![]() ![]() Some databases use "and not" or "or not" so remember to check the search tips. Use the Boolean operator "not" to reduce the number of search results and eliminate those containing the specified word or phrase. Pick a few of the words, then combine them with "or" to do a broad search for her: ![]() The "or" operator is often used to look for synonyms, near synonyms, spelling variations or different facets of a topic.įor example, if this picture were your topic you would start by brainstorming all the words you can think of to describe it:Īll the words you came up with are possible search terms, and most records will only contain one or two of them. In our class example, it would find those students wearing either blue or green, or both colors. ![]() This diagram shows how combining two words or terms with the "or" operator finds those records containing one or both terms. One way to do this is using the Boolean operator "or." One reason for this is that you may not be searching using the same words that appear in the record, so there may be more pertinent information that you will find by doing a new search using synonyms or related terms. Boolean operators are words or symbols that allow you to connect search terms to create a more specific and targeted search query. If you find fewer than 100 records, you may want to increase the number of results. In our class example, it would find only those students wearing both hats and hoodies. It will produce a shorter result list than a single term search. The diagram shows two words or terms combined using the "and" operator to find only those records containing both terms. Note that the AND operator is typed in all capital letters. One way to make your list of results shorter is to use the Boolean operator "AND."Ī search using the AND operator may be written out like this: hats AND hoodies Reducing the number of results should produce a list that is both more useful and more manageable. If you find more than 100 records with a search, chances are that many of them are not relevant to your topic. Boolean search logic is executed by using the operators AND, OR, or NOT between each search term or phrase. Or retrieves records that contain any of the search terms. Boolean operators help define the logical relationship among multiple search terms and phrases. Boolean operators are also called logical operators or connectors. Generally, you want to start by finding a pool of 50 to 100 records, from which you will select those most relevant to your topic. Boolean operators are words (or, and, not) used to connect search terms to expand (or) or narrow (and, not) a search within a database to locate relevant information. You may wish to equate this with selecting a subset of the students in your class, just those who are wearing hats. This diagram shows how a keyword search using a single search term or word finds a subset of the total number of records in the index. ![]()
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