Religion Tutorial

Religious information is plentiful and has been published in print and electronic formats. Much of the information is free and may be found on the Internet. Other information may be found in specialized databases to which the library subscribes. Hints for obtaining information from these sources follow.

Internet (Internet glossary)

To find information, try the following search techniques at search engines. A search engine searches documents by keywords and returns a list for linking to the documents. Four search engines are Google, Alltheweb, Yahoo and Altavista. Notice that the advanced search tool allows choices for language, domain, etc. If you choose to use the basic search tool, i.e. Google, you must use the + sign, quotes, and an asterisk with your keywords to refine a search: +"religion" +case stud* +philosophy Generally, keywords with the use of the + sign, quotes, and an asterisk refine a search: +"marine archeology" +"Israel" +research

Different engines have different techniques so it is best to click on "Help" for detailed search instructions for the engine you use. Try typing in "government funded religion" +clearinghouse to retrieve a list of Internet sites that link to many other sites. Internet terms that are interchangable with "clearinghouse" are "gateway," "metasite," "pathfinder" and "directory," i.e."archeology" +metasite -domain:gov" (the - sign eliminates the domain .gov for this sample). Some search engines limit searches to specific Internet domains. See an engine's syntax helps and carefully look at each menu to type in specific information requested. Valuable information may also be obtained from the deep web content of PDF files, i.e. "bronze age" +"archaeology" +filetype:pdf If one search engine does not retrieve satisfactory results, switch to another search engine. Or use the search engine of a specific site to obtain results of a more defined nature. Whatever data you find, it is always wise to evaluate information .

Listed below are miscellaneous search strategies that you may tailor to the search instructions of the engine you use.

Need speech by former U.S. President Clinton on religious liberty: +"religious liberty" +"Clinton" +speech
Need bibliography on right to die: +"right to die" +bibliography
Need to read the poem entitled "Celebrate Life:" +"celebrate life " +poem
Need an online language conversion dictionary for Spanish: +language dictionary +"Spanish"
Need to see archival list at Wheaton Colleger:: +host:wheaton college+"archi*" +list
Need to find a picture, video or audio? Use Altavista search engine's Search screen and click choice at top


Specialized Resources

Research Central allows access to various electronic databases that you are encouraged to use during your studies with the university. However, you must have a southern.edu e-mail account to access the databases. (Visit http://theplace.southern.edu to receive an account.) Full text, as well as bibliographic citations, comprise the databases. ALTA is the premiere journal databases for religion. The SDA Periodical Index database is pertinent to Seventh-day Adventist literature. Digital Dissertations is an excellent full text source. NetLibrary contains full text of books. These databases are listed alphabetically in the database list to the right of the screen: here.


Other Resources

Online Bibles Great Books Online Papyrus Archive CWRU Online Books & Journals Theology

More information, contact Ann Greer