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| Search Help: |
Searches can be completed using "Key Words". The search engine will search for match(es) in the Topic and Description fields. In addition there are special operators and characters that can aid you in your search.
You may want to refine your search using common search operators.
| Operator | Effect | Example |
| AND | Searches for documents that have both words in it. | Towson AND Cars |
| OR | Searches for documents that has either word in it. | Towson OR Cars |
| NOT | Eliminates documents where the word is found | Towson NOT Cars |
Using Parentheses and Quote Marks:
| Character | Purpose | Example |
| (Parentheses) | Determines how ANDs and ORs are treated. Words within parentheses are considered as a unit, and are considered first. | Towson OR (York AND Cars) |
| "Quotation Marks" | Quoted words or phrases are searched for literally: Useful when you want to search for the actual works "and" or "or". | "Towson AND York" |
Using Wildcards:
You can find documents based on incomplete search words or phrases by using wildcards (* or ?).
| Wildcard | Purpose |
| * | * stands in for any nuber of characters (including zero). So a search for To* would find Towson, Town, Top etc. |
| ? | ? stands for any single character. More precise and thus generally less helpful than the * wildcard. A search for ?ar?et would find both carpet and target, but not Learjet. |
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County Public Library, Towson Maryland USA Last Revised: 03 May 1999 Feedback |