Knowledge Base: Library Help

Setting up a Search

A search query is a structured request for database information. The simplest query uses default settings, and you just type a word or phrase to describe the records you are looking for. This word or phrase might be, for example, a full or partial title, the last name of an author, or a patron’s name.

A standard search query on the Find Tool requires the following criteria:

1.Record (Object)

The record types that you can select in the Object depend on the menu option, workform, or field where you accessed the Find Tool. For example, in a Check Out workform, if you click Find in the Name field, the Find Tool opens with Patron Records in the Object field.

2. Access Point (Search by)

You select the access point of the record for which you are searching in the Search by . The access points in the selection list depend on the record type you selected in the Object . For example, access points for bibliographic records include (among others) Title, Author, and Subject. You can set your own default Search by access point for each record type. Then, whenever you log on with your user ID and search for a record using the Find Tool, the Search by option is automatically set for the record type.

3.Type of Search (Type)

• Exact match (implicitly truncated) – Displays all the records beginning with the letters or numbers in the For box. For example: Type energy in the For box for a bibliographic title search. The results list includes all titles that begin with energy.
• Exact match (explicitly truncated) – Displays only the records that exactly match the letters or numbers in the For box. For example: Type energy in the For box for a bibliographic title search. The results list includes only items titled energy.
• Browse – Displays the portion of the title or call number index that begins with your search text.  For example: type magician in the For box for a bibliographic title search.  The resulting list includes all items containing magician or forms of the word in the record.
• Keyword search – Displays all the records that have the keyword anywhere within that record. For example: type king* for a keyword author search, then the results list includes works by authors named King, Kings, Kingsley and others. You can also use the wildcard * before the keyword to indicate that something may come before it.
• Phrase search – When you select Phrase in the Type box and type a phrase in the For box, the search looks in all indexed fields for that phrase in the same word order.

4.Search String (For)

You specify the search string in the For by typing one or more characters. Polaris ignores letter case, multiple spaces, and all punctuation (except quotation marks) entered in the For.

5.Limit By

You can limit your search to narrow down the results. For example, you can search for a title and limit the format to DVD. Some Limit by options have pre-set selections in the Value box. For example, if you select Language, a list of languages appears in the Value box. If you select Author, you must type the author’s name in the Value box.