Database of IPM Resources (DIR)

Search Engine Help

Using Operators (Boolean Operators) Word Combination Operators 
How to use  DIR Advanced Search Engines? 
Examples


Using Operators (Boolean Operators)

    Operators are special words used by Search Engines which indicate the search rule. You can search for any of the words or phrases in the text of the records or you can search for values in the field attributes associated with a record. You use operators in your queries to search for: 
    • Word combinations
    • Precise Results- Operators enable you to build more sophisticated queries so you can achieve more precise results.



Word Combination Operators 

    Word combination operators tell  "Search Engine"   how to search for combinations of words, phrases, or a word and a phrase: 
AND All words must exist in each document to be considered a match
OR Any one of the words can be found to create a match (at least one)
NOT Exclude documents with this word, phrase, or value (the NOT Operator will also retrieve all documents that do not contain the search value) 



How to use the word combination operators in DIR Advanced Search Engine?   

    General Information: You can combine any or all search terms in Column No. 1 with any or all search terms in Column No. 2  by selecting a desired operator ('AND', 'OR' or 'NOT') from the Column 'Search Type' for each row.  By default, search terms in different rows combine together by the operator "AND".  This search engine can also be used for simple (one value in any cell) or combination (more than one value in any number of cells) searches by keeping 'Search Type' at the default setting ('Simple' for all rows). 

    Steps for Entering Search Terms:  Enter/Select the first word or phrase in Column No. 1, then select a desired operator, then enter another word or phrase in the Column No. 2 (in the same row).  Advanced Search Engine will look for both the preceding and following word or phrase according to the operator rule.  Please note that for all phrases, the words must occur in the same order entered. 

    Examples for the operator "AND"  (Narrow your Search)  

      Example 1:
         
      Retrieves records containing both "Apple" and "Pear". 

      Example 2:
         
      Searches for records containing "Apple" and the phrase "Pest Management". 


    Examples for the operator "OR"  (Expand your Search)  
      Example 1:
         
      Retrieves records containing the "Apple" or the word "Pear". 

      Example 2:
         
      Searches for records containing the phrase "Apple Pests" or the phrase "Pear Pests".


    Examples for the operator "NOT"  (Narrow your Search) 
      Example 1:
         
      Retrieves records with "Apple" excluding any which also contains "Pears". 

      Example 2:
         
      Retrieves records with "Apple Pests" excluding any which also contain "Codling Moth". 

    We recommend keeping your operator combinations fairly simple. Simple combinations produce more predictable results, and ensure that "Search Engine" will be able to read the combinations. 
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