Organic Chemistry Lab 310 Fall 2014

1. Register for SciFinder following the instructions to the right. Log in to SciFinder.
2. View the training tutorials:
• Introduction to Substance Searching (tutorial)*
• Introduction to the SciFinder Drawing Editor (tutorial)*
• Reference Searching and Search by Author (videos)*
  
• Introduction to Reaction Searching (tutorial)*


3. Search for references. Suggestions are provided in the box below, Searching in SciFinder. We will review this in your library session.
   
4. Get the full text for your articles. Please note that not every article will be available in full text at Rutgers. See notes about getting full text below.
   
5. Answer the questions for your assignment. Refer to the Searching in SciFinder box. We will also review searching in journals and other databases, which you may use to complete your assignment.
   
6. Use ACS Style. Click on the Citations tab above, and follow the guidelines in the in the online References chapter or the Quick Guide to ACS Style provided on that page.
   

• You can find references by startng at Explore References: Research Topic. Generally, when conducting research, you will want to get as many references as possible when starting a search in SciFinder, and then refine your search. You may refine by language, document type, or publication date, for example. However, for your assignment, you want to narrow the search as much as possible. (Refer to How to Create a Reference Answer Set (PDF)*)

• You can find articles by a particular author using Explore References: Author Name. You can limit your search to authors from Rutgers by refining your search under Company Name. Other ways to refine results are also available. To review how to do this, refer to Search by Author (Video)*

• Another way to search is to draw the substance using the structure editor under Explore Substances: Chemical Structure. Use IE as your browser to enable the Java based editor, or use the non-java based editor. This editor has less features, but is otherwise the same. When you have the correct structure, hover over it and click on the double blue arrows. Then select Synthesize this, or Get reactions where substance is a... (Refer to How to Create a Substance Answer Set (PDF)* and Introduction to the SciFinder Drawing Editor (tutorial)* )

• If you know the name of a substance, you can start your search is using Explore Substances: Substance Identifier. You may search by using the substance name in the search box, or by using the CAS registry number, if known (better). Using the name of a substance may produce more than one result, so be sure that you select the correct one by checking the structure and its properties (click on Experimental Properties).

• Getting full text: (Note- if you have trouble getting full text, turn off your pop-up blocker.) When you click on full text, a new window will open with links to the article. If this doesn't happen, and instead you are directed to search the library catalog for Journal title, you can enter the title (of the journal, not the article) to see if we can get the article through another database at Rutgers. If not, that article will only be available through Inter-Library Loan. In this case you may want to choose another article as this could take more than a week.
   

If after viewing the tutorials you still need help, contact me at laura.palumbo@rutgers.edu (preferred), or 848 445-3558.

If you follow all of the steps below, and do not receive a confirmation e-mail from CAS within 15 minutes of creating your account, check your spam folder. If the e-mail is not there, then please call the CAS Helpline at 1-800-753-4227 from 8:00 am until 8:00 pm weekdays. CAS will send you another e-mail so that you can confirm your account.

Here are the steps to creating your SciFinder account.

In order to access SciFinder, you will first need to register with your netID, and you must initially set up your account from on campus. Navigate to SciFinder via the Libraries website: RUL home > View all databases (blue type under the search box) > By title- S > SciFinder. The direct link is:

http://www.libraries.rutgers.edu/indexes/scifinder_scholar

In the second paragraph on this page it says "If you would like to be able to access SciFinder from your Rutgers office or lab computer, you must first register for SciFinder." Click on the word SciFinder to be taken to the page where you may register for an account.

Once there, click on Create an Account. Fill out the registration using your Rutgers e-mail address, that contains your netId (yournetId@rutgers.edu). You will receive instructions on how to complete your registration via e-mail. Follow the instructions and connect to SciFinder by logging in with the username/password you created. You must be on campus to complete the registration process.

If you have any problems with the above, please contact Laura Palumbo at laura.palumbo@rutgers.edu, or the CAS Help Center at 1-800-753-4227 from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.

Please note that in order to use the standard structure drawing editor, you must have Javascript, Java, and Java Runtime Environment (JRE) enabled on your browser. You may also choose to use the new non-Java editor which is now available in SciFinder, but without some of the same features of the standard editor.

Sometimes Firefox will disable Java when it requires updating, so please make sure you have the most recent updates, or consider using another browser. Browser requirements for SciFinder are:

Windows XP Professional, Vista: Internet Explorer 8.0
Windows 7: Firefox v3.5x or 3.6x, Internet Explorer v8.0
Mac OS 10.5: Firefox v3.5x, 3.6x, Safari v4.x (32-bit), Safari v5.x (requires Mac Os 10.5.8 or higher)
Mac OS 10.6: Firefox v3.5x, 3.6x, Safari v4.x, Safari v5.x (requires Mac OS 10.6.2 or higher)

SciFinder seems to work best using Google Chrome, then Firefox, then Internet Explorer. Yet, this all depends on the operating system, web browser, etc. versions installed on your computer.

You may also want to turn off pop-up blockers in your browser, because sometimes this will prevent you from getting full text.

Be sure to have a good internet connection. You may want to test your connection speed at www.speedtest.net