International Student Guide: Library glossary

A summary of a longer piece of text often found at the beginning of a journal article.

Academic Subject Librarians offer support to students with finding print or online resources, referencing and general essay writing advice.

Bibliography is a list of all of the sources that you have used (whether referred or not) in your work.

Books in libraries are organised according to a number system, enabling libraries to shelve books on the same subject together. The call number or classmark is a combination of letters and numbers appearing like: 658.4 mul.

When you refer to another source (e.g. book, journal) in your original piece of work (e.g. essay or dissertation) it is called a citation. This is where you will record the reference details of the source you are using.

Computers in the Library which have cloud desktops is where the desktop is stored on the web rather than on the hard drive.

Anyone who presents at a conference may wish to publish these in the form of conference papers.

This is legal protection given to any person who creates certain kinds of materials, including books, journal articles and computer programs. Copyright limits the amount of photocopying you can do, if any, from books and journals (e.g. 5% of the whole book, or one chapter).

In a library context, a database is a collection of information which you can search. Often databases focus on a particular subject area and are used to search for journal articles or conference papers. Other databases have alternative functions, like showing financial statements or art graphics.

An ebook is a book which is available in an electronic format.

Electronic journals A-Z is a list of all electronic journals taken by the library.

Find it at Lincoln is a search engine that searches records through the university library catalogue, most electronic databases and the Lincoln repository. You can use it to find books, Ebooks, journal articles, conference papers and more.

When you borrow an item from the library and don't return it by the due date, the item will become overdue and you will be asked to pay fines. Fines are added everyday based on the item loan type until you return or renew the item.

Eating in the library is only possible on the ground floor and in certain areas on other floors where you see the Food Zone sign (only cold food is allowed).

The library has rooms available for group study. Normally, you will have to book the rooms in advance.

Harvard Referencing is the main system which the University uses to reference citations, but there are subject exceptions.The Library’s new guide to Harvard Referencing is available on the Library website (library.lincoln.ac.uk).

If you want a book and all copies are out on loan you will need to place a reservation (‘request item’). When the book is returned to the library you will receive an email informing you that the item is ready for collection. Reservations are held on the ground floor of the library in the room just past the main issue desk on the left. In here you will find a shelf marked reservations where your item will be placed under your surname.

If you need a book or journal that the library does not have, a copy may be ordered free of charge from the British Library. Details of this service are found on the Library website (library.lincoln.ac.uk > resources).

A journal or periodical is a publication which contains different articles written by different authors. Each journal will contain articles relating to a particular subject, and can be named as scholarly, peer-reviewed (see below). Journals are available either as printed (located on the 3rd floor of the Library) or electronic format (see library.lincoln.ac.uk).

Academics write the results of their research as journal articles (also known as research papers). Within journals other kinds of writing exist such as editorials, reviews of other people’s research, and letters.

Just Ask is a live chat system that is available between 10am and 5pm. You can 'Just Ask' on the live chat any question concerning the library. Alternatively, you can search on Just Ask to find the answer. It is available on the library website.

Your Library account shows you the items that you are currently borrowing, and also if you have any fines to pay. You can login to your online library account with your student ID number and PIN.

The library catalogue is an electronic searchable list of all items available in the library (including Ebooks). It will let you know how long you can borrow books, if it’s available for loan and the location of the item (classmark) in the library.

During your studies you will produce many written assignments. Learning Development offers advice on how to tackle your assignments, either through workshops on the Library website (library.lincoln.ac.uk) or via the drop-in sessions held from Monday - Friday on the ground floor of the Library.

Library learning lounges are designed to be social and collaborative spaces to share your ideas as well as work in well-equipped spaces around the campus.

Books and resources available within the library with no spine sticker are Normal Loans which allow you to borrow up to two weeks.

The one day loan / 24 hour loan items allow you to borrow them for only one day, you will have to return or renew the item within a 24 hour period.

An open access journal article is one freely available to everyone. The university does not have to pay a subscription for open access.

When the item borrowed is not returned to the library by its due date, the item will become overdue and a fine will be charged.

This is a process where a panel of experts in a particular subject will evaluate the research in an article before it is published to check its reliability.

The university library users need a PIN to be able to access their library account, as well as printing. The student will receive an email from Safecom containing your PIN number when they enrol.

Plagiarism is when a student copies someone else’s work and does not acknowledge that source thus pretending it is their own work. The University uses an anti-plagiarism detection service called TurnitinUK via Blackboard.

A reference list is a list of citations that appeared in the body of your work. Depending on your referencing style, the reference list appears at the end of your assignment.

Reference only items can only be used in the library. You cannot borrow these items.

Refworks is referencing software designed to help you gather, manage, store and share information, as well as generating citations and bibliographies. For help with using this software, contact your Academic Subject Librarian, or email Refworks@lincoln.ac.uk.

You can renew the item that you have borrowed to extend the time that you can keep it for unless: it is a laptop; a dissertation; a 24 hour loan item; was requested by another user; an inter-library loan; was reached the maximum of unseen renewals (10). You can simply renew from your online library account, or from the library help desk.

You can request an item using the Library Catalogue if the item is not available. If the item is checked-in, you will be expected to retrieve the item yourself.

You can use the self-service machine in the library to borrow and return books yourself using your student ID card and PIN.

The third floor in GCW university library is a silent floor where you can see a sign stating silence. You must not make any noise in this area.

Subject guides can help you by: finding books or Ebooks from your suggested reading list; finding journal articles; finding databases that cover your subject.