A Database is a collection of information that is organized into records. Academic Search Complete and the Library Catalog are examples of databases.

A Record contains a set of descriptive information for an item in a database. For example, in the Library Catalog each book has its own record.

A Field is a type of information in a record. For example, each record in the Library Catalog consists of numerous fields such as call number, title, author, description, and subject.

Types of library databases:

• Library Catalog - Can be searched to determine which books, audiovisuals, and periodicals are in the library's collection.
• Periodical Databases - May be searched by topic to locate citations, abstracts, and often the full text of articles.
• Other databases - Can be searched to locate a wide variety of information including encyclopedic, statistical, graphical, audiovisual, etc. Examples include Classical Music Library and Careers Internet.