Information. Database. A database is a collection of data arranged for ease and speed of search and retrieval (The American Heritage Dictionary of English Language, 2000). . The . quality of being "... arranged for ease and speed of search and retrieval" is what distinguishes a database from a com.... ID: 713201
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Presentations text content in Searching for and Accessing
Slide1
Searching for and Accessing Information
Slide2
Database
A database is a collection of data arranged for ease and speed of search and retrieval (The American Heritage Dictionary of English Language, 2000).
The
quality of being "... arranged for ease and speed of search and retrieval" is what distinguishes a database from a computer network.
Slide3
Database
Although databases can be accessed through the Internet, their contents are not retrieved by search engine services (such as Google or Yahoo!).
Some
databases are available on CD-ROM and networked in some institutions through a subscription
Slide4
Database
Every database contains certain types and amounts of information referred to as
coverage
.
Slide5
Elements of database coverage
What kinds of
documents
? (journals, magazines, book chapters, dissertations, audio files, statistical tables, images, web pages, software applications?)
Which
disciplines
? (sociology, chemistry, music, all
, none
?)
What
time
[periods]? (the current year? 1950-1990? how often is the database updated? hourly? daily? weekly? monthly? annually?)
What
languages
? (English only? other languages?)
Which
publication
types? (scholarly? popular? trade? all? other?)
What is included in the
record
? (a whole chapter? article? brief description such as bibliographic citation? abstract?) publisher and title?)
Slide6
Other characteristics of a database
A database is any organized collection of data.
A
database
is as an electronic filing system for accessing data.
Traditional
databases
are organized by
fields
,
records
, and
files
.
Databases store information in tables; tables store records; each record has fields
Slide7
A
field
is a single piece of information about an object;
If
the object were an Employee, a field would be
Firstname
,
Lastname
, or
Date of birth.
Slide8
A
record
is one complete set of
fields
;
In an Employee file, there would be one record for John Smith, another record for Mary
Brown,
and another record for
Sue Black
A
file
is a collection of related
records
.
Slide9
What is a database
Some
examples of databases you may encounter in your daily life are:
a telephone book
T.V. Guide
airline reservation system
motor vehicle registration records
papers in
a filing
cabinet
files on your computer hard drive.
Slide10
Understanding searches
Databases store data or information in
tables
, just like the one below:
Slide11
Understanding searches
The table allows you to see all the
records
stored in the database
Tables can store many records
Slide12
A record
is all of the data or information about a thing (or a person). Each bit of information is a
field
.
Slide13Slide14Slide15Slide16
Activity
Create a record with fields for a driver’s licence.
Slide17Slide18Slide19
Field Searching
Most searches
(e.g. using a search engine, databases)
search for “words anywhere” or “keywords” automatically
This type of search retrieves
more information
with
less precision
This is known as “
recall
” searching (it focuses on recalling as much information as possible)
Slide20
Fortunately, these retrieval systems allow searching in specific
fields
(e.g. author, title) and usually refer to this as “advanced” or “
expert
” searching
This kind of searching typically retrieves ...
Slide21
... less
information
with
more precision
(referred to as precision searching)
Slide22
Think about it
If you are a detective and the only clues you have for a missing persons case are the words "red," "blue," and "green
,“. Who is the missing person? What kind of search?
Slide23
Think about it
This
is
keyword
searching
Slide24
Think about it
If you
knew your person had a
red tie, blue shirt, and a green beret,
who would be the missing person? What kind of search?
Slide25
Think about it
This is
field
searching
What are the fields?
Slide26
QUICK REVIEW
Slide27
There are basic search techniques that are used when searching for information whether using the library resources, databases or the Internet.
You would have encountered four pieces of information that are needed when you did the catalogue tutorial. These are
author, title, subject
and
keyword
.
Slide28
Search by author
An
author
search is used to locate works by the author.
The more information about the author you provide, the more limited your search results will be.
Slide29
Title search
What is a title search?
Slide30
Title search
A
title
search is used to locate specific titles of books, references, periodicals and other resources.
Slide31
Subject search
A
subject
search is used to find materials on a specific topic
Slide32
Keyword search
Keyword
search is used when the author or title is unknown. This is different from the subject search.
A keyword search looks for specific keywords in all fields whereas the subject search is limited to a specific subject heading.
Slide33
Recall vs Precision
and
Keyword vs Field
When you want to find large amounts of information; general information about a topic, how would you search?
When you want to find small number of sources on a specific topic e.g. for course assignments
etc
, how would you search?
Slide34
NEW INFORMATION
Slide35
Search query
Most databases don't understand the natural language we speak and need help understanding what
we are
looking for.
This requires
a special set of
conventions
Slide36
Conventions
Description
Quotation marks
Around
exact
phrases (e.g. "university of washington")
Logical or Boolean operators
Connecting words that narrow or broaden a search to include only what you need. Examples:
OR, AND, NOT
Wildcards and truncation symbols
(* # ? !)
For terms that have variant forms of spelling or different possible endings.Examples:
child*
for child, children, childhood, childish, etc.
Nesting
Placing terms in parentheses to indicate separate units. (Like an equation, (A or B) not C
Download this presentation
DownloadNote - The PPT/PDF document "Searching for and Accessing" is the property of its rightful owner. Permission is granted to download and print the materials on this web site for personal, non-commercial use only, and to display it on your personal computer provided you do not modify the materials and that you retain all copyright notices contained in the materials. By downloading content from our website, you accept the terms of this agreement.
Presentations text content in Searching for and Accessing
Searching for and Accessing Information
Slide2Database
A database is a collection of data arranged for ease and speed of search and retrieval (The American Heritage Dictionary of English Language, 2000).
The
quality of being "... arranged for ease and speed of search and retrieval" is what distinguishes a database from a computer network.
Slide3Database
Although databases can be accessed through the Internet, their contents are not retrieved by search engine services (such as Google or Yahoo!).
Some
databases are available on CD-ROM and networked in some institutions through a subscription
Slide4Database
Every database contains certain types and amounts of information referred to as
coverage
.
Slide5Elements of database coverage
What kinds of
documents
? (journals, magazines, book chapters, dissertations, audio files, statistical tables, images, web pages, software applications?)
Which
disciplines
? (sociology, chemistry, music, all
, none
?)
What
time
[periods]? (the current year? 1950-1990? how often is the database updated? hourly? daily? weekly? monthly? annually?)
What
languages
? (English only? other languages?)
Which
publication
types? (scholarly? popular? trade? all? other?)
What is included in the
record
? (a whole chapter? article? brief description such as bibliographic citation? abstract?) publisher and title?)
Slide6Other characteristics of a database
A database is any organized collection of data.
A
database
is as an electronic filing system for accessing data.
Traditional
databases
are organized by
fields
,
records
, and
files
.
Databases store information in tables; tables store records; each record has fields
Slide7A
field
is a single piece of information about an object;
If
the object were an Employee, a field would be
Firstname
,
Lastname
, or
Date of birth.
Slide8A
record
is one complete set of
fields
;
In an Employee file, there would be one record for John Smith, another record for Mary
Brown,
and another record for
Sue Black
A
file
is a collection of related
records
.
Slide9What is a database
Some
examples of databases you may encounter in your daily life are:
a telephone book
T.V. Guide
airline reservation system
motor vehicle registration records
papers in
a filing
cabinet
files on your computer hard drive.
Slide10Understanding searches
Databases store data or information in
tables
, just like the one below:
Slide11Understanding searches
The table allows you to see all the
records
stored in the database
Tables can store many records
Slide12A record
is all of the data or information about a thing (or a person). Each bit of information is a
field
.
Slide13Slide14Slide15Slide16Activity
Create a record with fields for a driver’s licence.
Slide17Slide18Slide19Field Searching
Most searches
(e.g. using a search engine, databases)
search for “words anywhere” or “keywords” automatically
This type of search retrieves
more information
with
less precision
This is known as “
recall
” searching (it focuses on recalling as much information as possible)
Slide20Fortunately, these retrieval systems allow searching in specific
fields
(e.g. author, title) and usually refer to this as “advanced” or “
expert
” searching
This kind of searching typically retrieves ...
Slide21... less
information
with
more precision
(referred to as precision searching)
Slide22Think about it
If you are a detective and the only clues you have for a missing persons case are the words "red," "blue," and "green
,“. Who is the missing person? What kind of search?
Slide23Think about it
This
is
keyword
searching
Slide24Think about it
If you
knew your person had a
red tie, blue shirt, and a green beret,
who would be the missing person? What kind of search?
Slide25Think about it
This is
field
searching
What are the fields?
Slide26QUICK REVIEW
Slide27There are basic search techniques that are used when searching for information whether using the library resources, databases or the Internet.
You would have encountered four pieces of information that are needed when you did the catalogue tutorial. These are
author, title, subject
and
keyword
.
Slide28Search by author
An
author
search is used to locate works by the author.
The more information about the author you provide, the more limited your search results will be.
Slide29Title search
What is a title search?
Slide30Title search
A
title
search is used to locate specific titles of books, references, periodicals and other resources.
Slide31Subject search
A
subject
search is used to find materials on a specific topic
Slide32Keyword search
Keyword
search is used when the author or title is unknown. This is different from the subject search.
A keyword search looks for specific keywords in all fields whereas the subject search is limited to a specific subject heading.
Slide33Recall vs Precision
and
Keyword vs Field
When you want to find large amounts of information; general information about a topic, how would you search?
When you want to find small number of sources on a specific topic e.g. for course assignments
etc
, how would you search?
Slide34NEW INFORMATION
Slide35Search query
Most databases don't understand the natural language we speak and need help understanding what
we are
looking for.
This requires
a special set of
conventions
Slide36Conventions
Description
Quotation marks
Around
exact
phrases (e.g. "university of washington")
Logical or Boolean operators
Connecting words that narrow or broaden a search to include only what you need. Examples:
OR, AND, NOT
Wildcards and truncation symbols
(* # ? !)
For terms that have variant forms of spelling or different possible endings.Examples:
child*
for child, children, childhood, childish, etc.
Nesting
Placing terms in parentheses to indicate separate units. (Like an equation, (A or B) not C
:
Slide37Let’s stop here
Slide38Boolean Operators
When searching for information,
boolean
operators
can be used to widen or narrow the search.
Slide39Slide40Slide41