Indexes and databases are the primary tools for finding which publications have information on a particular topic. Some indexes only search the content of journals while others search the content of a wide range of sources such as journals, conference proceedings, books, reports and patents. No one index searches all engineering publications. Each index searches a selected set of publications. Some such as Compendex search publications from all areas of engineering while others such as Materials Science Index searches only publications in selected areas of engineering. Some databases such as the ACM Digital Library only search the publications of one publisher and often provide online access to the full text of all of the publications from that publisher. From the electronic resource index search page it is possible to search for indexes by title or by a subject such as Computers or Engineering. In addition, indexes and databases that search publications from other subject areas such as Business and Chemistry can provide information useful to engineering faculty, staff and students.
