New resource trial: AM digital collections (AM Explorer)

AM Explorer Arts and Humanities logo and text

The Library are currently hosting a trial to a range of digital primary source collections from from AM (Adam Matthews).

There’s a huge variety of collections that are available via the AM Explorer platform.

Access the AM Explorer platform here using your Newcastle University credentials, and then either keyword search the whole range of collections using the search bar on the homepage, or head to View Collections to browse the specific collections. Some collection highlights from AM Explorer include:

1980s Culture and Society

Amnesty International Archives

East India Company

India, Raj & Empire

Indigenous Histories and Cultures in North America

Popular Culture in Britain and America, 1950-1975

Poverty, Philanthropy and Social Conditions in Victorian Britain

 Travel Writing, Spectacle and World History

Women in The National Archives

The Search Guide provides support on how to best search the AM Explorer platform and collections.

The vast majority of the products are available to access via the AM Explorer platform, but some are available via direct links only:

The Olympic Movement: Sport, Global Politics and Identity

Mexico in History: Colonialism to Revolution

The Transformation of Shopping: Department Stores, Social Change and Consumerism 1830 – 1994

Women’s Voices and Life Writing, 1600-1968.

Our trial access is valid until 18th November 2024. As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials. Please bear in mind that any links to material within the trial collections will no longer work after the trial ends, so access is temporary.

We’re keen to hear any feedback on the specific collections, either by posting your thoughts on this blog post below, or by getting in touch with your Liaison Librarian at libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk.

New Resource Trial: MediaPlus

The Library is currently running a short trial to MediaPlus, a digital media resource offered by Alexander Street Press (ProQuest).

Alexander Street logo

MediaPlus consists of more than 100,000 videos, images, and sound recordings. The resource is ideal for students and researchers interested in 20th century British social, political and cultural history from a range of disciplines (particularly History, Media, and Politics).

You can use both the Search and Advanced Search functions to locate relevant sources. This video details how to make best use of the search functions in Alexander Street.

You can also browse by Title, Subject, and Sub-collection from the MediaPlus homepage, where you can then further refine results by date, publisher, or subject.

Content is drawn from a number of sources (Sub-collections):

  • Associated Press Archive (6,010 items)
  • Channel 4 News (6,508)
  • Gaumont British News (2,476)
  • Gaumont Graphic Newsreel (8,087)
  • Getty Moving images (8,163)
  • Getty Still images (11,732)
  • ITN (6,300)
  • ITV news (27,519)
  • Imperial War Museum – images (4,165)
  • Photographic Youth Music Culture Archive – PYMCA (6,421)
  • Reuters News (3,248)
  • Royal Geographical Society (6,448)
  • Royal Mail Film Classics (66)
  • The North Highland College – Johnston Collection (10,037)
  • Wellcome Library (710)

You can access MediaPlus via Library Search here.

The trial access to the resource is available until 15th November 2024. As the purpose of a trial is provide short term institutional access to establish whether the resource is of interest for future sustained access, unfortunately we are not able to extend or repeat trials.

Please note that MediaPlus content cannot be downloaded, and any embedded content or permalinks will not work after the trial ends.

We are keen to hear any feedback on this resource – please contact us by commenting below or by emailing your Liaison Librarian (libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk).

Resource in Focus: OUP Law Trove

An image of the OUP Law Trove logo.

OUP Law Trove has become part of Newcastle Law School life. For any new students joining us this year, what is it? Well, it’s a collection of e-books you will need to support your learning in the core modules of your degree programme.

This Oxford University Press e-book resource contains most of the essential, recommended and background reading titles you will find listed in your Newcastle Law School module in Canvas. You can also find these on the Law Library shelves via Library Search, and having these books available online too can be really convenient to you as a student.

So, we advise you to try OUP Law Trove to see how easy it is to access on a Campus PC, your laptop, a library laptop (did you know you can borrow one from any of our libraries?), mobile phone or other device, and how versatile it can be.

An image of the OUP Law Trove homepage.

Logging in
You can access OUP Law Trove directly via Library Search (log in with your Campus ID & password), via your Reading Lists in your Canvas modules, and directly too. You can also go to OUP Law Trove directly and use the ‘Sign in via your Institution’ option in the left-hand login box on the homepage, and search for Newcastle University.

An image showing the Sign in via your Institution login option for OUP Law Trove.

Further guidance on logging in is provided by OUP in this video (1:05 mins):

Searching
From the OUP Law Trove home page you can immediately select to view those titles included in our subscription.

An image of the OUP Law Trove home page, with the option of displaying all books included in Newcastle University's subscription highlighted.

You can search OUP Law Trove by subject by using the browse option from the home page, or search by term for any author, title or keyword.

An image of the OUP Law Trove homepage with the Subject and Search options highlighted.

NB The results retrieved from either search will include all chapters and books related to your subject or search term, in alphabetical order.

Using the options in the left hand menu, you can narrow your choices by searching for a term within your results, by selecting the format of the results you want to see, or the availability (it makes sense to select those that are unlocked or free if you have not selected to view those titles included in our subscription) and updating your search.

An image of the refine or narrow your choices options within OUP Law Trove, i.e. by term, book or chapter, or availability (available or free).

Further guidance on accessing and navigating books within Law Trove is provided by OUP in these videos (2:28 mins and 2:41 mins):

Personalisation
You can create a Personal Profile to experience the full functionality of OUP Law Trove, including bookmarking and annotating (without writing on your books!). Click the ‘Sign In or Create’ button on the top menu bar and follow the instructions to set up your profile.

An image of the OUP Law Trove homepage with the Personal Profile option highlighted,

Once active you can access your saved content, searches and annotations quickly and easily.

An image of the OUP Law Trove homepage with the Personal Profile option highlighted,

Further information on the benefits of creating and using the Personal Profiles feature is provided by OUP in this video (1:54 mins):

Reading Lists and Handouts
You may find your module teaching staff are using the DOI: for a specific book or chapter from your Reading List or module handout. What’s a DOI? A Digital Object Identifier. It’s a ‘permalink’ (permanent link) to the specific materials you need to read and looks like a weblink (which it is, essentially). If it doesn’t directly link to OUP Law Trove then add https://dx.doi.org/ to create the full DOI link. You will still be asked to login using your Newcastle University Campus ID & password to gain access to the materials.

An image of OUP Law Trove which indicates the availability of DOI: links for both books and chapters.

Tips
Search OUP Law Trove directly for your resources if you can. Library Search and your module Reading Lists are linking to most of the books, and some of the chapters available, but not all. You may find more resources by performing a keyword search; the results could show a useful chapter in another book that you would never have thought to search in.

You have access to some great employability and study skills information in OUP Law Trove too. Whether you are wondering what academic writing actually is, how to write a case note, how to prepare for a moot or dealing with an exam, there are materials in Trove to assist you alongside the Academic Skills Kit made available to you by the University, the University Library and the Academic Skills Team.

An image of book covers covering employability and academic skills.

Finally, scroll to the bottom of the contents page of a book to see if there are additional resources available:

An image of an example of external/additional resources available on the OUP website.

Further information on the online resources, including multiple choice questions (MCQs), is provided by OUP in this video (1:47 mins):

We think you will find OUP Law Trove very useful in supporting your studies at Newcastle Law School. If you have any feedback or questions, please leave a comment or contact libraryhelp@ncl.ac.uk.

New Resource Trial: The Social History Archive

The Library is currently running a short trial to The Social History Archive.

The Social History Archive logo with illustrations of papers.
The Social History Archive logo. ©Findmypast.

The Social History Archive provides access to primary source material, from unique newspapers to census returns, crime reports and migration records. This platform is operated by FindMyPast and includes newspapers from the British Newspaper Archive.

The platform may be accessed here by selecting “Newcastle University” from the drop down menu. You will then be prompted to login using your Newcastle University credentials.

The platform has a number of search and browse functions. You can “Search all Records” or create an advanced search from the homepage (called the dashboard), however the “Search” drop-down menu provides options to search by record type, including newspapers and publications. If you need any assistance using the platform then please do not hesitate to get in touch.

The trial runs until Tuesday 5th March 2024. We are keen to hear any feedback on this resource – please contact us by commenting below or by emailing your Liaison Librarian (libliaison@newcastle.ac.uk).

New Resource Trial: Screen Studies

Screen Studies logo

The Library is trialling Screen Studies from Monday 9th October until Friday 8th December.

Screen Studies is a dynamic digital platform designed to support moving-image studies. It offers a broad range of content including books, screenplays, overview articles and learning resources from Bloomsbury, Faber & Faber, the British Film Institute, Focal Press and Auteur (LUP). Screen Studies covers cinema, its history and the surrounding context from 1850 to the present day.

Screen Studies introduction video

Access Screen Studies here by signing-in with your institutional credentials (off-campus) or access the database via Library Search (on-campus).

Please get in touch to let us know your feedback, either by replying below or by contacting us at libliaison@ncl.ac.uk.

Resource Trial: Naxos Library

Naxos Music Library

Calling all music lovers! We are currently trialling six Naxos Library products:

Naxos Music Library is the most comprehensive collection of classical music available online. Currently, it offers over 2,831,415 tracks of fine recorded music.

Naxos Music Library Jazz is a comprehensive collection of Jazz music available online. Over 28,952 albums (272,292 tracks) are available and new albums are added weekly.

A wide range of content, from legendary historical performances to contemporary world music. Recordings of over 32,000 artists are represented.

Naxos Works Database is your trusted resource for information about vocal, chamber and orchestral works. Use the database to find details about composers and their works, instrumentations, durations, publishers and work introductions.

Naxos Video Library is a performing arts video library with over 4362 operas, ballets, documentaries, concerts, masterclasses, competition and musical tour videos as well as footage taken from recording sessions. 

Featuring a comprehensive collection of classic audiobooks and high quality independent publisher productions.

Naxos provide training videos on using the collections on their YouTube channel.

Newcastle University staff and students can access the sign-in information via this Word document. The trial runs until 31st October 2023.

NB Trial now extended to 10th of November.

To help us evaluate it, please email us your feedback, or leave a reply on this blog.

Resource in Focus: OUP Law Trove

An image of the OUP Law Trove logo.

OUP Law Trove has become part of Newcastle Law School life. For any new students joining us this year, what is it? Well, it’s a collection of e-books you will need to support your learning in the core modules of your degree programme.

This Oxford University Press e-book resource contains most of the essential, recommended and background reading titles you will find listed in your Newcastle Law School module handbooks. You can also find these on the Law Library shelves, and having these books available online too can be really convenient to you as a student.

If you’re asking yourself if you need to buy your course texts for 2023/24 then we can’t answer that question for you. The answer really depends on you. Ask yourself: can you work with e-books? Do you prefer to have your own copy of a book so you can fold pages, write notes in the margins or use a highlighter to annotate the text (*librarians across the world gasp in horror!*). Can the University Library provide a copy of the book you need to use? (We’ll answer that for you! We can’t provide a copy of every single book to every single student even if we wanted to.) We do advise you to try OUP Law Trove to see how easy it is to access, and how versatile it can be (including annotating the text!). It may just save you spending money on books where you don’t need to.

OUP Law Trove is mobile responsive, catering for those students with mobile devices. You can also use a Campus PC, or borrow a laptop from one of the libraries to access this resource.

An image of the OUP Law Trove homepage: https://www.oxfordlawtrove.com/

Logging in
You can access OUP Law Trove directly via Library Search (log in with your Campus ID & password), via your Reading Lists in your Canvas modules, and directly too. You can also go to OUP Law Trove and use the ‘Sign in via your Institution’ option in the left-hand login box on the homepage, and search for Newcastle University.

An image showing the Sign in via your Institution login option for OUP Law Trove.

Further guidance on logging in is provided by OUP in this video (1:05 mins):

Searching
From the OUP Law Trove home page you can immediately select to view those titles included in our subscription.

An image of the OUP Law Trove home page, with the option of displaying all books included in Newcastle University's subscription highlighted.

You can search OUP Law Trove by subject by using the browse option from the home page, or search by term for any author, title or keyword.

An image of the OUP Law Trove homepage with the Subject and Search options highlighted.

NB The results retrieved from either search will include all chapters and books related to your subject or search term, in alphabetical order.

Using the options in the left hand menu, you can narrow your choices by searching for a term within your results, by selecting the format of the results you want to see, or the availability (it makes sense to select those that are unlocked or free if you have not selected to view those titles included in our subscription) and updating your search.

An image of the refine or narrow your choices options within OUP Law Trove, i.e. by term, book or chapter, or availability (available or free).

Further guidance on accessing and navigating books within Law Trove is provided by OUP in these videos (2:28 mins and 2:41 mins):

Personalisation
You can create a Personal Profile to experience the full functionality of OUP Law Trove, including bookmarking and annotating (without writing on your books!). Click the ‘Sign In or Create’ button on the top menu bar and follow the instructions to set up your profile.

An image of the OUP Law Trove homepage with the Personal Profile option highlighted,

Once active you can access your saved content, searches and annotations quickly and easily.

An image of the OUP Law Trove homepage with the Personal Profile option highlighted,

Further information on the benefits of creating and using the Personal Profiles feature is provided by OUP in this video (1:54 mins):

Reading Lists and Handouts
You may find your module teaching staff are using the DOI: for a specific book or chapter from your Reading List or module handout. What’s a DOI? A Digital Object Identifier. It’s a ‘permalink’ (permanent link) to the specific materials you need to read and looks like a weblink (which it is, essentially). If it doesn’t directly link to OUP Law Trove then add https://dx.doi.org/ to create the full DOI link. You will still be asked to login using your Newcastle University Campus ID & password to gain access to the materials.

An image of OUP Law Trove which indicates the availability of DOI: links for both books and chapters.

Tips
Search OUP Law Trove directly for your resources if you can. Library Search and your module Reading Lists are linking to most of the books, and some of the chapters available, but not all. You may find more resources by performing a keyword search; the results could show a useful chapter in another book that you would never have thought to search in.

You have access to some great employability and study skills information in OUP Law Trove too. Whether you are wondering what academic writing actually is, how to write a case note, how to prepare for a moot or dealing with an exam, there are materials in Trove to assist you alongside the Academic Skills Kit made available to you by the University, the University Library and the Academic Skills Team.

An image of book covers covering employability and academic skills.

Finally, scroll to the bottom of the contents page of a book to see if there are additional resources available:

An image of an example of external/additional resources available on the OUP website.

Further information on the online resources, including multiple choice questions (MCQs), is provided by OUP in this video (1:47 mins):

We think you will find OUP Law Trove very useful in supporting your studies at Newcastle Law School. If you have any feedback or questions, please leave a comment or contact libraryhelp@ncl.ac.uk.

AM Modules – Empire Online and Church Missionary Society Periodicals 1 & 2

After a trial of several AM (Adam Matthews) Collections modules earlier in 2023, the Library has acquired two new resources – Empire Online, and Church Missionary Society Periodicals 1 & 2.

Church Missionary Society Periodicals digitises publications from the CMS, South American Missionary Society and Church of England Zenana Missionary Society, encompassing issues from 1816-2009. Thousands of pages with detailed metadata enable new research opportunities in the fields of missiology and world Christianity, as well as a unique perspective on global history and cultural encounter.

The documents include reports on missionary work, serialised journals and letters, birth, marriage, and death announcements, fiscal reports and reflections on worship, making them an extremely rich source. 

You can access the Church Missionary Society Periodicals 1 & 2 via Library Search here.

Empire Online is an interactive collection of primary source documents sourced from leading archives around the world. Material in the collection spans five centuries, charting the story of the rise and fall of empires; from the explorations of Columbus, Captain Cook, and others, right through to de-colonisation in the second half of the twentieth century and debates over American Imperialism.

The wealth of documents spans five centuries and includes manuscripts, rare printed materials, letterbooks, periodicals, diaries, photographs and more.

Material in Empire Online has been sourced from a wide range of reputable institutions, with a particularly strong core of documents and images from the British Library. However, the focus is not only on the British Empire; there are a number of documents and secondary resources which relate the story of the Empire from the French, Spanish, Portuguese, and German points of view, as well as that of indigenous peoples from Africa, India and North America.

You can access the Empire Online database via Library Search here.

For both databases, you could start by heading to the Introduction tab for an overview on the collection, a handy tour of the website and its key features, and information on copyright:

Empire Online Introduction
Empire Online Introduction

The Documents tab allows you to browse through the full range of documents available in the collections, and includes handy filters to narrow your results Document Type (Empire Online only), Library (Empire Online only), Title (CMS Periodicals only), and Issue Date (CMS Periodicals only).

Church Missionary Society Periodicals Documents
Church Missionary Society Periodicals Documents

Additionally, the Advanced Search is available and allows researchers to build more complex searches:

Empire Online Advanced Search
Empire Online Advanced Search

Empire Online offers an option to view the sources in a chronological format, and the CMS Periodicals offers an option to view the sources on a map format:

CMS Periodicals Maps
CMS Periodicals Maps
Empire Online Chronology
Empire Online Chronology

Both databases offer extensive support, search tips and advice under the Help tab.

Please get in touch if you need any more support using the databases, but we hope that they will be of interest to your research!

Oxford University Press Very Short Introductions

In the library we love these short guides from OUP who provide a variety of great concise books on lots of different topics.

We’ve recently updated this collection so it includes to most recent publications from OUP published in 2022 and 2023.

This series offers concise introductions to a diverse range of subjects—from artificial intelligence to folk music to medical ethics—in 35,000 words or less.

Each one of these big little books provides intelligent and serious introductions written by experts who combine facts, analysis, new ideas, and enthusiasm to make even the most challenging topics highly readable.

On our catalogue, Library Search you can search by keywords like in the screenshot below so “very short introduction” and browse through or add in Oxford to add in results for that publisher. Re-sort your results to “newest” if you’d like to browse through the latest ones added to our collection.

Or visit the OUP Very Short Introductions website directly and then filter using the subject categories. OUP have arranged the titles under headings such as Medicine and Health, Arts and Humanities, Law, Social Sciences

if you are accessing off campus then once you’re on the OUP site please click “sign in” (on the left hand menu and select Newcastle University from the list to enter your Campus ID and password.)

Oxford University Press also have a podcast you can subscribe to about titles and topics in this collection.

Free training on Business Resources on Bureau Van Djik products

The University subscribes to a variety of different company databases from Bureau Van Djik such as FAME, Orbis Europe and Orbis Asia Paciific.

The provider is offering some free online training which can booked directly with them. For sessions related to the subscriptions we have the dates are :

Orbis on the 12th of June at 1.30pm (London time) Book here

FAME on the 13th of June at 10am (London Time) Book here

We have additional help materials on our resource guide if you want to learn more about these databases.