This page goes over information regarding how to get the full-text of articles, save them, and cite them--basically, everything you need to do once you find articles you like. The examples are from Academic Search Premier, but the tools and strategies apply to many databases.
The sections are organized as follows:
Feel free to contact your librarian (right) with any questions.
Find an article you are interested in? Get the full-text to start reading! The steps below will walk you through how to get any article you find.
NOTE: We can get you access to any article, so you should never have to pay to get access to research articles.
Sometimes, you will see the article right in the article information. If that's the case, click on PDF to download the article you can print or save. Here's an example:
Clicking on the PDF link will load the article, which you can then print or save. If you see this:
It means that the full article is right in the article information, in simple text format (i.e. it doesn't have pictures or decorative font. This is more common with newspaper or magazine articles.
Note: This is the most confusing part for most students.
If you don't see the PDF in the article information, click on the green FindIt@CSU button:
When you click on FindIt@CSU, you'll see a list of options for getting the full-text. Often, we have the article from another source, and it will say "Full-text available at" and redirect you. In the example below, you would click on "Elsevier SD Freedom Collection" to access the full text.
Once you click on the full-text option, you'll be redirected to the page where you can find the PDF, ex.:
NOTE: These are all different article subscription sources, so they may look different. Just look for the PDF.
If you are not able to get an article through FindIt@CSU (either because it says "No Full-Text Available" or because the link doesn't work), you can still get the article! Interlibrary Loan (ILL) is a free service where we get articles we don't have access to for you and send you the PDF.
When you click on "CSU-Fort Collins Interlibrary Loan," you'll sign into the ILL system with your eID an password, just like everything else. The first time you use the system, you'll be asked to fill in some basic information about yourself to set up your account (you only do this once), then you'll be directed to a page where the article information is filled in automatically. Check it over, put in any notes or anything you need to, and then hit submit. You'll get an e-mail when your article is ready and you can sign into your account, click on "Download Documents" to find your file, and then save it to your computer. Be sure to save a copy, since it will eventually be deleted from your account.
NOTE: Interlibrary loan does take anywhere between a few hours to a few business days, so it's not a good option if your paper is due the following day. If possible, it's a good idea to find your materials a few days before, but we usually still have plenty of full-text options if you are working at the last minute.
When you find an article you like, you can see more information by clicking on the title. This will give you more information about the article, including things like the abstract and key terms that you might want to include in your search. On the right-hand side, you will also see a "Tools" menu that gives you options for saving and tracking articles.
The "Tools" menu gives you several different options, including:
These are all options for tracking your work. Try some options and see what works best for you!