Databases can be categorized by the kind of information they contain. The chart below provides more detail on this.
| Data Type | Examples |
|---|---|
| Bibliographic
Bibliographic databases identify and describe writings or published works (books, articles, maps, etc.). They provide citations (a listing of information about the item) and sometimes include abstracts (summaries). |
Library catalogs and periodical indexes.
Examples:
|
| Full-Text
Full-text databases are those which supply the complete text of information in the database. While a bibliographic database provides a description, a full-text database might include complete articles that you can view on your computer screen. |
Articles, encyclopedia entries, texts of poems or books.
Examples:
|
| Numeric
These databases provide mostly numeric data (numbers) in chart or table format. In some cases, they provide raw data (survey results, scientific studies, etc.) that can be downloaded to your computer, so that you can analyze it and create your own reports. |
Statistics, social or financial data.
Examples: |
| Directory
Directories provide brief, factual or descriptive information and are used for quick look-ups (find an address, confirm a name, locate a place, etc.). |
Locate people, places, businesses, products.
Examples:
|
| Multimedia
Databases that contain various types of communication media (text, graphics, sound, etc.). |
Images, sounds, audio clips or video excerpts.
Examples:
|
| Mixed
Quite often databases contain more than one data type, such as a combination of bibliographic records with full-text, or a directory with multimedia (audio or image files). |
Some combination of two or more data types. |
Another important characteristic of databases is their cost to users. While many database producers "give away" their information freely on the Web, a number of others charge money. Many libraries pay subscription fees so that their clients can use important databases. These fee-based databases are sometimes referred to as "library databases" or "reference databases." Most libraries maintain a list of available databases, as shown in the illustration below.
- - - Fee AND Free Versions
Some databases are available both in a free version and in a fee-based version. In most cases, the data available in each version is the same, but the method of searching or outputting the data may vary. Generally, if a free database is also available as fee-based, the fee-based version provides some sort of added value or enhancement.
Examples:
| NOTE: You must be affiliated with Ohio State University to connect to these library (fee-based) sources. See these instructions for connecting from on and off-campus. |
- - - Hybrid Databases
Finally, some databases provide a hybrid of some content that is free and some content that is available for a fee. For instance, a database might allow free access to bibliographic records or short summaries, and charge for full text articles retrieved. Or, a database might provide free access to current records and charge for archival or older records.
Examples:
Try this Databases Activity to practice identifying different types.
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