This is a guide describing what Oxford Bibliographies Online (OBO) is, how to access it, and how to use it. It particularly uses the Medieval Studies subject and the entry "Nicholas Bozon" as examples.

1. OXFORD BIBLIOGRAPHIES ONLINE
Medieval Studies

2. WHAT IS OXFORD BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE (OBO)?
• The Oxford Bibliographies Online is both a bibliographic tool for finding secondary
sources and as well as an encyclopedic listing for each entry. The encyclopedia
entry is written by an expert in the topic, who also compiles and curates a related
bibliography. In addition to the sheer value of functioning as an encyclopedia for
users, OBO is valuable for its transparency with regards to when it was created and
updated, ensuring the user can determine whether the material is up-to-date.
• OBO covers a variety of subtopics, or subjects, from African American Studies to
Sociology. For the purpose of this presentation, we will focus on the subject of
Medieval Studies.

3. HOW TO ACCESS
• Oxford Bibliographies Online is an online subscription database targeted toward
adults making academic enquiries.
• To log in, sign in with your institutional ID and password. It is easiest to do this on the
library's main page.
• Afterward, either search using the task bar or navigate to the list of databases.
• Within OBO, users can create a free account that will allow for saving and
tracking entries.

4. WHY TO USE OXFORD BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE
• Oxford Bibliographies Online provides an excellent starting point for researching a
new topic.
• For example, if one reads the name "Nicholas Bozon" and needs to learn more
about the man to further the research, OBO provides a good start:
• There is a brief encyclopedic entry introducing the user to Nicholas Bozon and why he is
relevant. This will often list any extant primary sources and where those can be found (in
this case, manuscripts in the British Library).
• There follows a bibliography of general secondary sources on Nicholas Bozon.

5. WHY TO USE OXFORD BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
• After the general, introductory entry and bibliography, the topic is often divided
into smaller, narrower discussions, each with a brief entry describing the subtopic
and then a bibliography.
• Nicholas Bozon's subsections are Sermon Exempla, Short Moralizing
Verse, Versified Proverbs, Allegories of Pride, Passion Poems, Hagiographic Poems,
and Devotional Lyrics
• Each subsection has a description and a bibliography, allowing the user to pursue
narrower topics.
• It is easy to peruse related topics using a sidebar. In the case of
Nicholas Bozon, this is Late Medieval Preaching, Sermons, The Cloud of
Unknowing and Related Texts, and The Vernon Manuscript.

6. WHY TO USE OXFORD BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
• Topics range from the broad, like "Sermons," to the narrow, like an obscure
theological writer like Nicholas Bozon.
• Users can verify the expertise of the scholar writing the encyclopedic entry and see
when the entry was last modified.
• For Nicholas Bozon, the author of the encyclopedia entry and compiler of the
bibliographies is Laurie Postlewate. There is a link to her page on her academic institution
that includes a CV and publications.
• Nicholas Bozon's entry was last updated January 11, 2018. This is important so that users
can check for updated information and bibliographies.

7. HOW TO USE
OXFORD
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE
1. 1. After logging in
and accessing OBO,
the user arrives at
the landing page on
the right.
The front page shows how many entries there are and the primary
editors.

8. HOW TO USE
OXFORD
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
1. 2. To search, users
can utilize the search
bar or browse by
alphabetical sorting.
a. To use, the search bar, type in the search query (Nicholas
Bozon, to continue the prior example) and press enter.
b. To use alphabetical sorting, click on the letter in question.
Nicholas Bozon

9. HOW TO
USE OXFORD BIBLIOGRAPHIES ONLINE,
CONT.
Search Results Using
Method A
• Search Results Using
• Method B
Regardless of the method, click on the topic.

10. HOW
TO USE OXFORD
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
• A user might also use the Advanced
Search (located above the basic search
bar), and there are a variety of options
one can select or click to change the
search.
• However, with the relative
simplicity of using OBO and the
likelihood of using it as an early resource
in research, there is unlikely to be much
of a need to use the Advanced Search.

11. HOW
TO USE OXFORD
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
• 3. This is the entry page. In the top
left, the login/institutional affiliation is
visible.
• Next to that, that title of the page is
visible, along with the editor for the page
and the date it was last modified.
• Below the title section is the text itself
of the encyclopedic entry.
• In the bottom left, under "In This
Article," is a navigation menu. Users scroll
and click on each item to go to that
subsection.
• Users may also simply scroll
through the text portion to peruse the
entire article.

12. HOW
TO USE OXFORD
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
• 4. On the main page, if one scrolls to
the end of the text, one finds the
bibliography. As one can see on the right,
the bibliography (in this case for general
information about Nicholas Bozon) is
listed in alphabetical order.
• On the bottom left, users can click on
related articles to pursue
relevant enquiries. There is also a list of
forthcoming articles. These are
not necessarily related to the topic the
user is looking at.
• The next slides will show how to use
the functions under each bibliographic
entry (Save Citation, Export Citation,
Share Citation, and Find this resource).

13. HOW TO USE
OXFORD
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
1. 5. Users must have a My
OBO account (which is
distinct from the
institutional login
information used to
access OBO) to save
citations.
• -There are certain
benefits to having an
account, sch as
annotating and being
able to refer to a list of
citations in a specific
place online.

14. HOW TO USE
OXFORD
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
1. 6. The Export Citation
function allows users to
access the citation in any
external citation or
reference manager they
might have installed.
Citation managers vary
in how they work, but
most compile and
organize them for the
user.

15. HOW TO USE
OXFORD
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
1. 7. The Share Citation
function allows the user
to email or copy the
citation to paste
elsewhere. This has the
benefit of having a brief
summary or annotation
of the citation included.

16. HOW TO USE
OXFORD
BIBLIOGRAPHIES
ONLINE, CONT.
1. 8. To find the citation at
the user's library, they
should click the plus
sign next to "Find this
resource." It opens a
drop-down menu, which
the user can then click to
search their library. In
the case to the right, the
library does not have it
and it would have to be
requested via interlibrary
loan.

17. LEARN MORE
• For more assistance or tips with learning about Oxford Bibliographies Online,
email Amber Mear at mear.amber@gmail.com.
• To learn whether your institution has access to OBO, consult your library's page or
ask a librarian.
• For technical support using OBO or to inquire about pricing, visit OBO's website.