Library Website: Research & Referencing - How Do I Search the Catalogue?

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When searching the catalogue, use the tabs across the top of the search box to select what type of resource you want. Alternatively, you can leave ‘all resources’ selected to search the entire collection. 

It is a good idea to have a list of keywords and search terms in mind before you start searching. Keep your search terms short and use quotation marks when searching for an exact phrase: e.g.: “type 1 diabetes”. 

Using Search Limiters

Use the drop-down options beside the search box to choose where your search terms appear in the results. Different options for terms include: 

• Keyword: This searches for your terms anywhere in the resources. Use this to find general information related to your topic. 
• Title: This searches for your search term within the titles of resources. Use this to find specific primary and secondary resources related to your topic. 
• Author: This searches for your search term within the authors of resources. Use this when searching for resources written by a particular author. 

When viewing the results of your search, you can use the filter options to refine the results. Options to refine the search include:  Full text: This will limit the search to show only resources that are available in their entirety. By eliminating results that only include summaries or abstracts, results of the search will include full texts, images, graphs, tables, etc. Peer reviewed: This will limit the search to show only resources that have been evaluated by a panel of experts before being accepted for publication. This will retrieve results mainly from academic journals containing expert, academic information and research.  Date Range: In general, resources published more than five years ago are likely to contain outdated information. By limiting the results to resources published within the last five years, the sources will be refined to current information.  Source type: This will limit the search to show the specific types of resources you wish to use. These can be refined to show academic journals, reviews, magazines, books and eBooks, news articles, dissertations, and more.  Subject: This allows you to select relevant sub-topics related to your search term/s. This can help you narrow the focus of your research and retrieve results related to a specific sub-topic.

Contact your librarian if you require information from other sources or would like some help in putting your search together. 

  Watch

Here's a short clip on the effectiveness of searching using keywords.