PATHFINDER II - AN INTRODUCTION
WHAT'S NEW:
CONTENTS OF THIS GUIDE
GENERAL NOTES:
New right truncation symbol is *
Default database is GLADIS.
To start a search, click on "quick search". Key search terms in "Search for" box; choose type of search by clicking on button; click on "submit search" to execute search. From any screen, click on "search" to do another search.
To set Persistent Limits which will apply to all searches until you Clear Limits, use the Set Limits option. To apply a limit to the suurent search only, use the limit options directly available in the Quick and Full Feature search screens.
RECENT ACQUISITIONS
Click on "Recent Acquisitions" from main menu page. Search:
By location: Choose current month and location anth
For new search, click on search in top button bar
By format: Choose last 3 months and format computer files
By subject: Choose last 3 months and key germany history in subject keyword
By several criteria: Choose last 3 months and location banc and format computer
files. Click on Early Truckee records. Click on URL to open web location; right click in frame; click on "open frame in new window" to maximize screen; click on "slide show" to see presentation; when done, close window by clicking on "x" at upper right; click on browser "back" to return to search results
QUICK SEARCH - Highlights for searching the GLADIS database
Finding words in a title:
Title keyword paperwork empire
For long display, click on highlighted title; use previous and next to move from one long display to another. Use return to get back to list
To find more items on the subject, click on highlighted subject heading
Availability: click on availability for circulation information
Finding hard-to-find subject headings:
Title keyword robber baron* [truncated to get plural, other variations] gets you
subject heading capitalists and financiers united states
Title keyword native american* rights gets subject heading indians of north
american civil rights
Finding volumes in a series [a title search in Pathfinder also picks up the 440, 490 and 830 series fields]:
Title keyword spie 2198 gets "Instrumentation in astronomy VIII : 13-14 March
1994, Kona, Hawaii", which is in this series: "Proceedings / SPIE--the International Society for Optical Engineering ; v. 2198"
NOTE: this search can also be done as a series keyword search, and many more fields and subfields are searched.
CAVEAT: results may vary from a MELVYL catalog search because the bibliographic record in GLADIS may not be as fully cataloged as the union catalog record.
Finding words next to each other (proximity searching):
Title keyword black poets [51 hits]
Title keyword black w poets [22 hits]
[HELP : To find out about proximity searching and many other topics, click on HELP button in top menu bar and go to Help Topics]
Title phrase searches: EXACT BEGINNING of a title or of a SUBTITLE
Title phrase my story [exact title or subtitle]
Title phrase master of go [exact title]
Title phrase master of go* [truncated - note "master of gothic…]
Title phrase american political tradition* [know beginning of title, but maybe there's
more ?] - when in doubt, truncate! [but not really common words or just one word]
Title phrase lone ranger and tonto* [long title, tired of typing]
Limiting by format to find journals with generic titles:
Title phrase life [236 hits - lots of subtitles - format is crucial in finding periodicals with
common names]
Title phrase life and format journal titles [3 hits; retrieves Life Magazine]
3. PERSONAL AUTHOR SEARCHES
Personal author phrase alexie, sherman [known author, no problems] [NOTE: last
name comma space first name]
Personal author phrase veblen, th [known author, not sure of spelling of first name -
automatic truncation]
Personal author phrase audubon, j*j* [known author, only know initials, but author
does not "officially" go by initials]
Personal author scopes [don't know author's first name; use with caution]
4. SAVING AND MAILING
Click in boxes in front of a few records from previous result.
Click on save checked records [important - you MUST click on the Save
checked records button before leaving the screen; otherwise, nothing is
saved]
View saved records in bottom frame. Choose mailing format before displaying
records. NOTE: text format is for full-text article databases ONLY.
To display saved records for e-mailing, click on show saved (top button bar) or e-
mail/display saved (bottom button).
Key in complete e-mail address, click on e-mail; click on return. Optional: add a
note to yourself before mailing.
To clear list, click on clear saved.
Subject keyword ecolog* feminis* ; click on title "ecofeminism"; note subject
heading ecofeminism [using subject headings to find a more exact subject
heading]
Subject keyword fuzzy sets and location not ENGI [are there books on this topic
elsewhere?]
Subject keyword laser* medic*; sort by location, call number, none [paging list]
Subject keyword maxine hong kingston [person as subject - at long last!!]
Subject keyword shakespeare cressida [not the Toyota he was driving, but a way to
find items on a particular work]
Subject keyword kafka criticism [the "criticism and interpretation" subheading]
Subject keyword integration academic achievement [Pathfinder searches across
all the subject headings in a record]
6. CORPORATE AUTHOR KEYWORD SEARCHES
Corporate author congress judiciary [search retrieves too many records; click on
modify and enter: title keyword impeach*; year:1998-1999 [to find House
Committee on the Judiciary documents on the Clinton impeachment]
Corporate author who and format: sound recording [musical group]
Corporate author berkeley academic senate [an example of a hard-to-find
corporate author due to variant forms; keyword search helps!]
7. CONFERENCE KEYWORD SEARCHES
Conference keyword medic* laser 1989 berlin
Conference keyword godel 1996
8. SETTING PERSISTENT LIMITS
Click on set limits on Search screen
Use these limits: location Moffitt, year 1990-1999, language English, format
books. Click on set limits which will set persistent limits and return you to
your search screen. Note that limits you have set now appear at the top of your search screen.
Key women china in subject keyword
Click on sort; set sort to date descending, title ascending, none
When done, click on clear limits when you no longer want these limits in
place.
9. BAKER REQUESTS
If you have a BAKER account, you can request books from Pathfinder:
Go to the long display of the item you want to request by clicking on its title.
Click on logon; key in your patron id [your library card number] and last four digits of your Social Security number. Then follow the directions for requesting your selected item.
10. HISTORY
To see search history, click on history on top button bar.
Redo any search by clicking in box and then on submit search
To combine two or more searches with or, choose "search for records in any of the
checked searches"
To combine two or more searches with and, choose "search for records in all of
the checked searches" [obviously, search must make sense; you could combine searches for "headache" and "migraine", for example, but not "women china" and "fuzzy sets", since both terms must appear in the same bibliographic record(s).
11. PRINTING, DOWNLOADING, MAILING USING THE BROWSER
First, click inside the frame you want to print, etc.
Choose print frame to print the search results list
Choose save frame as to download search results list or an individual record
Choose send frame to mail a search result list or individual record using the browser
NOTE: Pathfinder's mailing function works well, and is the preferred way to mail.
12. COMMENTS
Patrons may send comments and questions about Pathfinder by clicking on the comments button. A return e-mail address is necessary in order to receive a reply to questions.