June 2008: The Library has updated its multiple-database search of subscription databases.
Please let us know what you think.
Searching:
Search Results:
What is this search?
This search box is part of the Library's "federated search," which allows you to search multiple State Library resources (e.g., our Web site, catalog and subscription databases) at the same time. You can use the default search (or one of the three choices in the pull-down menu on the home page--see the next question), or you can click on Advanced Search and select specific databases yourself.
Journals and Databases Used in NYSL's "Plus Selected Journals and Databases" option and "Basic Search:"
What do the choices in the pull-down list (Catalog and Web Site, Plus Selected Journals and Databases, and Catalog Only) on the home page mean?
The choices in the pull-down menu on the home page can be used to limit or expand the resources you are searching:
How can I tell what databases are included if I click on a subject like 'History' or 'Law'?
To see which databases are included in a category, click on its check box, then scroll down.
Separate Category Pages:
In the NYSL collection, click on the name of the category to see a new page with just the databases in the selected category listed. (To select all databases on a separate category page, click the "Select/Deselect all" check box.)
To return to the main list from a category page, click on "All Resources" near the top of the screen:
How do I search a specific database?
To search one or more specific databases, click on Advanced Search. The bottom section of that search page lists all the individual databases available for searching. Enter your search term, scroll down and click on the "Clear All" button above the "List of Resources." Then scroll down and check the box next to the database you want to search, and press Enter or click on "Search."
If you prefer to search a single database or vendor without using the federated search feature, click on the database name. (Or use the alphabetical or subject list on our Databases, Indexes and Reference Sources page.) You will be prompted to login with your NYSL borrower's card ("P" borrowers).
Note: Some databases (such as Sanborn Maps) are not cross-searchable. These have a grayed-out check box next to them. Click on the database name to search them directly.
How do I search for articles in a specific magazine?
A "Browse E-Journals" link is now available at the top of the Search Databases and Search Results pages. This link to full text electronic journal holdings is not part of the federated search, but allows users to find e-journals by title. Click on the linked title to reach the journal site. You will be prompted to login with your NYSL borrower's card ("P" borrowers).
Use the search tool on the journal (or database vendor) site to find the article.
Have a citation? Within the federated search tool, use Advanced Search which lets you enter multiple search terms. For example, if you know the article title or author, click the down arrow to change the pull-down list from the default "keyword" to the desired field before you search.
Can I do searches with truncation or wild cards?
The search engine works with the native search interface for each database it searches, so the answer depends on the database(s) searched. If a database's search engine does not allow truncation, or stemming, then the federated search will not allow it, either. If you are searching multiple databases, some of which do not allow truncation, truncation may not work. To maximize results, it might be best to use the Advanced Search page and enter both -- or all -- forms of your keyword (e.g., singular and plural) as search options.
Wildcard searches do not seem to work with any databases, perhaps because even the databases that do allow wildcards can use different symbols as a wildcard.
What are some new features on the Search Results page?
The new Search Results page layout includes search results side by side with the Quick Search form and in-page database links.
Click on the Database links shown on the right side of the Search Results page to jump to the results for that database.
Use the Quick Search box to change your search term or category searched, and search again.
Yes. Use the Results Display Mode (located under your search term, near the center top of the Search Results page.) Click on the arrow of the drop-down menu to see your choices for changing the order of your search results.
Clustered Grouping Option: A new choice, "Clustered," allows you to see your results grouped, or faceted, by subject. For example, a search on "Hudson River" might return results for subjects that include New York State, Environmental Conservation, dam, Barge Canal, etc.
Only some of my search results show up at first. How do I get to the next page of results?
The heading at the top of the results for each database will indicate how many results were found and how many are displayed. If all results are not displayed (e.g., if the heading says something like "Results 1 to 20 of 54") you will see a "Next Set" button at the bottom of the list of results for that database. Click it to see the next batch of results.
Please note: To get to the "Next Set" or page of results, the drop-down menu for "Results display mode" must be set to "Grouped", which is the default setting". (The "Results display mode" box is located on the right side of the screen beneath the Print, Email, and Save Results options.)
Note on Library Web site search results: In the NYSL Library Website search results, sometimes not all results will be viewable as part of the numbered set that is returned. For example, it may indicate that there are 56 Hits, yet only 39 are actually displayed in the numbered list. This is because when the search results are very similar, the hits are grouped together via a long "button" that reads: "More results from www.somewebsite...." Click on that button to see the rest of that related group of hits.
This happens because the Library site search uses a Google application for its search and Google will initially suppress results that appear to be very similar to those already displayed.
1 Resident borrowers have a NYSL borrower's card number that starts with an "R". New York State residents can login with their NYS Driver License (or DMV Photo ID) number. The NOVELNY databases are available via these logins.
New York State Library