Access: Double click on Internet Explorer or Netscape at any of the networked  workstations on campus.  Start Searching

1. At the WSC Library Home Page, click on Quick Links to Databases.
2. Click on Biography Resource Center

Several search methods are available offering various approaches to finding information about people:

• Search by Name: Searches for an individual whose name corresponds to what is entered into the search field, whether it is a full surname, the first name and last name in any order, or just the beginning portion of a surname
• Category Browse: Allows browsing of indivudals by categories such as Athletes, Current World Leaders, Hispanic Americans, Scientists, World, Explorers, etc.
• Biographical Facts Search:  Searches for people based on one or more personal facts such as birth and death years and places, nationality, ethnicity, occupation, or gender.
• Advanced Search: Searches by name, keyword, source, full text, date of publication, and document number.

 

Basic Search:

1. Enter your search terms in the dialog box under Search by Name.  Note that Searching by the Start of last name will yield less precise results than searching by a first and last name.  If only one name is found to match your criteria, the application will take you directly to the main tabbed results page for that name.
2. Click on the SEARCH button.

• After you select the name of a person following a Name Search, Biographical Facts Search, or Advanced Search, a tabbed results list will be displayed. This screen gives the person's full name (which may or may not be his/her best known name); birth and death years; any variant names or pseudonyms; and, as available, the person's primary nationality and occupation. Where available, a portrait of the individual may also be displayed.
• The tabbed results list features links to lengthy biographies, brief, thumbnail biographies, full-text magazine articles on the individual's life and accomplishments, and websites.
• (Note: If your search does not find any results for a specific data type, the tab will be "grayed out" and will not work.)

Printing and Emailing
Click on any of the underlined articles in the Results List to retrieve the full article, or Mark the check box to create a list of marked articles.

Printing: At the full article, click the print icon on the upper left of the screen. Then, use your browser's Print function to print the reformatted article.
Emailing:  At the full article, click the Email icon  on the upper left of the screen.
At the Email Options screen, choose your email format option, enter your email address, and click send:

Advanced Search:

• Searches by name, keyword, source, full text, date of magazine publication, and document number.
• Enter your Search Terms in the dialog box, then select the index to search from the drop-down menu. Repeat for each dialog box that you use.
• Select an operator (AND / OR / NOT) if you are combining 2 or more dialog boxes; then, click Search