5 Things Libraries Do Better Than Google

We know you love Google. So do we. But when it comes to some things, we’ve got them beat. Here are five things libraries do better than Google:

1. Libraries have great online subject guides. We’ll use Laupus as an example for this one. Let’s say you need five journal articles for a paper due on prevention of bed sores. It may seem like more work to start your research from the library’s e-resources page than to just pull up Google, but in the long run it won’t be. By pulling up the subject “nursing” from the list on the e-resources page, you have already narrowed down your results to seventeen databases that include peer-reviewed and full-text articles. If you do a Google search you get 916,000 hits on the term bed sores. There’s no way to know what the hits are (websites? articles? blog entries?) until you click through each one. Start with the Laupus e-resources page and not only do you save time, you get better quality research. Your professors will love that.
2. We have a place to meet – in person. Let’s step outside the online world for a second. Libraries are electronic environments just as much as they are physical ones these days. It is a wonderful thing to turn to the web when you need to access thousands of volumes of books and journals. But how do you talk to your classmates about an assignment? And not just virtually, but actually meeting in person and sharing experiences, or talking with each other through the research process. Libraries offer you a place to meet up and do just that.
3. Google Scholar? Sorry, libraries have it beat. Google Scholar is not a bad resource, it’s just very broad and not at all comprehensive. Google gathers its scholarly information from a wide array of sources online and can’t drill down to specific information the same way library resources can.
4. Libraries buy journals and books on your behalf. Again, let’s use Laupus as an example. It has something in common with other great university resources like the Student Rec Center, Student Health, and even ECU Transit – we’re all supported by your tuition fees and state tax dollars and we all provide services that will help you throughout your time at ECU. Laupus uses your money to purchase the highest quality health information available. Google doesn’t do that for you. Use our resources and you will be tapping into an investment you’ve already made.
5. The library has librarians! Google doesn’t have someone you can call when you have a question. Google won’t chat with you. Anonymous Google employees might answer an e-mail if you send one, but we definitely will. And not only that, but we understand what you are going through. Research isn’t always an easy process but librarians are here to help you get through it as painlessly as possible. Contact us – we want to help.