PleiadeAssociates
To get more specific search results, try using the following tips:
Check spelling
Use multiple words
Use similar words
Use appropriate capitalization
Use quotation marks
Use plus (+) or minus (-)
Use field searches
Use wildcards
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Ensure your search terms are spelt correctly. If 'Sound-Alike Matching' is turned on, the search engine will attempt to find words that sound similar to your search terms, but it's preferable to spell the search terms correctly.
Using multiple words will return more refined results than a single word. For example, typing our current projects will return more relevant results than typing just projects. (Keep in mind that relevant results are returned even if they don't contain all query terms.)
Example: our current projects
The more similar words you use in a search, the more relevant your results may be.
Example: safe safety secure security
Capitalize proper nouns, and remember that lower-case words will match any case. For example, typing search will return all documents containing the words search, Search, and SEARCH. Typing Search, however, will instruct the search engine to look only for the capitalized word.
Use quotation marks to find words which must appear adjacent to each other, for example, "our privacy policy." Otherwise, the search results will include the words our, privacy, and policy, but not necessarily in that order. These words may appear anywhere, and in any order, within the document.
If you are using the Advanced Search Form with radio buttons for "any," "all," and "phrase," then quotes can only be used when the "any" radio button is selected. Quotes are ignored if the "all" or "phrase" radio buttons are selected.
Use a plus sign when your search term or phrase must appear in the search results. Use a minus sign to indicate undesirable term(s). The plus sign tells the search engine that a certain word or phrase is required in the search results, and a minus sign indicates that a word or phrase must be absent in the search results.
A phrase must be contained within quotation marks. Leave no spaces between the plus or minus sign and the term.
If you are using the Advanced Search Form with radio buttons for "any," "all," and "phrase," then plus and minus can only be used when the "any" radio button is selected. Plus and minus are ignored if the "all" or "phrase" radio buttons are selected.
Example: +"environment projects" -residential
Field searches allow you to create specific searches for words that appear in a specific part of a document. A field search can be performed on:
The field name should be in lower-case and immediately followed by a colon. There should be no spaces between the colon and the search term.
The field searches can only be followed by a word or phrase. Phrases must be contained within quotation marks.
If you are using the Advanced Search Form with a list box for the field name, then field names can only be entered before a word or phrase when the "any" option is selected. Specific field names are ignored if any other Advanced Search Form field is selected in the list box.
Examples:
title:about
desc:"projects"
keys:login
body:security
alt:"figure"
url:accessibility
target:Pleiade
Wildcard searches can expand the number of matches for a particular request. The * character is used as the wildcard character.
For instance, searching for wh* will find the words what, why, when, whether, and any other word that starts with wh.
Searching for *her* will find the words here, whether, together, gathering, and any other word that contains her anywhere in the word.
Wildcards may be combined with the standard plus (+) and minus (-) modifiers, quotes for phrases, as well as the field search specifiers:
Examples:
wh*
"wh* are"
415-*-*