If I want to find research articles of some kind to learn more about a particular topic related to Latin, what should I do? I am a trained scientist, but my own research is on a very different field.
If I want to find mathematical articles, it is often best to use arXiv or MathSciNet. The latter requires subscription but the database is very comprehensive and the reviews are useful. The former is a preprint server where many mathematicians and physicists make their work freely available when they submit to a journal, making the articles readable long before the review process is complete. Sometimes Google Scholar is useful and it includes all fields, but I find it somewhat unreliable or inconsistent.
I am looking for a high level overview of how to find articles. What do researchers in Latin language, archaeology, history, literature and similar fields actually do when they want to read about something new? If there are numerous useful online services or the approach depends heavily on circumstances (for example being at a university or not) or the precise field, please indicate so. In that case more specific questions need to be asked later on to understand the details.