OSearch

Search History

· Combine sets
· Save search strategy


Search History lists every search you do, plus the number of results. From Search History, you can:

The search statement is shown as it was interpreted by the search software. Examples:

 s5 INSURANCE-DISABILITY [exact subject heading] INSURANCE-DISABILITY as an official subject heading found through the thesaurus; this search may have started as "disability insurance"
 s4 (OHIO AND INSURANCE).SU. the words "insurance" and "ohio" as Subject words
 s3 DOOLIN.AU. Doolin as Author
 s2 DISABILITY ADJ INSURANCE the phrase "disability insurance" anywhere in the database; the operator ADJ (adjacent) displays between words, even if you did not explicitly type it
 s1 INSURANCE the word "insurance" anywhere in the database


Combine Sets

Search multiple concepts separately and then use Search History to combine the sets. Use checkboxes to select the sets, choose AND or OR, then click COMBINE SETS.

You can also combine sets by typing set numbers in the search box, or combine a set with a new search. You may use any search operator to combine sets. Examples using the Search History above:

s3 and s5 find articles written by Doolin about disability insurance
s5 and 2005.yr. find articles about disability insurance published in 2005
s5 not social security find articles about disability insurance but exclude those that also discuss Social Security


Save Search Strategy

You can save a sequence of searches and then re-run the same searches later in this database or in another OSearch database. Rerun Search Periodically.

Temporary Save strategy is stored for 3 hours on OhioLINK's server. A temporary save is assigned a 5–6 character alphanumeric code, such as "k03s1v". Letters are lowercase, so "0" in this example is zero. The code is stored as a cookie on your browser. You may want to write it down, just in case. To re-execute the search in a different OSearch database:

  1. Open the OSearch database.
  2. Go to Search History, then Run Saved Search.
  3. The search code should be filled in by default; if not, type it in.

Permanent Save strategy is stored permanently on your computer. Follow your computer's prompts to specify folder and filename. Save it as a text document (per default). To re-execute the search later:

  1. Open the OSearch database.
  2. Go to Search History, then Run Saved Search.
  3. Enter the complete path of the saved search. Or, Browse to find the appropriate file.
  4. Open the file; this inserts the filename on the form.

Rerun Search Periodically

To rerun the search on a periodic basis, such as after every database update:

  1. Create a Permanent saved search for the topic but without any date restriction.
  2. Check Database Descriptions to determine the update frequency of your database.
  3. Determine the most recent update, from the bottom of the Search Form.
  4. Based on update frequency and most recent update, set a schedule to rerun your search.
  5. At the scheduled time, open the database and re-execute the permanent saved search.
  6. Select the desired set number (most likely the top).
  7. Click Limit Options and choose Latest Update.

July 2005

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