Alerts: Keeping Current in Your Discipline: Database Alerts
Alerts refer to notifications when something of interest to you has been published in a new journal issue or added to a database or website. Covers basic techniques for setting up alerts (a.k.a. current awareness services).
Alert Tutorials
Very short tutorials - usually 1-5 minutes long.
Specific Database Alert Tutorials
Database alerts can cover thousands of journals while publisher alerts are usually limited to a significantly fewer number of journals.
- Databases are slower to update than publisher websites. Publisher information is sent to database vendors; however, some databases are only updated monthly or quarterly.
- Publisher websites are the first place information is made available. Also, publishers often provide information on research articles while they are still "in press" but databases do not usually include content until after it is officially published.
- Database alerts usually work best for subject alerts or citation alerts. If you want a table of contents alert for a journal - publisher alerts would be more timely.
- Academic Search Premier (EBSCO Databases)To set up an alert - go into one of the EBSCOHost databases and search by subject or publication title. There is a tab on the search screen for Search History/Alerts. Click on Save Searches/Alerts. The next screen will ask you to sign in. If you have not yet registered with EBSCOHost, click on I'm a new user and follow the directions for setting up an account. This is a free service, but requires you to register in order for them to set up an automatic alert with your email address.
- ACM Digital LibraryNon-members and the general public can search/browse the ACM Digital Library,
- BioOneOffers new issue e-alerts, citation alerts, and saved search alerts. This database provides access to an aggregation of high impact bioscience research journals. BioOne is made up of three separate collections, all of which are included in the University's subscription. The subject areas covered by this database include Agriculture, Dairy & Animal Science, Agronomy, Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Biodiversity Conservation, Biology, Biophysics, Cell Biology, Developmental Biology, Ecology, Education, Engineering, Entomology, Environmental Sciences, Evolutionary Biology, Fisheries, Forestry, Genetics & Heredity, Geography, Geology, Geosciences, Limnology, Marine & Freshwater Biology, Microbiology, Ornithology, Paleontology, Parasitology, Plant Sciences, Public/Environmental/Occupational Health, Radiology, Nuclear Medicine & Medical Imaging, Reproductive Biology, Sport Sciences, Veterinary Sciences, and Zoology.
- CQ ResearcherGives reports providing analysis and commentary on current and controversial issues in the news. Topics covered include health, social trends, criminal justice, international affairs, education, the environment, technology, and the economy. Log in and create a profile to receive email alerts and save your searches. Also available via twitter.
- Dissertations and Theses Full-TextProvides access to millions of searchable citations to dissertations and theses from around the world, available from 1861 to the present day. The database offers the full text for most of the dissertations added since 1997 and retrospective full-text coverage for many older graduate works. Over a million of these dissertations are available for download in PDF format, and over 2.1 million are available for purchase as printed copies. Run the desired search from either the Basic or the Advanced page. On the Results page, click Set Up Alert. You will see the Set up Your Search Alert page. Complete the required information and click Save.
- Engineering VillageTo obtain your FREE personal account, please register. Your account will allow you to save searches, save records, and create email alerts. Provides access to the content of two databases from Engineering Village, Compendex and Inspec. Compendex is a bibliographic database of engineering research which contains over ten million references and abstracts taken from over 6,000 scholarly journals, trade magazines, conference proceedings and technical papers. Inspec is a bibliographic database providing access to scientific literature in electrical engineering, electronics, physics, control engineering, information technology, communications, computers, computing, and manufacturing and production engineering.
- Project MuseThis database provides access to the full text of over 400 scholarly peer reviewed journals by over 100 publishers in the humanities and social sciences. Alerts are available via RSS feeds or email. Follow Project Muse on Facebook or Twitter. The link to set up alerts is found under Tools.
- Proquest DatabasesOn the My Research Tab, select the Alerts subtab, and then click the Manage My Alerts link.
You see the ProQuest Alerts - Login page. - PubMedPubMed, a service of the National Library of Medicine, includes over 22 million citations for biomedical articles back to the 1950's. These citations are from MEDLINE and additional life science journals. PubMed includes links to many sites providing full-text articles and other related resources.Type a search into the box. When the results display - next to the search box will be an orange RSS button.
- Sage Premier JournalsOver 645 titles from more than 245 scholarly and professional societies are included. Subjects covered by these journals include business, humanities, social sciences, science, technology, medicine, and more. Coverage varies by title, and the collection is updated regularly with new or changing content. Go to the My Tools tab and register.
- Science.govSearches over 60 databases and over 2,200 selected websites, offering 200 million pages of U.S. government science information. ALERTS is a service that will notify you weekly of new Science.gov information in your specific areas of interest. Register for the service and then sign up for topic(s) which will be matched automatically against each new weekly update. You will receive an ALERT email each Monday. Open access to the public.
- Scitation(Physical sciences and engineering). Use the Browse feature to see the journals Scitation covers, then click on specific journal titles and look for the link to email alerts or RSS feeds. Some journals have this under "interactive features." Sign up journal by journal - OR - create your own dynamic RSS feed.
- ScopusGo to My Alerts to register for an account to be able to set up alerts.
- Wiley Online Library JournalsRegister on Wiley Online Library to receive email alerts for new content and saved searches; save articles, publications and searches to your profile; purchase individual articles and chapters; receive email updates and promotional offers on Wiley books and journals relevant to you; track your accepted article if you are a journal contributor.
- WorldCatWorldCat's search covers over 30 million records of any type of material cataloged by OCLC member libraries, including manuscripts written as early as the 11th century. Has holdings information for many US and some foreign libraries. Does not offer Alerts, but provides a Saved Search service. To set up a saved search, click on My Account and follow the directions for registering. Once you have completed a search you wish to save, look directly below the My Account link and you will see a link to Save Search.