Basic Search Help

Basic Search allows you to:

• Search by keyword in all fields
• Search for known items by author or title
• Browse a list of author or subject headings
• Limit to frequently requested types of library materials

To perform a search:

1. In the Search for: text box enter one or more keyword(s) or a phrase using the Tips for Entering Search Words.
2. In the Search In: box, highlight the type of search you want to perform.
3. In the Optional limits: box you may limit your search to a frequently requested location. Additional limit options are available using . Limits work only with Keyword and Title searches.

Tips for Entering Search Words

Keyword | Title | Subject | Author | Author/Composer - Sorted by Title | Call Number

Keyword

Use Keyword to search for one or more keywords or a phrase that appears anywhere in a catalog record and have results displayed in a relevance order similar to internet search engines.

Use the following guidelines to improve search results and make them more relevant:

• Enter one or more keywords in any order
• Keywords entered are automatically "anded" together meaning all words must be present.
• Use quotation marks to search phrases: "world wide web".
• Use a question mark (?) to truncate: teen? finds teen, teens, teenager, teenagers; behavio?r finds behavior or behaviour
• Do not use boolean connectors: AND, OR, NOT. Use Advanced Search for this.

Title

Use Title when you know an exact title of an item.

Type the exact title using the following guidelines:

• Omit initial articles (in English: a, an, the; non-English equivalents: der, la, los, etc.): rise and fall of the third reich
• Type just the first few words of a title. All titles starting with what you enter will appear in the resulting browse list. Less is better than more: tale of two, for whom the bell

A title search will also retrieve titles of print and online magazines, journals, newspapers, and other serials listed in the HSU Library Catalog. For a more comprehensive list of available print and online journals see the Journal & Newspaper Finder.

Subject

Use Subject when you want to search using Library of Congress Subject Headings (LCSH). See Library of Congress Subject Headings for the advantage of searching by LCSH and search options.

Enter an exact LCSH using the following guidelines:

• Identify an appropriate LCSH using the strategies listed in Library of Congress Subject Headings.
• Type just the first few words since a browse list of all subject headings that begin with what you enter will appear. Less is better than more in many cases: forest will retrieve forest, forests, forestry, forester, etc.

Limits do not work with the subject searches.

Author

Use Author when you want to find publications written BY (rather than about) an author. An "author" can be an individual, editor, association, company, conference, performer, or governmental agency. Enter an author using the following guidelines. Results are displayed as a browse list.

General Guidelines:

• Omit commas, periods, apostrophes, and hyphens, e.g., Odell, evans pritchard, U S
• If you are uncertain of spelling enter only as much as you know, e.g., dostoev, williams ten, forester c (but not forester c b)
• Search for both acronyms and full names to be thorough: ibm, international business machines; society of american foresters, saf
• In instances of variant forms of authors' names, such as pseudonyms, a icon will appear. This link will lead to additional name forms or related names, e.g., earlier or later names of organizations and conferences.

Specific Guidelines:

• Personal Author: enter last name first, followed by the first name: einstein albert. You do not need to include the first name, but it is helpful. For names with connectives, follow the conventions of the author's country or language, e.g., gogh vincent van; sade marquis de; de sanctis francesco.
• Company: use normal word order, e.g., Pacific Lumber
• Organization: use normal word order, e.g., Society of American Foresters
• Conference: Conference on Aging; North American Wildlife and Natural Resources Conference
• Government Agency: u s fish and wildlife service

Limits do not work with the author searches.

Author/Composer - Sorted by Title

Use Author/Composer - Sorted by Title for authors or composers who have produced many different works, e.g. Shakespeare, Mozart, and Steinbeck. Search results are an alphabetical title list of all works by the author/composer with each entry linking to all copies of a particular title. It is excellent for bringing together all works under one commonly accepted title/composition name.

Enter your search using the same rules as a normal Author search.

Call Number

A variety of classification systems are used for assigning call numbers to materials in the Library including the Library of Congress Classification System (for books in the main collection), Dewey Decimal Classification (for the Children's Literature Collection), the Superintendent of Documents Numbers (for U.S. government publications), and the California State Agency Classification System (for California government publications).

Enter a call number using the following guidelines:

General Guidelines:

• Complete or partial call numbers can be entered since searches are automatically truncated: for example, enter SD397 R3 F73 1995 (complete call number) for the specific book The Story Told by a Fallen Redwood or SD397 R3 (partial call number) for books about redwoods.
• When entering call numbers spacing and punctuation is essential.

Specific Guidelines:

• materials with Library of Congress call numbers: tk5105.888 b725 1997
• compact disks: cd-2790 (include hyphen)
• children's literature: 979.8butler; xclark (no space)
• U.S. government documents: docsa13.88:int-gtr-372 (be sure to include all punctuation; no space)
• California government documents: caldocsL500.A45 D58 (be sure to include all punctuation; no space after punctuation)
• films: film304 (no space)
• phonorecords: d-6845 (include hyphen)
• microforms: mf331 or mc1352 (no space)
• videorecordings: video2608 (no space)

Limits do not work with the call number searches.

For materials with non-Library of Congress call numbers the Title List display, in most instances, is not arithmetic but a machine (or decimal) sort: 34, 340, 3400, 341.