Searching TAL Online Developed by Northern Lights Internet Solutions Ltd. Advanced Searching

Module 4 Advanced Searching  Using Advanced Search Form  Working with Results  Finding Related Materials  Creating a Custom Group

Module 4 Why use Advanced Search?  Used when:  Too few results found  Too many results found  Special needs  Customized results required

Module 4 What you can Search  Library catalogues  Article databases

Module 4 Where do you Start?  Start at the Advanced Search page Navigation Bar Search box area   

Module 4 List of Search Fields  Typical fields  List of fields varies

Module 4 Searching Phrases vs. Keywords  Search by phrase  Search by keyword  Search using multiple fields

Module 4 Using Boolean operators  Used to combine two or more search phrases:  AND – all words found  OR – any word found  NOT – word not found

Module 4 Typical Problems  No results  Too many results

Module 4 No Results Found!  Things to check – spelling, defaults  Things to try – broaden your search

Module 4 Things to Check  Check your spelling  Make sure you’re searching the correct field  Did you search Title when you meant to search Author ?  Check what database you’re searching

Module 4 Broadening your Search  Use more general terms  Try singular instead of plural  Use keyword search instead of title search  Use boolean “or”

Module 4 Too Many Results Found!  Things to try  Use a more specific term  Enter more terms & fields  Boolean “and” / “not”  Limit by year

Module 4 Narrowing your Search  Try using a more specific term  Search a specific field instead of keyword  Specify more fields to search  Combine fields with “and” or “not”

Module 4 Limiting your Search by Year  Allows you to limit search to a specific publication year  Exact year (2001)  Earliest year (on or after 1998)  Latest year (before 2000)

Module 4 Working with the Results  Display results  Full record/Brief record  Display/Hide holdings  Deduplication  Set size  Sort order  Refine and Limit

Module 4 Changing the Record Format  Changes the amount of detail on the search results page  Selections are:  Brief record  Brief record with holdings  Full record

Module 4 Changing the Set Size  Changes the number of items displayed per page  Select from the pull down menu  Default is 10 per page

Module 4 Deduplicating your Results  Way of changing search results  Allows you to quickly see all libraries with a copy of the item  Only for <500 search results

Module 4 Sorting your Results  Changes the order of search results  Select:  Search fields to sort  Sort order – 1 st 2 nd 3 rd  Increasing or decreasing

Module 4 Using your Search Results  Save and  Copy and paste  Uses include:  Creating a bibliography  Building a book list

Module 4 Finding Related Materials  Library catalogue search provides links to other resources:  Book reviews  Magazine & journal articles  Other web resources

Module 4 Creating Custom Groups  Creating a custom search group allows you to:  Control which resources you want to search  Search a single catalogue  Search both catalogues & databases

Module 4 How to Learn More  On TAL site  Tips and online help  Help files  Reference Guide  Detailed guide to features to TAL Online

Module 4 Future Plans for TAL Online  Adding more full text article databases and other resources  Adding ‘individual’ log in so you can access licensed and public resources anywhere/anytime  Enhancing “request” features

Module 4 TAL Online