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Literature Review: The What, Why and How-to Guide: Keeping up with Research!

Creating Personal Accounts in Databases

Nearly all library databases allow you to create an individual account. Doing this will enable you to save and organize your searches, retrieve your search history, set up various alerts, and more.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To create an account and take advantage of all its features, do the following:

  1. Click on Sign in. If it is your first time, sign in using your Google Account and UCSB email.
  2. Before searching, you can create custom folders by clicking the Folder icon next to the sign-in link.
  3. Please scroll down and find a folder titled My Custom Folders. Click the link on the left menu that says New to create a folder. You can use concepts, topics, themes, or whatever organizing principle works for your research.
  4. Now that you have folders go and search. You will get a list of resources. If you want to save one or several in your folders, click the icon showing a folder with a plus sign inside. Assign it to the folder of your choice. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

To save or create an alert of the keywords search that you use in a successful search, do the following:

  1. Click on Search History
  2. Click on the keyword search you want to save and then click the Save Searches /Alerts link.
  3. On the next page, fill out the fields to save the search or create the Alert.
    1. In the Save Search As, you have three choices. You can save the search permanently or temporarily or create an alert.
    2. If you select Alert, you can decide how often to receive these alerts by email (daily, weekly, monthly, etc.
    3. Use your UCSB email to create the Alert!

Other things you can do in a database:

  • When you click on a citation, on the right side menu, there is a list of tools available to you:
    • You can save the article PDF in your Google Drive or One Drive
    • You can add the citation to a folder
    • You can click on Cite to see the citation formatted in a variety of styles, which you can cut and paste OR
    • You can click on Export, which allows you to export your citation to some Citation Management System such as RefWorks, EndNotes, or EasyBib. OR do a direct export using a RIS Format.
    • And much more! Just explore and see what is available.
These instructions apply to most databases and the UCSB Library Account. Look for works like Sign in, Sign on, Login, Log in, etc., to create a new account on these platforms!
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