Further Information on Wildcard and Boolean Searches

 

Boolean searches with and, or, but not

And: If search terms represent different concepts, and you wish to retrieve records that contain both (or all) terms, connect them with and.

Example: Find information about interiors and houses.

Search: interiors and houses

You can also enter:

interiors house

or

house interiors

for the same results. (There is an implied and between words you enter next to each other.)

Or: If search terms represent the same concept, or are synonyms, connect them with or.

Example: Find information about houses.

Search: houses or cabins or chalets

But not: If you wish to eliminate records that contain a particular word, connect it to your search with but not. (Use but not with caution -- you may unintentionally eliminate records that include information on your search topic.)

Example: Find information about Indians but not Hopi.

Search: Indians but not Hopi

If you are combining connectors in a single search statement, use parentheses to ensure that you have correctly specified the relationships among the terms.

Example: Find information on Hopi or Ute dwellings.

Search: (Hopi and dwellings) or (Ute and dwellings)

Wildcard searches with the asterisk

Using an asterisk at the end of your search term will find many variations of the term you seek.

Example: Find information on children, child, childs, etc.

Search: child*