Category Archives: Databases

A woman sitting at a table in the Egrove Park Library using a laptop, with bookshelves filled with books behind her. A book and a smartphone are on the table nearby.

Beyond reading with the Bodleian Libraries

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You might associate the Bodleian Libraries primarily with shelves of books. Beyond reading, the library also provides access to a rich range of films, TV, radio, recorded performances, audiobooks, and music. Some are available online, and some you can borrow from or use in the library.

At a glance, here are some of the key resources you can use to:

  • Stream films online: Kanopy  (Oxford SSO required)
  • Access on-demand TV & radio: Box of Broadcasts (Oxford SSO required)
  • Watch recorded Shakespeare performances: RSC Live Collection (Oxford SSO required)
  • Listen to audiobooks for skills & career development: O’Reilly Online Learning: Academic/Public Library Edition (Oxford SSO required)
  • Listen to free audiobooks: LibriVox via SOLO and 
  • Access accessible books and audio books: RNIB Bookshare (for eligible print disabled users)
  • Borrow and watch films on DVD & Blu-ray: The Humanities Library and Search in SOLO
  • Explore music on CD & LPs: Humanities Library with some items offsite at the Bodleian storage.

Films, videos, TV and recorded Plays 

Kanopy

Kanopy is a video-streaming platform with a diverse collection of over 30,000 enriching films, available to stream anytime and anywhere — from desktop to TV to tablet.

Great for:

  • Thought-provoking films and documentaries
  • World cinema and independent film
  • Viewing on phone, laptop, tablet, or smart TV

Box of Broadcasts

An on-demand TV and radio service for education. You can search an archive of over 2 million broadcasts, record programmes from over 65 free-to-air channels, and create playlists, clips and clip compilations. 

Great for: 

  • Catching up on programmes you missed 
  • Searching from the archive
  • Creating playlists and clips

RSC Live Collection (Royal Shakespeare Company Live)

If you’re a fan of Royal Shakespeare Company performances, this online collection is not to be missed. It offers access to 35 filmed productions staged since 2013, including Twelfth Night starring comedy icon Adrian Edmondson and A Midsummer Night’s Dream. 

Further information on audio and visual materials is listed on the Shakespeare subject guide. 

Films on DVD and Blu-ray

The new Humanities Library in the newly opened Stephen A. Schwarzman Centre for the Humanities holds an extensive collection of films on DVD and Blu-ray, focusing on American, British, and European cinema, as well as world cinema, including works from Latin America and Asia.

To search SOLO for DVDs and videos of specific titles, or titles by a specific director, go to Advanced Search, enter the title or director’s name, then limit Material Type to “Video/Film”.

You will need to bring your university card with you to the library. 

Audiobooks and recordings

O’Reilly Online Learning

O’Reilly’s on-demand digital library (formerly Safari Books Online) provides e-books, audio books, videos, interactive tutorials, and live online classes from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers, covering a wide range of tech and business-related topics and skills. 

Oxford Single Sign-On (SSO) required for access

To search for videos or audio books related to a specific skill:

Select Explore Skills > Soft Skills > Personal Productivity

Filter by Formats: “Courses” and “Audiobooks”

To search for videos and audiobooks from specific publishers (e.g., Harvard Business Review) during the last year, refresh the search, set the Formats filter to Videos and Audiobooks, set Publication date to Last year, and search “Harvard Business Review”.

LibriVox

LibriVox is a platform that provides access to audio versions of books in the public domain read by volunteers. These are closely aligned with the titles available in Project Gutenberg, including literary classics and fiction, mostly in English but also in other languages. The LibriVox  catalogue of 20,000 audio books is now available and searchable through SOLO. Titles can be searched individually in SOLO. If you would like to browse the list of titles, you can search for “LibriVox” and set “Material Type” to “Sound recordings”.

RNIB Bookshare

The Bodleian Libraries manage the University’s RNIB Bookshare account, providing free access to nearly 1 million accessible titles, including audiobooks, for students and staff with print disabilities. This includes those with visual impairments, specific learning difficulties such as dyslexia, and other conditions that make reading print difficult. 

If you would like more information, please contact disability.librarian@bodleian.ox.ac.uk

Music

The Humanities Library has a large collection of CD and LP sound recordings. These primarily cover the Western classical tradition, but also include jazz, popular music, and world music, as well as an extensive opera collection. A selection of CDs is kept in the Multimedia Room, mostly arranged alphabetically by principal composer. Many CDs are now stored offsite and can be requested through SOLO. You can listen to CDs using the equipment in the Multimedia Room.  

LPs are stored offsite. They are not yet catalogued in SOLO. If you would like to explore the collection, please speak to library staff. 

We hope this look at the Bodleian’s wider collection has inspired you to watch or listen to some of the multitude of available items and resources. If you have questions or want to find out more, please do contact us or ask at the Enquiry Desk.

Sainsbury Library M&M's at the MBA Information Fair.

A Warm Welcome at the MBA Information Fair

Today, the Sainsbury Library took part in the Saïd Business School’s MBA Information Fair. It was a great opportunity to welcome our incoming MBA students, answer questions and share how we can assist them during their studies at Oxford. The library team introduced MBAs to the many resources and services that we provide throughout the programme. There were also plenty of freebies including eco-friendly canvas bags, pens and notebooks – ideal for jotting down notes during lectures. And to keep up energy levels, we also offered Sainsbury Library branded M&M’s!

If you’re a new MBA student, do visit the library, meet the team, and discover how we can assist you in your studies. Here’s to a productive and inspiring year ahead!

Read more about the using the Sainsbury Library

How to use the library in 5 steps

Seven Fun Things to Do in the Library 

The words "LIBRARY DROP-IN" displayed on a neon sign.

Library 1:1 Sessions

Feeling overwhelmed by the task of navigating SOLO to find books and journal articles, or exploring multiple business and management related databases and eresources?

You now have the option to book a personalised consultation session with one of our experienced librarians at the Sainsbury Library, either online or in person. This tailored session will provide you with the guidance and support your need to streamline your search and make the most out of the available resources. Don’t hesitate to reach out to us.

  • Session: Selecting business databases for your research:
    Contact: Hal Kirkwood, Bodleian Business Librarian: hal.kirkwood@sbs.ox.ac.uk
  • Session: Help with using and searching the business databases:
    Contact: Heidi Smithson, Senior Information Librarian: heidi.smithson@sbs.ox.ac.uk
  • Session: How to make the most of resources and services at the Bodleian Libraries via SOLO:
    Contact: Cui Cui, Circulation and Customer Services Librarian: cui.cui@sbs.ox.ac.uk
Garner website being accessed on an iPad. Image by rawpixel.com.

Gartner Campus Access

The University now provides full access to the Gartner research library (log in with your Oxford SSO).

Gartner is the global leader in providing accurate and current research for the IT industry and its research library helps translate complex IT issues into comprehensive advice and meaningful analysis. The Gartner research library provides access to current research, analytics and insights that are accurate, impartial, and consistent. The benefits of Gartner include the combined expertise of 2,300 research analysts and consultants who advise executives in 130 countries every day. They publish tens of thousands of pages of original research annually and answer 340,000 client questions every year.

See the LibGuide for more information.

Suggest a Database or Data Set

Do let us know if there’s a resource that we don’t currently offer that you’d like to use in your studies or research. The Sainsbury Library team will then look into providing the database, or we might be able to suggest an alternative from our current offering of databases that has the same data.

Even if we cannot immediately offer the resource, all feedback and requests are helpful and can assist us in identifying new databases in the long term. Some recent database acquisitions are due to requests from staff and students, so get in touch with your suggestions!

Raised voice: The expansion of 4G data networks will propel VoIP subscription growth

Over the five years to 2020, IBISWorld anticipates that VoIP industry revenue will grow at an annualized rate of 16.8% to $12.3 billion. This growth will come primarily from mobile VoIP services and the business market. However, the development of future regulation and competition from wireless telecommunications carriers may put pressure on future growth. The industry has developed in a lightly regulated environment due to the Federal Communications Commission’s (FCC) decision not to control or limit voice traffic over the internet; however, the FCC continues to consider additional regulations for the industry. Read the full report on IBIS.

Discount Retailing in the UK

This Key Note Market Update examines the discount retailing market in the UK in terms of the key trends and issues impacting the industry, the value of the leading sectors and the market’s position within the wider retail landscape, focusing on the 5 years between 2010 and 2014, as well as providing forecasts for the future of the market up to 2019. Key Note estimates that following strong annual growth in value over the review period, the total discount retail market increased by 7.7% between 2013 and 2014. Read the full report on Keynote.

Car & Automobile Manufacturing in the US

Over the five years to 2020, strengthening economic conditions and returning consumer confidence will fuel the Car and Automobile Manufacturing industry. The Consumer Confidence Index is expected to rise at an annualized rate of 11.1% over this period, as continuous improvements in credit availability and disposable income encourage consumers to sustain interest in purchasing new vehicles. This trend bodes well for automakers, as industry revenue is expected to rise at an annualized rate of 2.5% to $121.0 billion over the same period. Read the full report here.

The new retail: from mobile aspirations to business results

The ubiquity of mobile devices is transforming the retail sector, as customers and employees increasingly depend on their mobile devices throughout their shopping experience.

The new retail: from mobile aspirations to business results, an Economist Intelligence Unit report sponsored by AT&T, explores how retailers are responding to the rise of mobile-empowered consumers and the challenges of becoming a truly omni-channel business.