Document Types and Reference Tools PDF

**2. Types of document** **i. Primary documents** Primary documents are original works, those which are the result of the author\'s act of reflection. Among the most common and most representative are books, periodical articles, collective works, theses, etc.) **ii. Secondary documents** Secondary...

**2. Types of document** **i. Primary documents** Primary documents are original works, those which are the result of the author\'s act of reflection. Among the most common and most representative are books, periodical articles, collective works, theses, etc.) **ii. Secondary documents** Secondary documents are descriptive or analytical data used to identify, describe and search for primary documents (library catalogs, bibliographies, bibliographic databases, etc.). When searching for information, we start by using secondary documents to find references to primary documents. The various secondary documents you will come across during your studies at university are : - library catalogues ; - current commercial bibliographies: list of books published during a reference period (week, month or year); - national bibliographies: list of documents published in a given country; - specialised bibliographies: list of documents published on a specific subject; - annals: list of competition subjects. **iii. Tertiary documents** Tertiary documents are specialist works which cover a body of knowledge or concise explanations relating to terms, authors or subjects. Encyclopaedias, dictionaries and directories are tertiary sources. **REFERENCE TOOLS** Reference tools are essential for carrying out the first stage of documentary research: 1. **Dictionaries** To find out or clarify the meaning of a word, to make comparisons or contrasts. There are different types of dictionaries: general dictionaries (language, synonyms, antonyms, etymology and bilingual), specialised dictionaries (by subject or type of information), on CD or DVD. \- general dictionaries:*Examples*: Le petit Larousse, le Petit Robert, Le grand Robert & Collins, etc. \- specialised dictionaries:*Examples*: Dictionary of synonyms, Dictionary of chemistry, Dictionary of Industrial Technology: Design, Production, Management, Maintenance, etc. 2. **Encyclopaedias** Encyclopaedias are an indispensable and reliable tool for starting research on a subject. They help to define the context, put an idea or a trend into context, broaden or narrow the subject, and find relevant keywords. They are generally alphabetical, and a thematic flow (references at the end of each article and in the index) allows you to jump from one article to another. They also provide bibliographical information at the end of the articles, enabling you to link to other documents. There are various types of encyclopaedia in print and/or on CD-DVD: \- general encyclopaedias: *Examples*: Encyclopaedia Universalis, Encyclopaedia Britannica - thematic encyclopaedias: *Examples*: Théma (Larousse), MON QUOTIDIEN - specialised encyclopaedias: *Examples*: L\'Encyclopédie Cousteau, L\'Encyclopédie Alpha. 3. **Bibliographies or bibliographic databases** General or specialised bibliographies or bibliographic databases have their origins in printed bibliographies, thematic bibliographies and current bibliographies, which were published at regular intervals (monthly, quarterly, annually, etc.) and covering a specific field. They allow searching by keywords (author, title, publisher, date, number of pages, etc.) and data analysis (bibliometrics, etc.). 1. **Library catalogues** A library catalogues is a set of records (document description sheet) of documents written and presented according to standards in a paper or electronic catalogue. The catalogue can be used to search for a document and locate it in the library using the *call number*. This is a descriptive list of the documents in the library: books, periodicals, publications, theses, dissertations, reports, etc. Most catalogues are now computerised. They can be consulted on a computer or are often accessible via the Internet. They are then called databases.