In case you missed it, the Library has upgraded from Business Source Premier to Business Source Complete. What does this mean for you and your business research?

Detailed author profiles for over 40,000 of the most-cited authors in the database

• More than 9,000 case studies
• More than one million company profiles
• More than 1,400 coutnry ecomonic reports
• More than 50 faculty seminar videos
• Nearly 20, 000 industry reports
• Nearly 2,400 market research reports
• More than3,5000 SWOT analyses
• More than 1,8000 trade journals and general business magazines

And a great interface to better aid you in searching through all these neat new features. If you have any questions, stop by at the Reference Desk and we’ll be happy to give you a tour.

Standard & Poor’s Capital IQ’s NetAdvantageis a comprehensive source of business and investment information, offering access to research products such as company profiles, industry reports, stock screening tools, and a financial literacy section for the economically naive. 

Of the more than 10,000 company profiles, you may find individual company snapshots, compare financial growth, stock statistics, and industry outlooks. S&P features 8000+ stock reports and exceeds 25,000 mutual and ETF reports. You can check a company’s profitability, look deeply into performance details and view trading history. The “S&P Stars” section rates stock on a scale of 1 to 5 stars, and has a listing of high yield stocks.

The industry module makes for good reading for investors, job seekers, and the curious. S&P publishes over 50 different industry evaluations and numerous subindustry reports. These include advertising, homebuilding, movies, transportation, retailing, and entertainment. For investors, these reports have an obvious usefulness, and for job seekers there’s insight to be gained to show knowledge in a field. For the curious, these reports can be a snooze or involving depending on your interest. For example, for the third year in a row, beer shipments have dropped, and companies are buying each other up. The one bright spot is the craft beer market. As someone who likes to eat out often, I’ve noticed the explosion of small label beers over the past year, and I learned from the industry report that the craft beer industry grew by 12% and sales by 14% in the first half of 2012. There are also over 2,000 microbreweries in the U.S. So next time I’m out with friends I have fun facts learned through NetAdvantage. 

The financial literacy section is an eye opener as well. Lately their focus has been on planning for your child’s future and teaching your children – from pre-school through college – the value of money. There is also a blog for women including topics like spousal IRAs and “A Woman’s Guide to Bond Laddering.” Topic change frequently so check back often!

If you were unable to attend our program, Uncovering Your Family History With Ancestry® Library Edition, you may find our handout useful. It is a Word document and is located here.

Like most of the Internet, our exlusive web resources are not static. Case in point: Gale Virtual Reference Library (GVRL for short).  This is our online collection of reference books which you can access – as ebooks – any day or hour of the week with your Library card. We are continually purchasing new titles to keep this current.

Some are new editions. These include:

• Alternative Energy, 2^nd Edition
• Bowling, Beatniks, and Bell-Bottoms: Pop Culture of 20^th Century America, 2^nd Edition
• The College Blue Book, 39^th Edition
• The Gale Encyclopedia of Mental Health, 3^rd Edition
• Growing Old in America, 2012 edition
• Sports in America: Recreation, Business, Education and Controversy, 2012 Edition

We also have titles that are completely new to the collection which you might enjoy browsing:

• The Complete Classical Music Guide
• The Rough Guide to Classical Music
• Grzimik’s Animal Life Encyclopedia: Evolution
• Endangered Species: Protecting Biodiversity
• Space Exploration: Triumphs and Tragedies
• Death and Dying: End-of-Life Controversies
• U*X*L Encyclopedia of Native American Tribes
• Minorities: Race and Ethnicity in America
• AIDS/HIV

There are plenty more, and you can access a complete list of titles at the front page of GVRL.

Anne Shaughnessy and Steve Browne, both Reference Librarians, will be reviving their popular presentation, Uncovering Your Family History With Ancestry® Library Edition, on January 16 at 7 PM. The class is full but we will be uploading a print version of our presentation to the Library’s website.

Ancestry Library Edition is the product of a partnership between Ancestry.com and ProQuest.  This product is available only through libraries.  ALE offers extensive coverage of genealogical records from the United States and the United Kingdom.  Among these are census, birth, marriage, death, church, court, military and immigration records.  Some records are also available from Canada, France, Germany and other European countries.  Most of these resources are in English but a few others are in German or French.  Many of the databases are just indexes of large collections of records but several others include images of the actual documents.  In addition to traditional genealogical records, ALE offers photographs and maps.  Ancestry Library Edition has understandably become one of the most popular and useful online genealogical resources available.  Although it does not have all the records available in its private-subscription counterpart Ancestry.com, it is one of the most complete genealogical resources available for free in libraries.

The Library’s newest exclusive web resource is ConsumerLab, a site that tests nutritional supplements.

When you first reach ConsumerLab, don’t be confused by the Become a Member / Join Now box on the left hand side. As a card carrying Mount Prospect resident, you already are! The hundreds of reviews for energy drinks, garlic supplements, vitamins, or sexual enhancers (to name just a few) are available for you to read from home with your card number or from any computer in the Library.

Each review contains the follow kinds of information: What is boosted in the pill or drink, such as Omega-3 or Calcium; what it does for you; the concerns in quality which were tested, like purity or ability of the body to absorb; and the results, which are thorough.

So take a look at the new consumer health site before you buy something that contains hidden amounts of lead or other dangerous substances.

The Library has two excellent special resources for searching for just about anything about the law. Whether it’s federal or state cases, administrative law, statues & regulations, or law reviews, you will most likely find it on LexisNexis and/or Westlaw. Unlike most of our other subscription sites, these are available only in the Library. For Westlaw you need to request access through at the Reference or Information Desks on the second floor.  Access to LexisNexis is a bit easier. You can sit down at any computer in the building and search for legal information. Please note that when you’re at home, you will still have access to LexisNexis for news and business but not legal information.

See how exclusive – and just for you – these two resources are!

We have two programs in November to help you learn how to find what you need.

Legal Research with Westlaw on November 7 from 3 to 4:30 PM

Legal Research with LexisNexis on November 14 from 7 to 8:30 PM

Standard & Poor’s Net Advantage contains more than company and industry profiles. It also has a section on financial educationcalled Financial Literacy Now. This, in their own words, “is an initiative to raise awareness about the critical importance of financial literacy and provide greater access to financial literacy training services and information.”

 In this feature, you’ll find many helpful how-to articleson topics such as how to save for the future, how to select a bank, how to determine if buying a home is right for you, and how to pay off a mortgage.  Worth special notice are the essays about the dangers of credit cards!

In the Resources section are interactive programs which allow you to enter your own financial numbers and receive suggestions to help in meeting your goals.  \Also, take a look at  the Cost of Debt and Debt-to-Income Ratio worksheets. If you have children, be sure to run your figures through the College Planner and 529 Savings Plan worksheets.

This site also contains several blogs. Not surprisingly, one is called Your Money. Some of the 2012 posts have been about IRA inheritance rules, emergency funds, and disability insurance. There is another blog specifically for women. Since many of the articles in this blog are about families, they are equally applicable to fathers.