At the Reference Desk on 2nd Floor of King Library, a customer requested information on the "Fitness Industry" including books and articles and how to compare the information with the company "24 hour Fitness" using data and business reports.

• For books, I searched the Classic Library Catalog using the keywords "Fitness Industry" and limited the results to "Available" and at "King Library". The customer selected a promising title, Fitness and Health in Industry
• From the above book record, we followed the subject link for "Physical Fitness". The customer was interested in the subject headings: "Physical Fitness", "Physical Fitness Centers--Management" and "Physical Fitness Centers--Marketing" which led to the title Successful Programs for Fitness and Health Clubs: 101 Profitable Ideas by Sandy Coffman
• For Articles, I went to our databases page, selected the Academic Search Complete database and searched for "24 hour fitness" as one term and then added the term "Centers" to narrow down the search.  The customer selected the full-text article "The Health Manager" by Alleyne, Sonia published in Black Enterprise (Oct 2011, p94).
• Then, I tried the Business Source Complete database and searched the subject "24 hour fitness" as one term in the "Title" field only and then added the term "Industry" to focus on the subject search. Many good articles were retrieved.
• Using another database, Reference USA Business Directory, I searched the Company Name section of the database for "24 hour fitness".  That led to many company locations with expanded reports, financial & stock data, business profile, company news, historical data, business expenditures, and other details on the company.  I showed the customer how to print or save the profile reports of the company and the customer really preferred this database.
• Finally, I searched the Small Business Reference Center database selecting "Industry Information by Small Business Type" then selecting "Fitness Planning and Personal Trainers", and then selecting "Industry Reports". Many full-text reports were retreived by the customer.   

This customer was excited to have all the information and resources. He was impressed by searching the Reference USA Business Directory database and all the details on "24 hour fitness" company reports and data.

See more Questions of the Week!

Did you know you can access journal articles for writing academic papers from the San Jose Public Library Databases and they can improve your research papers?

To access this information all you need is your name, library card number, and pin.  

To look for academic journal articles you will use "Academic Search Complete" which all San Jose Public Library users have access to.

Step 1: Click on the Learn image  titled "Homework, research, articles" from the library homepage www.sjpl.org.

Step 2: Click on the top link titled Magazine and Journal Articles

Step 3: Enter your keywords of what you are looking for in the blank boxes and click "Search"

To learn how to perform more detailed searches visit a librarian at your local branch library.  

Happy 2013! Many of us make resolutions for the new year. There might just be a database from your library to help you. You'll need to use your library card to access these resources from your home computer.

• Want to learn a new language? Check out Mango Languages, which includes 46 languages to learn on your own, online.
• Get credible information about health topics with Consumer Health Complete – this database includes videos about various health topics, fact sheets and pamphlets, and full text access to various medical encyclopedias.
• Learn valuable new skills – for work, school, or life in general with LearningExpress; this database includes practice tests, exercises, skill-building courses, eBooks, and information on various topics like business writing, public speaking, and personal finance.

San Jose Public Library is an exceptional city library system for many reasons – our outreach to San Jose's diverse, multicultural community and the award of last year's National Medal for Library Service certainly attest to this! Perhaps one of our most unique features is the fact that we are partnered with San Jose State University and a happy advantage of this academic partnership is, as a public library user, you are able to use SJSU’s wealth of information and even their databases –  if you physically go to Dr. King Library. 

However, if you would like to do scholarly research from home, there is no better tool than SJPL’s Academic Search Complete which you can search from home with your library card no. and PIN.  Having both peer-reviewed journals and popular magazines like Consumer Reports, Academic Search Complete is one of the world’s most comprehensive scholarly, multi-disciplinary full-text databases.  

So, if you are an SJPL user have an in-depth research project, don’t forget to look into Academic Search Complete as an excellent first stop.   

Frustrated with your job search? Interested in new resume-building resources available at the library?

Then "knock out" your competition by using the Career Transitions online resource to prepare your resume.

You are invited to learn how to build a resume that packs a punch at our 1-hour workshop on Tuesday, February 28, at 1:00 PM at the Edenvale Branch Library.

Please bring to the workshop your current resume or, if you have no resume, bring all your contact information, job experience, and educational experience to begin building your resume online with Career Transitions.

This workshop requires Pre-Registration, and seating is limited.

Please sign up as soon as possible by calling the library at 408-808-3036 or by stopping by the library's Information Desk.

Don't miss the opportunity to get more information about Scholarship, Grant, and Financial Aidid at Tully Community Branch Library. Learn from Kaplan how to not only get into the college of your dreams, but how to pay for it. Understand how to make yourself the most competitive college applicant possible, learn what admissions officers are looking for, and the basics of applying for financial aid, important dates, terminology, and how financial need is determined.

Also, check out SAT and ACT books that our librarian, Peter Nguyen, recommended.

To practice for SAT and ACT exams, don't forget to take advantage of our LearningExpress Library Tutorials, Test, eBooks database. Teachers from the local schools where I presented LearningExpress gave positive feedback and indicated that they will instruct their students to use the database to improve their skills. I showed my teensReach volunteers the LearningExpress database before their SAT or ACT and they loved it. This online exams database is a wonderful supplemental tool for the many job seekers who come to the library every week and it's available 24/7. LearningExpress not only gives the user an opportunity to practice the materials before the test, it simulates the pacing of the real examination.

How do you get to the database and navigate it? Please view this video clip.