Boolean Concepts for Advanced
or KeyWord Searching
can be used with the Chameleon Book Catalog Gateway, EbscoHost, Infotrac and other databases searches on the internet. Most advanced/expert/guided/etc. searches will follow these guidelines for "joining" two or more "ideas/subjects" together.

AND=requires both terms together

AND narrows a search because both terms MUST BE FOUND
in the results returned to you

for example to find: castles in Spain

"Spain and Castles"

The dark green center, where the circles overlap, contains both terms: Spain and castles

The results may also retrieve unexpected material on sand castles or Spanish beaches, (unless sand, beaches are excluded with NOT - see below).

OR=allows either word to be a "hit"

OR expands a search by enlarging the results returned to you with anything containing EITHER of the terms

for example to find material on either: Rome Greece

"Rome or Greece"

Both circles (sets) contain the word (Rome or Greece) and are combined together and returned to you as one (larger) set of results.

NOT=excludes or substracts one set (one term) from the other term's set

NOT narrows a search by removing any results with one concept

Technology Computers

"Technology not Computers"

The left green partial circle contains the "set" of technology without computers;
the yellow section is the "set" substracted from technology which included the term computers.

Be careful when joining more than two terms together. Some operations may take precedence (like math) and occur before other operations effecting your results. For a through search try the terms in a different order; try synonyms.