InfoGuides: Computer Science: Find Articles

Searching for Articles

Once you have a topic, you can start searching for articles.

Brainstorm synonyms and related terms and develop a list of terms you can use to search.
Select a database from this research guide or the Mason Libraries A-Z database page (see the link below).
Search by keyword anywhere in the document or in specific areas of the document like author, title, subject, index terms, etc.
Use Boolean operators -- AND, OR, NOT -- to create complex searches to target the information you are seeking.

AND narrows a search by requiring all terms to be in the results
OR usually connects synonyms and will broaden a search and increase the number of results
NOT is used to exclude a term or phrase from the search results

Make an appointment with a librarian to learn how to do complex and accurate searching.

Mason Libraries Databases
Use this link to access all of the University Libraries' databases.

Core Databases for Computer Science

Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) Digital Library This link opens in a new window
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Citations and full-text articles in the area of computing and information technologies from journals, magazines, and conference proceedings published by the ACM.
Computers and Applied Sciences Complete This link opens in a new window
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Includes indexing and abstracts for academic journals, professional publications, and reference sources. Subject areas include Engineering, Computer Theory & Systems, New Technologies, and Social and Professional context.
Computing Reviews This link opens in a new window
Access reviews of current research, theory and applications in all sub-disciplines of computing. Computing Reviews compiles expert, unbiased critical reviews of current publications of note in computing
IEEE Xplore This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text access to all journals, transactions and conference proceedings published by IEEE and IET. Accesses more than 1,000 books in the IEEE-Wiley eBook Library and IEEE-MIT eBook Library-Computing and Engineering Collection.
ProQuest Computer Science Collection This link opens in a new window
Provides worldwide comprehensive coverage of topics ranging from computer security to web commerce. Comprises three core elements: Full -text journals, tables and figures, bibliographic abstracts. Covers resources from 1981 to present.
Springer LINK This link opens in a new window
Access over 480 journals, books, book series (including Lecture Notes in Computer Science and Topics in Current Chemistry), protocols, and reference works published by Springer and its partners. Covers subjects in computer science, engineering, humanities, social sciences, law, business and economics, biomedical and life sciences.

Open Access

dblp Computer Science Bibliography
"The dblp computer science bibliography provides open bibliographic information on major computer science journals and proceedings." Links to full-text (DOI) are provided (subscription required for most).

Dissertations & Theses @ George Mason University This link opens in a new window
Access full text of dissertations and theses in pdf format, as well as online 24 page preview. Content submitted by George Mason University, and published in Dissertation Abstracts.
ProQuest Dissertations & Theses Full Text This link opens in a new window
Provides a comprehensive collection of dissertations and theses from around the world, spanning from 1743 to the present day and offering full text for graduate works added since 1997, along with selected full text for works written prior to 1997. Contains new international dissertations and theses both in citations and in full text.

Open Access Theses and Dissertations
Search for open access (freely available) theses and dissertations archived in college and university digital archives.

Looking for IEEE standards? They will be found by searching the IEEE Xplore database (link below).

To do this:

Open the IEEE database and go to the Advanced Search.
Enter you search terms, standard title or standard number in the search box.
Scroll down the page until you find the "Content Type" selection. Check the box for Standards and all of your results will be IEEE Standards (active, inactive, draft). Click Submit.

IEEE Xplore This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text access to all journals, transactions and conference proceedings published by IEEE and IET. Accesses more than 1,000 books in the IEEE-Wiley eBook Library and IEEE-MIT eBook Library-Computing and Engineering Collection.

Pairing Google Scholar with Mason Libraries
This file contains instructions on how to set up Google Scholar so that links to documents in Mason resources are included.

Academic Search Complete This link opens in a new window
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Provides a comprehensive scholarly, multi-disciplinary database with full-text, peer-reviewed journals, trade magazines and popular magazines.
ProQuest Research Library This link opens in a new window
Provides access to more than 4,000 titles from general reference databases, including a diversified mix of scholarly journals, trade publications, and magazines covering over 150 academic disciplines.
ScienceDirect This link opens in a new window
Access journals and ebooks published by Elsevier and its partners. Most disciplines are covered, including science, computer science, engineering, medicine, economics and the social sciences.
Web of Science: Core Collection This link opens in a new window
Contains citations and searchable author abstracts, covering scholarly literature in journals, books and conference proceedings. Features: Science Citation Index Expanded, Conference Proceedings Citation Index, Emerging Sources Citation Index and more. Additional resources available by selecting from the dropdown list next to the Core Collection heading.
Wiley Online Library This link opens in a new window
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Provides access to: the full-text of nearly 1500 journals; the table of contents and abstracts of print books and reference works; as well as some full-text access to e-books. Subject areas include the sciences, social sciences, business, education, law, computer science and technology.

Looking for a Specific Journal?

Search for full-text access to journals by title.