containing scholarly articles written by authorities or experts in a given field of study. Scholarly journal articles usually have a bibliography or list of references at the end. Journals are also known as refereed or peer-reviewed. In the Thomson Gale databases there is a tab labeled Academic Journals.
Keyword search - a type of search used in electronic databases. In a keyword search you are looking for your search terms to appear somewhere in the description of the book or article. The keyword search is not exact, so you can expect to retrieve a large number of results, some relevant and some not.
Learning Technology Center - located on the bottom floor of Brown Library. Go there to take tests, meet with tutors, and use the computer lab. See the Learning Center Home Page.
Library of Congress Classification System - a call number and classification system for finding books in a library. It is an A-Z system in which letters represent broad topics. See it.
Limit - a search option used in a database to focus or narrow a search by specific criteria. Examples include: limiting by date, limiting to full-text, limiting to refereed publications, limiting to a particular source.
LRC Live – an online reference chat and consulting service provided by the Virginia Community College System. You can get there by clicking on ask a librarian from the library home page. 
 

Magazine - a periodical written for the general public with the purpose of informing and entertaining.
Microform – publications, such as newspapers and magazines, that are photographed, reduced in size, and preserved on rolls of film or fiche. The advantage of this format is that it saves space and preserves materials. In Brown Library, all microform materials are located in the reference department.
Microfilm – a type of microform available on rolls of transparent film.
Microfiche – a type of microform available on flat sheets of transparent film known as fiche.
MLA - (Modern Language Association) The style required by English teachers at Virginia Western for research papers.
MLA citation - a citation prepared in the MLA style. See sample citations.
Online encyclopedia - an encyclopedia that is available in electronic form. It could be either a general or a subject encyclopedia. At Brown Library we have a subscription to Encyclopaedia Britannica Online.
PDF - (Portable Document Format) A file format created by Adobe Systems in 1993 for desktop publishing use. In many of the library databases, articles are available in multiple formats, including Adobe PDF.
Peer-review - a process used for scholarly journals that ensures quality control. Also called the referee process.
Periodical - publication issued at regular intervals, such as a magazine, newspaper, or journal.
Plagiarism - stealing someone else's ideas and presenting them as your own.
Primary source - an account by an eyewitness of an event, such as diaries, letters, or minutes of meetings; news footage, newspaper articles; and creative works, such as poetry, music or art. In the Opposing Viewpoints database there is a folder tab labeled primary sources. Click here for information about finding primary source material in books, newspapers, and magazines. Click here to find out about primary sources online.
Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature - an index to articles in periodicals. The Readers' Guide has been published since 1890. This print source can be used to access articles that are not found in electronic databases.
Refereed - another term for peer-review.
Reference - information used to identify a source. The information in a reference is not formatted in a particular style, such as MLA, and is not the same as a citation. When you search the library databases, you will find a list of references to articles.
Reference book - a book located in the reference department on the main floor of Brown Library. Reference books may not be checked out. The letters “REF” appear at the beginning of call numbers on  reference books.
Reference desk - located in the reference department on the main floor. Go there to ask questions about research or about the library worksheet.
Relevance - usefulness of an article. In library databases, results can be sorted by relevance.
Reserves - materials such as books, videotapes, software, or articles placed in the library by the instructor for use by all the students in a class. At Brown Library reserves are kept at the circulation desk on the top floor.
Search box - in an electronic database, the place on the screen where you enter your search words.
Search engine - a web site used to search the Internet. See a list here.
Style manual - a guide to using proper style when writing the research paper. Each field of study uses a particular style. English students are usually required to use the MLA style. Psychology students are usually required to use APA. History students are sometimes required to use Chicago style. Style guides are available at both the circulation and reference desk. See a list of writing resources.
Subheading - a way to categorize, subdivide, or narrow a subject heading. Here is an example: Libraries—History—20th century. Libraries is the subject. History—20th century is the subheading.
Subject - what the book or article is about.
Subject encyclopedia - an encyclopedia that covers a specific area of knowledge. See a list of some owned by Brown Library.
Subject heading - the most specific word or phrase that describes the subject, or one of the subjects, of a work, selected from a list of preferred or controlled terms.
Subject search - a type of search used in electronic databases.
URL - Uniform Resource Locator. URL is another way of referring to a web address. The URL for Brown Library is http://www.vw.vccs.edu/library.

VCCS Linc -   name of the book catalog used at Brown Library.

                                

Virtual reference - a form of reference in which the conversation between student and librarian takes place online. At Brown Library we use a service referred to as LRC Live. You can get there by clicking on ask a librarian from the library home page.
VIVA - Virtual Library of Virginia. a consortium of Virginia four-year, university and community college libraries that jointly purchase and make available many expensive full-text databases of newspaper, magazine, and journal articles.