Search Strategy: Successive Fraction

(Competency #6 : Search Strategy)

Successive Fraction Strategy
This strategy is the opposite of the snowballing approach. Instead, a search is conducted using a broad term, and narrowed down with use of limiters, Boolean operators, and a second facet.

Database: WorldCat
Topic: What kinds of online adult programming are other public libraries offering?


The broadest facet in this topic is “adult programming”. Other terms that will help narrow results are “online” and “public libraries”. Below is a list starting with the broad term and two facets to narrow results. Last, I limit what is retrieved to list only books.
1. KW: adult program*
Results: 43,056!

2. KW: online
Results: 484

3. KW: public librar*
Results: 16

4: Limiter: Books
Results: 6 items

Of the six items retrieved through use of this strategy, I was able to locate one item useful to my topic:

Libraries without walls 4 : the delivery of library services to distant users : proceedings of an international conference held on 14-18 September 2001, organized by the Centre for Research in Library and Information Management (CERLIM), Manchester Metropolitan University.

Peter Brophy; Shelagh Fisher; Zoë Clarke

2002

English Book 299 s.

London : Facet Publishing, ; ISBN: 185604436X 9781856044363

Lifelong learning is becoming a reality throughout the world, requiring that learning opportunities and materials are delivered to citizens in their locality, at home or at work. Increasing numbers of students are undertaking distance education programmes and libraries are being called upon to find innovative ways to support distance learners. Developments in technology are creating new possibilities for document delivery and the distributed virtual library....

Search Strategy: Specific Facet First Approach

(Competency #6 - Search Strategy)

 Specific Facet First Strategy
In the specific facet first strategy, the most unique term is used to conduct the first search adding other terms and checking the results to determine what gives the best results. This strategy has similarity to the building block approach.
Database: Library Literature
Topic: How to plan for and implement a chat reference service at the public library?
The most unique term identified in this topic is “chat reference” (a phrase rather).

1. Using the basic search function the terms “chat reference” retrieved 155 records.
2. To focus my search, other “unique” terms from the topic are plugged in one by one to refine my results. Terms: plan, implement, public library
3. The next unique term, and most important, is “public librar*”. To add in my search string, I have selected to modify the original search. This came up with a total of 19 records.
4. The last term, “implement*”, is also truncated to retrieve results containing implement, implementing, implementation. The final results show 3 records; one with promising information.



Ward, J. (2003). "Going It alone: Can a small/medium-sized library manage live online reference?". The Reference librarian (0276-3877), (79/80), p. 311.



The use of this strategy is straightforward and easy to use because of its similarity to the building block strategy which is very simple to conduct.

Search Strategy : Citation Pearl Growing

(Competency #6 - Search Strategy)


Pearl Growing Strategy
The citation pearl growing strategy, also known as ‘snowballing’, involves conducting a search and searching for terms/descriptors within the results that can be used in a modified search to improve recall. The terms/descriptors being looked for are also known as pearls.

Database: ERIC

Topic: How to create and distribute online tutorials on computers for patrons?
1. Search is conducted using only the terms identified in my topic: create and distribute, online tutorials, computers, patrons
2. Using the terms bolded above, I retrieved zero results. To improve my recall, I decided to remove “create and distribute” from my SS. “online tutorials, computers, patrons”

By doing this I was able to retrieve one hit:

Blake, L. (2009). On campus or out of town: How publishing online tutorials can help your patrons. Computers in Libraries, 29(4), 11-13,. Retrieved from http://ezproxy.twu.edu:2052

Using this article, I searched for pearls within the descriptors:

Library Services, Online Courses, Library Instruction, Reference Services, Instructional Design, Enrichment Activities, Tutorial Programs, Distance Education, Electronic Publishing, Adult Education

3. SS = (online tutorials OR library instruction OR tutorial programs) AND (computers) AND (patrons)

The recall was positive and really improved using the pearls identified from the article obtained from the first search. A total number of 39 articles retrieved. I reviewed the first 10 and was satisfied with them.

Further “pearl-digging” can be done to increase recall and even refine your search to achieve high precision.

Search Strategy: Building Block Approach

(Competency #6 - Search Strategy)

Building Block Strategy

The building block approach takes single facets (or concepts) and synonyms of each facet and ties them together in a search string using Boolean operators.

Database: Academic Search Complete (ASC)

Topic: What are some of the issues and trends with virtual reference service in academic libraries?

1.) Facets are identified within the topic/question. What are some of the issues with virtual reference service in academic libraries?

Facet1: issues

Facet2: virtual reference

Facet3: academic library

2.) Synonyms of each facet are identified.

Issues: outcome, results

Virtual reference: online reference, electronic reference, chat reference, live reference

Academic libraries: academic library, university library, college library

3.) Pulling all facets and synonyms in a search string with the use of Boolean operators “AND” and “OR”. Nesting is involved to create our search string. Parentheses are used to nest the terms within the search string.

Search string: ((issues or outcome or results) and (virtual reference or online reference or electronic reference or live reference) and (academic library or university library or college library))

Plugging this search string in ASC database, a total number of 46 records were retrieved. Below is a screenshot of the results. It shows both the recall number and how the search string was plugged in this database

Search Strategies – Improving Results

(Module 6 – Search Competency)


In a previous post, I stated my search strategy and results for “digital preservation” using the Eric, WorldCat, and Library Lit databases. To improve results, I have applied some search techniques to construct a search strategy. For each of the three databases, I have used a technique or combination of basic techniques.
Initially, my search topic was “digital preservation,” but this is too broad of a topic. Instead, I have refined my topic in a question format, “How to digitally preserve a library?”
Next, I identified the facets in this topic: “digitally” “preserve” “library”
Eric Database
Search Strategy: Boolean Search String
Boolean Technique
Using these facets, synonyms (or sets) are listed to extract create a Boolean search string.

Synonyms
Digitally: digital, digitization, digitizing
Preserve: preserving, preservation
Library: books, materials

Using Boolean operators OR and AND, we construct a search string with parentheses used:
((digital or digitization or digitizing) and (preserving or preserve or preservation) and (books or materials))

For my first time applying a Boolean search string I got a very acute list of results.

ERIC results for: (kw: digital or kw: digitization or kw: digitizing) and (kw: preserving or kw: preserve or kw: preservation) and (kw: books or kw: materials). Records found: 156

Browsing through the first 10 hits listed, I like the results so I go forth using this search string and an attribute. I chose to limit my results published in 2006-2009 by selecting the publication year attribute.

Total records retrieved were 12.

Of these records, I selected record #12. Not only does this answer my question, but this article provides critical information on how to download, install, and set-up a FREE software package used to digitize library printed materials.

Lots of Librarians Can Keep Stuff Safe: Libraries Are Able to Safeguard Content with LOCKSS, Open Source Digital Preservation Software By: Karen G Schneider 2007
English Article (EJ) 2
Library Journal, v132 n13 p30-31 Aug 2007
Reed Business Information. 360 Park Avenue South, New York, NY 10010. Tel: 646-746-6819; Fax: 646-746-6734; e-mail: ljinfo@reedbusiness.com; Web site: http://www.libraryjournal.com
(Quick Sum/Intro of Article Below)

Over the next several decades, libraries will face the potential loss of all the e-journals, ebooks, electronic theses, local digital collections, and other "e-stuff" curated for the public good. A solution to this problem is LOCKSS ("Lots of Copies Keep Stuff Safe"), a free, open-source digital-preservation software from Stanford University that preserves digital content in a library-to-library network, just as multiple libraries keep copies of the same book....


WorldCat Database
Search Strategy: Truncation

Using the same facets identified earlier, I will truncate these facets to retrieve different forms of a term. This is done by adding a symbol at the end of the term. In some cases, left and middle truncation can be used.

Truncated words:
Digit* (I am not sure if this is the best term to truncate that would include digitization, digitize, and digitally)
Preserv* : preserve, preservation, preserving
Librar*: library, libraries (I thought it easier to use “library” as oppose to books or materials)

In addition, operator AND will be used to string these three terms in our search input. ((digit*) AND (preserv*) AND (library*))

Using this search string, a total number records found were 18,385 and only 11,113 are in English.

To narrow down my search, I limited my search to list only those in English language. This brought down the number by a little more than a third.

The use of truncation really pulls in a number of records, and is most effective when used after a technique has been applied such as Boolean ops, field and proximity searching. Using both truncation and type of language (English), the title field attribute was set to locate records with titles containing these facets and its variations. Number of records totaled 270. Applying another limiter, publication year 2009, a shorter list was retrieved. Here is the search string used to get these 11 results.

WorldCat results for: yr: 2009 and ((la= "eng" and (((ti: digit* and ti: preserv*) and ti: librar*)))).
Records found: 11

Although, I did not get the results I was hoping for, I did retrieve some interesting articles shedding light on the copyright issues. These records covering copyright issues are essential to understanding the specifics on how to begin a digitizing project at your library. Perhaps my topic could have been constructed differently, or the use of truncation might have been too much for these three facets. Another point I want to make is the search string that WorldCat shows the searcher with the results. For some reason the first two facets are nested together leaving the third separate. I am not sure how this came to be, but I played with the provided operators to see if it would change the nesting placements. Through trial and error, I was wrong.