Help - Search Screen

Help - Index


The search screen is the default screen after logging into Libraries Australia. Libraries are able to specify for each of their user accounts a different default search screen to appear when the user logs on (Search, Advanced Search or Command Search). If a library wants to change the default search screen, they need to contact the Libraries Australia Help Desk.

In the top right-hand corner of the search screen, you will find the Help Menu tab. This provides general information on Libraries Australia such as contact details, advice on logging-in and out, an online help guide and information on the Libraries Australia service. The Help Menu tab is located on every screen of Libraries Australia Search. By clicking on this tab you will be taken to help relating to the page you are viewing.

Above the search box you will find the Navigational Toolbar. The Navigational Toolbar will display on all subsequent screens, and provides a means of accessing frequently used functions. The Navigational Toolbar options includes Advanced Search, Command Search, Browse Terms, Search History, Saved Records, Saved Queries, Alerts, and Help.

On the left-hand side of the search box, under the title Links, is a list of useful links that will allow you to connect to specific areas of information, such as Australian History and Australian Literature. There is also a link that will enable you to add a Libraries Australia Search Box to your website and search from there.

On the right-hand side of the search box, is a Library Profile section. This section provides a profile of a library that contributes to the National Bibliographic Database and is changed on a regular basis.

Searching tips

The search screen of Libraries Australia also acts as a simple search screen. The search box, located in the middle of the search screen, allows for simple searching, ie a single search query. The functions of the search screen are similar to those used on search engines such as Google. For example:

To search terms such as Dewey Classification, ISBN, ISSN etc, use Advanced Search and for more complex searches use the Command Search option.

Boolean Operators

The simple search screen also uses Boolean operators. See the Boolean Help page for more information.

Limit to:

The Libraries Australia search screen enables you to limit your search by material group type by allowing you to tick one or more of the checkboxes located under the search box. For example, if you type in "Edmund Barton" as a phrase in the search box and also tick the Oral Histories check box, your results will relate to oral history recordings on or about Edmund Barton. More information on this area can be found at Check Box Filters.

To search other, non default databases

When you search Libraries Australia, you are searching a number of different databases simultaneously. Links to the databases you are searching in (ie, the default databases) are located at the bottom left-hand side of the search screen under the title "Searching In". When you log in, Libraries Australia defaults to Australian Library Collections (Australian National Bibliographic Database).

If you want to change searching via the default databases you will need to click on the Select Databases button. The Select Database screen provides you with a list of databases by which you can search.

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