Basic Searching
AnyText Box
Typing a word in this box is the easiest way to do a quick search of the catalogue. Type in a place name or subject you are interested in and click on "Search". You will get a list of all the catalogues which contain that word in any field, regardless of context.
[Back to top]
DocumentRef Box
If you already know the reference number for a collection that you are interested in, type the reference number, including any punctuation it may have, into the DocumentRef box.
[Back to top]
Title Box
Each record in the database has a title. By typing a word in this box, the database will search through the titles of each collection only. If you are unsure of the title of a collection you are interested in, it would be easier to search using the AnyText box instead.
[Back to top]
Date Box
You are able to specify the dates of records you would like to look at. Simply enter a date in one of the following formats:
"1901" will search for any collections which cover this year.
"1901-1980" will search for any collections which cover this time span.
"20th century" will search for any records dated between 1900-1999.
[Back to top]
Once you have completed as many boxes as you like, click on the "Search" button towards the bottom of the page.
Advanced Searching:
Wildcard
The * is known as the wildcard. This enables you to do a partial search. You can use the asterix either before part of a word or at the end of it. For example, typing "charit*" in the AnyText box will search for "charity", "charities" and "charitable"; typing in "*men" will search for "policemen" and "women" etc.
[Back to top]
Widening, Narrowing and Excluding
Once you have carried out an initial search, if your search has found too few or too many records, you can choose to widen or narrow your hitlist. To do this, simply click on "Search the Catalogue" to get back to the main search page, type another search term into the AnyText box and click on the "Narrow", "Widen" or "Exclude" buttons instead of the "Search" button. A new hitlist will be created which shows the results of both your initial search and your secondary search.
[Back to top]
Search Options
Combine Fields - If you use more than one field, you may choose the 'Or' option to find records containing either one term in one field or the other term in another field; you may choose the 'And' option to find records containing both one term in one field and the other term in another field.
Combine Words in Fields - If you enter more than one term in a field, you can choose 'Or' to find records containing one term or another; 'And' to find records containing one term and another; 'Phrase' to find records with your multiple words in a particular order.
[Back to top]
Understanding Your Results:
Results List
This is a hitlist of all of the records which matched your search term(s). Your search term is shown at the top of the page as well as the total number of hits that your search has created. The hitlist gives the document reference number, title, level and covering dates of each hit. You can sort this list by date or alphabetically by title or reference by clicking on the column label. If you want to see more information about a particular collection, just click on the 'Details' to the left hand side of each entry.
The hitlist shows up to 25 collections to a page. Use the scroll bar to move up and down the page and the links at the top or bottom of the screen to move forwards or backwards through the pages.
[Back to top]
Record View
By clicking on 'Details' from the hitlist you are able to view more in depth information about that record. This may include a general description, covering dates, an administrative history about the collection, access conditions and if parts of the collection have been microfilmed then the microfilm numbers will also be shown.
[Back to top]
Tree View
Sometimes it is useful to see how items fit together within a collection in order to understand the collection as a whole. If a collection has been listed in detail, the database will allow you to view the records in hierarchical order. Towards the bottom of the record view there will be a link which says "click here to see this record in its hierarchical context". The records are shown in a 'tree' structure, with the collection level description at the top, followed by the series and items which make up the collection. You can open and close different 'branches' of the tree by clicking on the folders next to each of the descriptions. The icon which looks like an individual yellow sheet of paper will take you to the record view of that particular description.
To close the tree, click on the 'Back' button at the top of your screen.
[Back to top]
If you have any suggestions on how we can improve this database or these help pages, please contact us using the feedback button.
|
