HIST 463/563 (Dr. Bosworth)

Librarians are available to help you with your research! 

If you would like to get in touch with Joseph Roberts, the librarian who created this research guide and liaison librarian the Department of History, you can contact him at jmroberts@bsu.edu. 

Help is also available through the University Libraries' Ask a Librarian page. 

When searching for articles you will sometimes encounter the Find It @ BALL STATE button. It looks like this: 

The MutliLink button appears in lieu of a link to PDF or HTML full text for some articles in the University Libraries' databases. It signifies that the full text of the article it accompanies is not available in the database you're searching. There are three possibilities for obtaining the full text: 

• It is possible that the full text is available in a different database, and you can quickly link to it. 
• It is possible that the full text is not in any of the Libraries' databases, but it is available in print, and a PDF can be made for you or you can obtain the article from the shelf. 
• It is possible that the full text is not available at the University Libraries, but it could be obtained as a PDF through interlibrary loan, though it might take a few days before it is delivered to you. 

The first step is always clicking the Find It @ BALL STATE button. A new page will open in your browser. 

If the full text is available in a different database, that database's name will appear near the middle of the page under a "view online" heading, like this: 

Click the name of the database. In most cases you will be taken to the article's abstract, which will be accompanied by a link to the full text. 

If the article is available in print at the University Libraries, a physical location will appear near the middle of the page, and below it there will be a link that says, "Request the item with Interlibrary Loan / ILLiad." If the article is not available at the University Libraries in any format, only the link will appear. The link looks like this: 

In either case you can click the link to request an electronic copy of the article through ILLiad.

ILLiad is the University Libraries' online interface for interlibrary loan and document delivery. Interlibrary loan is a free service that allows you to obtain items from other libraries. Document delivery is a free service that allows you to obtain electronic reproductions of articles and book chapters available at Ball State. 

When you click the link you will be prompted to sign in with your Ball State username and password - the same username and password you use for Canvas, email, etc. If you've used ILLiad before, you will be prompted to complete a request for the article. Much of the information about the article will already be on the form. If you've never used ILLiad before, you will be prompted to complete a one-time registration form. Complete the form, sign out of ILLiad, then click the "Request the item" link again. The request form will then appear. 

Once you've completed the request form, click the "submit request" button. The article will be delivered to you as a PDF. When it is ready, you will receive an email alert. Click on the "interlibrary loan services" link in the red "more top links" box on the University Libraries' homepage to sign back into ILLiad. Once you've logged into ILLiad, look for and click the "electronically received articles" link under the "view" heading on the left side of the page. PDFs of items you've requested and received will appear there. You have 30 days from the date they're delivered to sign in and download them; after 30 days, they are removed from your account. 

In practice it might take only a few business days to obtain an article through ILLiad. However, you should do your research well in advance of your assignment's due date in order to ensure the articles you need will be delivered in time. A good rule of thumb is to request articles through ILLiad a week before you need them.