Fast Search is a search engine for exploring SFU Library's books, journal articles, and more. You can now search for books and articles in one search! It's a great place to begin your research.

What can be found in Fast Search?

• Books: All books you would normally find in the SFU catalogue are searchable in Fast Search
• Journal articles: Search through tens of thousands of journals simultaneously for articles on your topic
• Newspaper and magazine articles: Many non-scholarly articles can also be found in Fast Search
• Music, movies, maps, slides, SFU theses/dissertations, government documents, sound recordings, and more

Please see the vendor's website for a list of all materials indexed in Fast Search (aka Summon). However, only materials that SFU Library owns or subscribes to will show up in your Fast Search Search, unless you select the box, "Add results beyond your library's collection".

Do I need to search elsewhere?

Fast Search is a quick and efficient research tool, but depending on your topic, it may not offer you the level of search sophistication you require. As Fast Search searches only a portion of the library's collections (about 75%), you may choose to conduct your research using additional library resources. To extend your research, here are some tips:

• Our subject-specific research guides point to key databases, journals, encylcopaedias, statistical sources, and other specialized research materials in your field
• Ask a Librarian via email, chat, phone, or in person for help on finding research materials on your topic
• Our list of subject-specific databases points to more specialized places to search
• Search the regular SFU catalogue when you need to do more precise searching for books and media

 Questions about using Fast Search? Please review our FAQs on Fast Search or Ask a Librarian.

Learn more about it!  Watch the Fast Search video: