The Serial Display Libraries attribute of the Library policy controls which libraries’ serial control records you can search and display.
The Item Search window is used to identify a specific title in your library and display information at the title, call number, and item level. At the item level, other types of information related to the item’s circulation, bookings, holds, orders, and serials control are also available. Using the Item Search window, you can perform a Keyword, Browse, or Exact search. For more information on getting around in the Item Search window, go to About the Item Search Window. For information search techniques, see Search Strategies and Browsing Techniques.
| 1 | In the Search For box, type your search expression, and then select the type of search you want to perform. You may have these options. |
| • | Keyword Search |
| • | Browse Search |
| • | Exact Search |
| 2 | If a current record for the item exists, click the Current information link to access the last record displayed, modified, or added. |
Note: Avoid typing a period ( . ) in your search string. The search engine used by SirsiDynix Symphony interprets the period as a search qualifier, and your search could return erroneous results.
| 3 | In the Index list, select an index to search. The search options that display are wizard specific. The options may display differently based on your library’s settings for Catalog Search Fields in the Global Configuration wizard. |
| 4 | If the Advanced Search Helper is configured to display, type your search expression in the combination search fields, select Boolean operators, and type your search expressions. |
Note: The Advanced Search helper is available for cataloging wizards only. This helper is configured in the Item Search and Display wizard properties.
| 5 | In the Library box, select a library to qualify your search from the list. All libraries defined on your system appear in this list. If you select a specific library name, only item records for that particular library are searched. (No Search Library policies or Library Group policies appear in this list.) |
| 6 | Click Search. If a list of items displays, select an item, and then click Detailed Display to view the bibliographic, call number, and item records. |
If you are searching for catalog items, use the Configure Options for Item Search Helper to qualify your search. If you want to search the entire catalog based on a qualified search, select the General index, in the Item Search window, and do not type anything in the search text field.
For example, if you want to search the catalog for all French language material, do the following.
| 1 | Click the Configure Options for Item Search helper |
| 2 | On the Search tab, select FRENCH in the Language list, and then click OK. |
| 3 | Click Keyword as the search type and select General from the search index list. Leave the search text field blank. You will retrieve all of the materials in the catalog that contain a French language code in the fixed field of the record. |
Important Considerations When Searching Items
Note the following about searching items:
| • | Only the General index supports empty search strings. If you select any other index, and the leave the Search For box blank, the Search button will be unavailable. |
| • | SirsiDynix Consulting Services can assist you with specialized searching needs, such as a library catalog with a mix of titles with American and British spellings. For example, the following exception list entry could generate search results for both the -or suffix in American English and the -our suffix in British or Canadian English. |
OR OUR
In this case, a search for "harbor" would return titles that included both the word "harbor" and the word "harbour."
If a catalog used a language with both a simple and a complex plural form, both those forms could be included in search results if plural searching was enabled. For example, the following exception list entry could generate search results for both older and newer forms of plurals of the word "index."
INDEX INDEXES INDICES
By default, this feature is delivered turned off and plural equivalence is not applied to SirsiDynix Symphony searching.
Searching Catalog Records
If a single item is displayed by the search, continue the wizard function or search for another item. If a hit list displays, you can do the following.
| • | If the item has related headings (cross-references), the subject heading displays as a link in the view pane. With the view pane turned on, click the cross-reference link to display a list of headings for you to browse. Select the heading to display a list. |
| • | View the selected item using the view pane. The view pane displays tabs that provide information about the selected title (located at the bottom of the window). |
| – | If a single item record displays, title information displays in a Description tab, and brief call number and copy information display in the Call Number/Item tab. From the item record display, you can continue with the wizard function, return to the browse list, or look up another item. |
| – | If a list of matching records displays, you can select an item and continue the wizard function or view the item record, return to the browse list, or search for another item. If you select the item and view its record, the item record information displays on the Description tab and Call Number/Item tab as described previously. From the item record, you can continue with the wizard function, page forward and backward through records one at a time without having to return to the search list, or look up another item. |
| • | Page forward and backward through the results list, if it exceeds a single screen. |
| • | Search for another item. |
Important Considerations for Catalog Searches
Note the following about catalog searches:
| • | If the library uses the barcode validation feature, a message will display if you type or scan an item ID with an invalid barcode format in the Search For field. |
| • | You can make the view pane appear by default in select wizards by checking the Default View Pane check box in wizard properties. The Show/Hide View Pane helper can still be used to toggle on/off the display of the view pane on the search screen. If the Default View Pane property check box is not selected, the view pane on the search screen does not display until the user clicks on the Show/Hide View Pane helper to toggle on the display of the pane. The view pane remains displaying for the wizard session or until the user toggles the Show/Hide View Pane helper off. |
Searching Circulation Sets
The Set ID search option is available only if the system is configured to use the Circulation Sets feature. A set ID can be free text or an item ID. When you select the Set ID index, Browse and Exact search are the only available search options (Keyword is unavailable and appears in grey). The Browse search is selected by default. This search retrieves a list of circulation set names, descriptions, and set types. When you select a set name in the search list, the Description tab will display more information about the circulation set, and the Items in Set tab will display a list of the items included in the circulation set. When you select an item on the Items in Set tab and click Detailed Display, the View Pane displays the highlighted title/item currently selected.
For more information see FAQs: Circulating Items in Groups.
Searching Reserves
When you are displaying, modifying, or removing reserves, you can also search by Course Name, Course ID, Instructor Name, and Instructor ID. Course ID and Instructor ID values must be entered exactly, regardless of the search type used. The Configure Options for Item Search helper is not valid for these searches. Course Name and Instructor Name always return a browse list, regardless of the search type used. Select a course or instructor from the list to continue the wizard.
Searching Reservations
When you are displaying, modifying, or removing reservations, you can also search by Course Name, Course ID, Instructor Name, Instructor ID, and Job ID. Additionally, when modifying reservations, you can search for reservations by a user’s ID. The Configure Options for Item Search helper is not valid for these searches. Job ID is an Exact Search, and so you must type an exact ID. Course Name, Instructor Name, Course ID, and Instructor ID are always browse searches. The Instructor ID browse always starts with the first record.
Reservations instructor and course searches are different from reserves searches in the following ways:
| • | When performing instructor searches, the View pane (at the bottom of the Item Search window) displays the List of Courses and List of Reserves tabs for the selected instructor. Select a course/reserve item combination, and click Display Reservation to see associated reservation information (if any reservations exist). |
| • | When performing course searches, the View pane (at the bottom of the Item Search window) displays the List of Instructors and List of Reserves tabs for the selected course. Select an instructor/reserve combination, and click Display Reservation to see associated reservation information (if any reservations exist). |
Searching Orders
When you are displaying, modifying, or removing order records, you have the additional options of searching by Order ID, Packing List, and Requisition Number. The Configure Options for Item Search helper is not valid for these searches. When searching by Order ID, you can further qualify your search by Orderline and/or Fiscal Cycle. Type an orderline or select ALL from the list. In the Fiscal Cycle box, type a fiscal cycle. If no values are selected, all orderlines and all fiscal cycles will be searched.
In the order search results, the Orders and Summary tabs appear. The Summary tab displays amounts and quantities information for all orders. On the Orders tab, orders are listed in tables which can be sorted by clicking the column headers. You also can change the order of the fields by clicking a column header and dragging it to a new position. All result lists include order information fields including Order ID, Fiscal Cycle, Vendor, and Type. Additional fields appear for order wizards such as number of Orderlines, Quantity Ordered, Paid Quantity, and more. Click the Forward or Backward options to view all orders in the list.
If a list is retrieved and an individual order and cycle must be identified for the wizard action, you may select the order/cycle and select the wizard action, return to the order search, perform a new order search, or exit the wizard.
Searching Serials
When you are creating, displaying, modifying, or removing serial controls, you have the additional options of searching by SISAC ID or Control ID. When you are checking in issues, you have the additional options of searching by SISAC ID, Control ID, Bar SICI, or HR SICI. All of these values must be typed exactly, regardless of the search type used. The Configure Options for Item Search helper is not valid for these searches. If you are trying to create or modify a title that does not have a serial control, you will be prompted to create a serial control or search again. If you are trying to check in, remove, or display a title that does not have a serial control, you will be notified that there are no controls and you can type a new search. If more than one serial control is associated with a selected title, all of the control IDs will appear, and you can select from the list of controls. You can select the library name associated with a particular control ID to view basic control details for that item. Control IDs associated with all call numbers searched display in the list. After locating the correct control ID for the item, select the wizard function, return to the title list, perform a new search, or close the wizard.
The Serial Display Libraries attribute of the Library policy controls which libraries’ serial control records you can search and display.
Searching Accountability Titles
On systems configured to use Accountability, if you search a title with a bibliographic clearance level higher than your user clearance level, the following message will display on the Description tab in the view pane.
No information available for this record view.
You are only permitted to search titles that have a bibliographic clearance level equal to or lower than your user clearance level.
Related topics
Search Strategies and Browsing Techniques
Configure Options for Item Search Helper
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