Research
Research Tools A-Z
The following are research tools that the Library provides. To access them, you will need your 14-digit library barcode or to be in a library branch. Click on the title to go straight to the research tool, or click on "More about this research tool" to read specific information about what the research tool offers. Troubleshoot connection problems with our handy guide.
If you do not have a library card, you can request one and gain access to research tools here.
To see the research tools ordered by category, click here.
To see a PDF that you can save and print out, click here.
Encyclopedia of Science & Technology, enhanced with tables and tools, breaking science news, and biographies of scientists.
Available for genealogy research in the Headquarters library and at all branches. Note: This database is not available remotely.
Repair and maintenance information on most major manufacturers of domestic and imported vehicles. New repair procedures, TSBs, and updates are added to the product on a regular basis. All of the content in has been created by ASE certified technicians.
Search for people by name or personal facts such as birth and death year, nationality, ethnicity, occupation or gender. Browse lists such as Ancient Greeks & Romans, American Presidents, Notable Women, Nobel Prize Winners.
BNA Online contains image and video galleries showing behaviors, habitat, nests, eggs and nestlings, and more. And each online species account contains recordings of that bird's songs and calls, selected from the extensive collection in Cornell's Macaulay Library of Natural Sounds.
Designed for book groups and individual readers to enhance the experience of the book they are reading, dig deeper into its themes and origins, or learn how the author's life and times contributed to the work. Easy-to-follow menus allow users to broaden and narrow their searches according to author, title, series, awards and other criteria. An "if you like" search connects readers to themes and genres that may have otherwise gone unnoticed.
Includes industry news, company profiles, brand information, rankings, investment reports, company histories, chronologies and periodicals.
In-depth exploration of a hot issue in the news each week. Topics include social and teen issues, environment, health, education, and science and technology.
Please see a librarian to log in. Available at Headquarters and all branches. Note: This is not available remotely.
Biographical/critical introductions, listing of principal works, and sources for further study on contemporary authors.
Thousands of downloadable nonfiction eBooks. Individual titles are searchable here and through the CRRL catalog.
Click here for tips on creating your myEBSCOhost account and using the EBSCOhost web site.
Other Downloadable eBooks: A smaller number of nonfiction downloadable eBooks are available from the primarily fiction based OverDrive, Freading, and OneClickdigital.
Content from current magazines and newspapers, pictures, maps, and TV & Radio transcripts. Includes selected articles from the Richmond Times-Dispatch, Roanoke Times & World News, Washington Post, Washington Times, and some Spanish-language publications. (Provided by Find It Virginia)
The classic encyclopedia, plus Internet Guide, Merriam Webster Dictionary & Thesaurus, video and media collection, World Atlas, Year in Review, and Timeline.
Kids search or browse arts, geography, language arts, mathematics, religion, science, social studies, sports. Student Center includes How to Write a Research Paper and more.
eSequels lists the most popular series so you can discover a new author or rediscover an enjoyable series of years past.The database also indexes character, location and subject as well as author and title so you can identify a series that you may recall only vaguely. See forthcoming series novels here. Read about this database in depth in this article.
Financial Ratings Series, published by Grey House Publishing, combines the strength of Weiss Ratings and TheStreet Ratings to offer the library community with a single source for financial strength ratings and financial planning tools covering Insurance, Banks, and Credit Unions. Plus, build your own customized Medicare Supplement Insurance Planner.
Available at Headquarters. Note: This is not available remotely.
Full color, page-by-page scanned images of the newspaper from late 2008 to the present. Note: This database is not available remotely.
Specialized reference sources covering the arts, biography, business, the environment, history, popular culture, the nation and world, and science.
Articles from newspapers and periodicals, many with full-text and images. Includes, as well, more than 500 travel guides, including hundreds of Fodor's titles, National Public Radio programs from 1990 to the present, including searchable transcripts, and full-text of the New York Times from 1985 to the present, updated daily. (Provided by Find It Virginia)
From the CHANGE DATABASES tab, smaller, specialized collections from General OneFile can be searched separately:
Expanded Academic ASAP, Fine Arts and Music Collections, General Science Collection, U.S. History Collection, World History Collection, Vocations & Careers Collections, War & Terrorism, and more.
Available for use in the Headquarters library and at Porter and Salem Church branches. Please ask a librarian for assistance.
Available at Headquarters. Note: This is not available remotely.
Articles from health and fitness magazines and scholarly medical journals, medical dictionary and encyclopedias, health organization directory, health news, drug and herb finder, alternative health resources, and health assessment tools.
Assistance for learners of all ages: grades K-12, college students, and adults in English and Spanish. Live tutors [available 2:00-11:00 pm daily] provide help in most subjects, including the Writing Lab and Foreign Language Lab. Study Suite [available 24/7] provides test preparation for students and adults, plus study help with electronic flashcards and games. Student resources include SAT, ACT and standardized state tests. Adult resources include citizenship tests, computer literacy, and GED. Collaboration Suite [available 24/7] enables work on group projects and study with friends in a virtual classroom.
U.S. federal census data, banking and military records, genealogies, local histories, primary source materials, and genealogical and local history serials.
This periodical database is designed for students in junior high and middle school, with magazines, newspapers and reference books (most are full-text) for information on current events, the arts, science, popular culture, health, people, government, history, sports and more.
Search a collection of more than 1,000 newspapers, translate articles into 11 different languages, create email alerts, and customize your search options and results format.
Live coaches [available 2:00-11:00 pm daily] help users strategically target jobs best suited to their interests and qualifications, work on interview skills, and craft effective résumés and cover letters. Includes 24/7 access to a carefully-selected library of job resources.
Scanned images of archived academic journal articles as they were originally designed, printed, and illustrated.
Highly visual, guided research tools for students in Kindergarten through Grade 5. (Provided by Find It Virginia)
Literati Public includes a core collection of over 3 million full-text entries in relevant subjects such as health, history, literature, languages, technology, science and more, from trusted publishers such as Dorling Kindersley, ME Sharpe, Grey House Publishing, SAGE Reference, Barron’s, Wiley, Elsevier and many others.
Biographies, lists of authors' works, and critical analysis of authors from every age and literary discipline. Search by author name, title, genre, literary movement or literary themes.
Mango is an online language-learning system that can help you learn languages like French, Spanish, Japanese, Brazilian Portuguese, Greek, Italian, Russian, and more.
Research, data, and analysis to help make sense of the complicated world of investing.
Business and residential information for entrepreneurs, businesses, students, job-seekers or anyone wanting access to information on tens of millions of businesses and hundreds of millions of consumers in an easy to search format.
Detailed property and land-use records for Virginia, useful tools for genealogy and historical research.
The Small Engine Repair database contains the full set of small engine repair manuals from Clymer. These manuals contain thousands of accurate and concise step-by-step maintenance and repair instructions for hundreds of small engine machines and their supporting components.
This database is designed for high school students, with access to a variety of indexed and full-text magazines, newspapers and reference books for information on current events, the arts, science, popular culture, health, people, government, history, sports, and more.
Information on colleges, technical schools and executive programs. Find application forms, identify scholarships. Use test-prep ebooks. Practice Civil Service, EMS, firefighter, military, real estate and many more exams.
Weekly online presentation of Value Line's Investment Survey. The service includes full-page reports with analyst commentaries as well as Timeliness™, Safety™ , and Technical™ ranks on over 3,500 large, small, and mid cap size companies. Includes, as well, information and rankings on an additional 4,500 companies and three-to-five year projections of key financial measures, and concise, objective commentary on current operations and future prospects.
Available for use in the Law Library at Headquarters and at Snow Branch. Please ask a librarian for assistance. Note: This is not available remotely.
