GALILEO is a collection of databases provided by GHC and the University System of Georgia.
A DATABASE is searchable collection of online subscription resources (journals, images, videos, and sometimes whole books); usually material that is not available through free search engines like Google
A JOURNAL is a regularly published "magazine", usually related to an academic discipline, often containing articles, book reviews, and other material about the subject
An ARTICLE is a single written work published in a journal or magazine
Think of a filing cabinet. The whole cabinet is Galileo. A single drawer is a database. A folder within the drawer is a journal (or a book!). A piece of paper within a folder is an article (or a book chapter!)
Image CC-BY Georgia Highlands College Library
So why use Galileo instead of an internet search?
Searching on Google is like shopping at a thrift store: you need to sift through a lot of junk to find a few good treasures. Searching for articles using Galileo is more like shopping at the Gap: less hunting and better quality control. That being said, sometimes the internet is exactly what you need to find information. This chart should help you decide where to start!
Different research scenarios are described below. The ✔ indicates which tool or tools will get you to the information most efficiently.
What are you looking for? | Galileo | ||
---|---|---|---|
A scholarly article written by an expert in your area of study | ✔ | ||
An article from the New York Times | ✔ | ||
An article from Consumer Reports | ✔ | ||
Today's news | ✔ | ✔ | |
Older news | ✔ | ✔ | |
A government report | ✔ | ||
An annual report for a company | ✔ | ||
A definition of a word | ✔ | ||
A movie review | ✔ | ||
A biography | ✔ | ||
Today's stock quote | ✔ | ||
Maps and directions | ✔ | ||
Statistical facts and data | ✔ | ||
A law review | ✔ | ||
A scholarly book | ✔ | ||
Galileo offers lots of great tools that make it easier to save and cite your research, too!