Software Overview:
Bar-Ilan's Responsa
Formulating Search Requests (Continued)
Words in Varying Order
To find words which can appear in varying order, the second word
appearing up to m words before the first, and the first appearing up
to n words before the second, type [n:m-]. Thus, to find the expressions
,
, and
, type:
[1:2-]
#
Often you'll be looking for forms which may appear in varying order,
but which have an exact number of words between them. For example, to
locate both
and
, type:
% [2:-2]
#
A simpler way to do this is as follows:
And for those truly trying to make life complicated:
- You can specify more than two search components in varying order
following the rules above.
:6, for example, is equivalent to
[6:-6]
[6:-6]
- You can also specify distances in different ways in a single query, e.g.,
Return to Formulating Search Requests
Expressions Within a Single Sentence,
Paragraph, or Document
You can search for a group of words which all fall within a single block
of text, regardless of the order in which they may appear or the exact
distance between them.
- To locate words in the same sentence, type
:
. For information about
Shabbat customs in synagogues, for example, type
Here, too, it's advisable to specify alternative forms, prefixes, etc.
in your query. You'd be able to locate more material by entering
since this will retrieve
as well as
.
- To locate words in the same paragraph, type
.
- To locate words in the same document, type
.
Return to Formulating Search Requests
Easy [vs. Regular] Searches
Responsa includes an entirely different search format for
those who'd like an alternative to the one discussed above. This is
the Easy Search. To try it out, simply select "Easy Search" at the bottom
of the regular search screen; choosing "Regular Search" will get you
back to where you were.
- If you're simply searching for one word, type it into the
first box and hit enter.
- If you're interested in a grammatical variant of this word, choose
Variants.
- To specify an alternative word (e.g., to find occurrences of either
or
), enter it in the
box to the right.
- To specify the next word in a phrase (e.g.,
), type this word in the
box underneath.
- To specify distances between words, such as in the expressions
and
(where the key terms are two
words apart), type in the appropriate number in the
Distance box at the right of the screen.
When you're ready to search, hit enter.
Return to Formulating Search Requests
Tips on Formulating Requests
- Specify grammatical prefixes in your search requests to avoid missing
common relevant forms. Searching for Moses, if you don't specify
#, you'll miss out on
,
, and so on.
- Specify both plene and defective spellings, particularly when searching
the Biblical database, where defective spelling is very common. Thus,
include alternatives:
(
),
(
),
(
),
(
),
(
), or
,
,
,
,
.
- Use synonyms in your requests. Searching for material on non-Jews,
for example, you should include such terms as
(
)
,
(
)
,
(
)
, and perhaps even
. (Note that you
won't be able to specify all of these forms in a single query, as
some of them consist of two words--see
above.
- Specify abbreviations in your requests. Searching for information
on R. Yochanan b. Zakkai, look for both
# and
#.
Similarly, note that words are frequently abbeviated with
apostrophes; thus, if you're looking for references to Tractate
Ketubbot, you should probably search for
(
)#
- Use only key portions of a phrase to avoid overlong searches.
Instead of
, for example, it will
probably suffice to search for
.
- If you receive a message telling you "no matches found," it might
be that you formulated your request too restrictively. Try your
forms with prefixes and suffixes, specify greater distances between
words, and you should come up with more material.
- Where responsa contain words in Yiddish, Responsa displays
the Hebrew equivalent of these terms in slashes, along with the original
text. This way, even those unfamiliar with Yiddish may search for such
material using corresponding words in Hebrew.
- Parenthetical source references have been included in certain databases
(e.g., references to Biblical verses in the
Talmud). Thus, you could
locate all Talmudic references to verses in Numbers, chapter thirty, by
searching for
(
)
(
) in the
Talmud Bavli database.
Note: words in parentheses and words between slashes are treated as
integral parts of the text being searched. Therefore, it may be wise
to specify some distance between your terms, even if you expect them
to appear immediately after one another, in case a parenthetical reference
appears between them.
For example, searching for
in the
Mishnah will not locate Mishnah Rosh
Hashana 3:8
(
), since a reference to
appears between the words
and
. Thus, you would only
be able to locate this by typing
[3:1]
.
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Last Updated: 4/29/96
URL: http://www.indiana.edu/~letrs/help-services/QuickGuides/bar-ilan/about-barilan4b.html
Comments: Library Electronic Texts Resource Service /
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