A.   Select the Search Screen for the desired catalog:

Library (books, booklets, serials, annual reports, manuals, manuscripts);
Pictorial Collections (negatives, slides, and prints);
Archives (other ephemera including financial instruments, menus,
correspondence, mixed collections from various corporations and individuals);
Baldwin Specification Cards Collection.

B.   Be concise, no matter what search method you use, to avoid extraneous findings, bearing in mind that too much specificity may exclude desired hits.

C.  Select either Quick Search, Narrowed Search, or Advanced Search:

1.  Use just the Any Word or Phrase Quick Search . This is the easiest, and will look in all fields. If it produces too many hits, or you want to narrow it down, try:

2.  Use the more narrowed (specific term) boxes, such as Author, Subject:
          a.  Use the And, Or and Not Boolean operators (how these work).
          b.  Click on the A-Z Index button for a list of available terms you can enter; or

3.  Use the Advanced Search Screen. This provides more ways to tailor your search.

Remember, computers do only what you ask them to do,
so some persistence or rephrasing may help you find the desired listing!

Using Wildcards and Boolean Operators

Using the Asterisk as a Wildcard You can add an asterisk immediately after part of a word so that all words from that word stem are searched for.  For instance, if you wanted to search for material involving William F. Kiesel, but were not sure of the spelling, you could enter kies*:   Note that the asterisk may not be used to replace a word, just to seek alternatives from the same word stem. Using Boolean Operators for a More Precise Search By using AND, OR, or NOT, you can target your search and reduce unwanted hits. There are several ways to do this.  (Note: when you enter multiple words as your search criteria in a field, it is interpreted as an exact-phrase search.)
By using the AND, OR, or NOT choices, as seen in the examples below:	By using the symbols within a search field. The symbols are:  & = AND,  / = OR,  ! = NOT.  For instance:
This will find anything with Stevens in the title, but not if it’s written by Alexander.	will find only books written by both Burgess and Kennedy.
will find anything with either track or construction.	See those "A-Z Index" links? Click on them and a complete list of terms available in that database for that field pop up for you to choose from!

Doing "less than", "greater than", and "between" searches

You can search for items greater than or less than a certain value, or within a range. This is most commonly done when searching for dates, but can also be done when searching for values or text. Use the symbols shown below. When used with a partial date, these symbols search from the beginning of the date (first day of the month or year). A range consists of two values, low and high, separated by a colon. Include spaces around the colon.

Finding a Date

To find a date, use any acceptable format, including, but not limited to, the examples shown below:

Do not use a forward slash to separate date elements unless you surround the date with quotation marks (for example, "12/31/2003").

You can use the symbols & / ! between dates to do AND-OR-NOT searches. For example, May 2003 / June 2003 finds all dates in May or June 2003.

Searching for Words and Phrases

Type the word you want to find (trackbed) or type a phrase (pennsy lines west) to find those words in that order. To find variations of words, type an asterisk at the end of one or more word stems (track* build*). Use the symbols & / ! between words or phrases to represent Boolean AND, OR, NOT. Include a space before and after the symbol. Use the proximity operators w# (within) and p# (preceding) to find words near each other. See the examples below.

Words joined by & / ! are evaluated in left-to-right order. For example, red & white / blue finds index items that contain "red" and "white", or items that contain "blue". Use parentheses to control evaluation order: For example, red & (white / blue) finds index items that contain "red" and "white" OR "red" AND "blue".

Troubleshooting Searches

If you are having trouble with a search, some of the most common problems are listed below.

I got the message "Unable to recognize as a correctly formed query."

The program cannot understand the search criteria. Possible problems include:

• Typographical errors
   
• Mismatched quotes or parentheses
   
• Extra Boolean search symbols (for example, you should have typed car / auto instead of car / auto / )
   
• Missing quotation marks around symbols that can be misinterpreted. For example, search for "http://www.inmagic.com".

If you cannot determine what caused the error, try a simpler search (for example, just a word in a box) to see if it works. Try the Browse button to construct the query, instead of typing criteria.

I found too many records.

Use additional criteria.  E.g. if you searched for Beebe, you'll find a number of books, if you know you're looking for the particular title, such as, The trains we rode, add the criteria rode.

If you used an asterisk, omit it and try an exact search instead (for example, search for computer technology instead of comp*).

Try using a Boolean symbol (& / !) between words to construct more precise queries. For example, to find articles about mythology, not cartoons, search for hercules ! cartoon.

If the item you are searching for includes punctuation, substitute spaces for punctuation (for example, search for cs textworks, not cs/textworks) or surround the item with quotation marks ("cs/textworks").

If you are searching for a date, do not use a forward slash between date components (for example, search for 12-12-98) or surround the date with quotation marks ("12/12/98").

I did not find any records.

Examine the contents of the search area (especially if it is longer than the screen) to verify that you do not have query criteria left over from a previous search.

If you are not sure of the spelling, use an asterisk after the first few characters (for example, colo*) or separate several possible spellings with a forward slash (for example, search for color / colour).

If you did a complex search, try simplifying it to eliminate confusion. Use the Index A-Z to select available termsto search for.

If you are searching for a URL, try typing it all in lowercase.

If you are trying to find records that contain multiple words anywhere in the record, separate the words with Boolean symbols (& / !). Otherwise, you are doing a phrase search, which finds these words in that order.

If your search includes Boolean symbols (& / !) or range searches (:), put spaces around the symbols.

Do not use words (and, or, not) for Boolean operators. You must use the Boolean symbols (& / !).

Try using / instead of & between words. Using / means either word can be present (john / paul finds John or Paul). Using & means both words must be present (john & paul will not find just "John" or just "Paul").

Remember that range searches involving partial dates start from the beginning of the range. For example: <2003 means "before Jan. 1, 2003."