This is a brief overview of the Google tools most likely to be helpful during reference interactions. It provides guidance on when to use Google Search, Google Books, Google News, Google News Archive, and Google Scholar, along with tips on how to get the most from each resource. Please note that Google---including Google Scholar---only searches publicly available information on the internet, leaving vast amounts of research and data---especially scholarly---beyond its reach. Google's algorithm also emphasizes popular search results; while this may be helpful in locating popular information, it may not be conducive to accurate information or serendipitous discovery. With this in mind, Google should be used as a complement to library tools like Primo, WorldCat, Academic Search Complete, and other resources found in library databases and research guides. In addition to consolidating many different research tools into a single resource, research guides may also present previously unconsidered source types and new ways to explore a topic.

• Google Search can be effective when searching for information from corporations, governments, or non-profits.
• Common domains:
  • .com = commercial
  • .edu = educational
  • .gov = government
  • .org = non-profits
• You can search specific domains with the following format: Search Term site:domain
• You can search specific websites with the following format: Search Term site:website​

​

• COMPLIMENTARY LIBRARY RESOURCES: Primo, WorldCat, CQ Researcher, Academic Search Complete, JSTOR, any topical research guides, or for government and/or political data, the government or political science research guides.

• Google Books can be useful for targeted searching of text, retrieving bibliographic data, or searching for/within older periodicals (it searches more than books).
• After your initial search, you can select Tools to access filters to further refine your results, however, this does not include all of the advanced search features for the Google Books database.

• To start with an Advanced Book Search, select My Library from the main Google Books page.

•  Then select  the Settings (Gear) icon, and choose Advanced Book Search from the drop-down menu. 

• You should now see the the advanced search features for Google Books.

COMPLIMENTARY LIBRARY RESOURCES: Primo and WorldCat.

• Google News can help locate contemporary news media.
• You can filter by general topics before you search.

• You can filter by related topics after you search. In this case the search term was energy.

COMPLIMENTARY LIBRARY RESOURCES: Access World News, New York Times or New York Times Indexed Databases, Newspaper Source (broadcast news transcripts), and ProQuest's US and international news databases.

• Google News Archive is best for searching newspapers from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
• It includes small town and international publications.

COMPLIMENTARY LIBRARY RESOURCES: Access Newspaper Archive, African American Newspapers 1827-1998, African American Periodicals 1825-1995, Caribbean Newspapers 1718-1876​, Chronicling America, Early American Newspapers 1690-1876, and Historical Newspapers, Nineteenth Century U.S. Newspapers.

• Google Scholar is best for locating scholarly articles, case law, or patent information.

• After your initial search, options to filter by date or relevance will appear on the left side of the screen, along with options to include patents and citations in your search results.
• Searches conducted over the Loyola network will include the Find it at Loyola feature, appearing on the right side of the screen when available. Using the Find it at Loyola feature is recommended as it is the most efficient way to access subscription based content found with Google Scholar.
  • To use the Find it at Loyola feature from off-campus, click on the Google Scholar link in our list of Databases and log in with your Loyola credentials.

COMPLIMENTARY LIBRARY RESOURCES: Academic Search Complete, JSTOR, and OmniFile Full Text Select.