Sunday, July 4, 2010

Competency #6: Building Block Search in ASC Database

Searching for: Special Archives in Special/Research Libraries.

Using the building block technique when searching helps to find accurate results. Let's say I am trying to find articles about libraries or librarians that have special archives or special archiving systems. The building block approach can break down the search statement:

SS1: SU(library OR Librarian) AND (Special Archives OR Archive System).

SS1= NO RESULTS.

SS2: (library OR Librarian) AND (Special Archives OR Archive System).



SS2 yields 24 results and SS1 reached 0 results. SS1 took the exact same components as SS2 but I searched with a "subject" search. This, of course was too narrow so I widened the search to "all fields". The second search was successful.


I also added "archivist" to the search as a building block component and it helped bring in more specific results.
By using the building block technique I was able to find a great article from the Journal of the Society of Archivists about the production, location, changes and standards of archival systems in the Netherlands. The article is a match from the search statement.

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