Support : Dialog Search Aids : Successful Searching : Special Features

Special Features: Qualifiers, Thesauri and Other Command Language Tools

Dialog Alerts is a current awareness service that allows a search to run automatically on a scheduled basis, or whenever new records are added to the database, and have the results delivered electronically, via email, ftp or by postal mail. Alerts are available for most regularly updated databases on Dialog. Check Dialog support on the Dialog web site for more information on Alerts.

CURRENT Qualifier is one of the qualifiers used to narrow a search. With CURRENT you can limit the search to one or more years at the beginning of the search when using the BEGIN command (e.g., BEGIN <file number> CURRENT) with single or multiple files, OneSearch categories, or a combination of both. A detailed description of using CURRENT can be found under the BEGIN command. CURRENT is not available in DialogLink 5.

Custom Interfaces are customized solutions for accessing Dialog content. Using a suite of specialized products and services, Dialog can help you integrate business-critical content from Dialog into corporate intranets, extranets or portal environments. For more information, contact the Dialog Knowledge Center or your account representative.

Dialog eLinks enables you to link to the full text of publications from many Dialog databases in Dialog’s scientific, technical and medical collections. Link to articles appearing in nearly 28,000 journals from more than 600 publishers. Identify records of interest using Dialog, then link directly to the fulltext of the publications to which you subscribe. Dialog has also created an easy-to-use subscription management tool that allows Dialog account administrators to easily set up and manage their eLinking service. Go to the Dialog web site to find a tutorial for using the eLinks Manager and other information on Dialog eLinks.

Dialog Profile allows you to customize the Dialog service to your own needs using a series of commands. How to create, edit and use other commands with Dialog Profile is illustrated in the section Edit Profile. In DialogLink 5, Profile settings are stored in Searcher Preferences. See the DialogLink 5 User Guide for more information.

DIALINDEX® (File 411) is a central index for most of the Dialog databases. In DIALINDEX, you can compare the number of records retrieved by search strategies among a group of databases. DIALINDEX is divided into subject categories, and you can search any combination of file names, categories, supercategories or individual databases. Detailed information about using DIALINDEX, including examples and lists of categories, can be found in the Dialog Database Selection Guide.

Document Delivery enables you to obtain copies of certain documents such as patents, journal articles, dissertations, technical reports and more, in their original published formats. Several service options are available from Dialog for this purpose. Other documents can also be delivered via email, postal mail or express mail. See the Dialog web site for guides to ordering documents. Orders for documents can also be placed online. See the section on the ORDER command for more information.

Document Linking enables you to link to fulltext reports in files such as NTIS for technical reports and D&B® — Dun & Bradstreet Reports for reports that include current and future financial performance for hundreds of thousands of U.S. businesses. D&B reports contain vital information that help you to mitigate credit risk, reduce spend and improve supply chains. You can see a report description, view sample reports, find help on which report to select and how to enter the search strategies for D&B reports on the Dialog web site. The fulltext of some NTIS records can be obtained by searching DialogClassic Web, DialogLink 5, DialogSelect, or DialogWeb. Click "Check for PDF download availability and purchase." In addition, Patent and Trademark file histories are available via a link to an online order form displayed in your search results in certain Dialog files. Check the web site for a list of participating files. See the Bluesheets for other files with document linking.

Document Templates are available with XML output in DialogClassic Web and through the report tab to Microsoft® Word and Microsoft® Excel reports in DialogLink 5. Preformatted templates are included in DialogLink 5 for intellectual property, business and news, biomedical and pharmaceuticals, and science and technical subjects and engineering. Detailed information on creating report templates and using the preformatted templates can be found in the DialogLink 5 Users Guide Table of Contents under Creating Reports.

Dialog ERA^SM (Electronic Redistribution and Archiving) Service provides a convenient way for you to distribute print or electronic copies of search results, in compliance with copyright law, to other employees or departments within your organization or to store search results in an in-house system. Dialog ERA can be used in more than 500 Dialog databases. Information on Dialog ERA can be found on the Dialog web site and it is also illustrated in the section on the PRINT command with qualifiers COPIES, REDIST and ARCHIVE. See also the REDIST and ARCHIVE commands which offer options for reporting additional use of Dialog output.

EXPLODE works in conjunction with many Dialog databases that include a thesaurus—a dictionary of subject headings—as part of the online file. It enables you to retrieve automatically all records assigned a specific descriptor, as well as those records with related terms ("narrower") as defined in the thesaurus. The use of the EXPLODE feature is illustrated in the section on the EXPAND Command. Check the Bluesheet to see if EXPLODE is available in a particular database. See also Viewing Online Thesauri.

Finder Files are databases—Dialog Company Name Finder™ (File 416), Dialog Journal Name Finder™ (File 414) and Dialog Product Code Finder™ (File 413)—that have been created to aid you in selecting files when the topic requires a search on a specific company name, journal name or product code. The Finder Files have been designed to allow searching in multiple database indexes with common search elements. For descriptions of the files and an example, review Dialog Finder Files in the Dialog Pocket Guide.

The FROM Qualifier is a handy feature designed especially for Dialog OneSearch^®. Using the FROM qualifier, a user can search a number of databases and select specific files from which to retrieve records. Review the section on the TYPE command for more information on the FROM qualifier.

Images are available in many Dialog databases. Types of images include trademarks in all trademark files, patent drawings in patent files, and graphs and charts in business databases. Check the Bluesheets for availability of images.

Limit Suffixes enable you to take advantage of Dialog indexing features for better search precision. Limit suffixes are used in SELECT statements to restrict search terms or sets to given criteria, such as English-language documents (/ENG), publication year (/yyyy) or major descriptor (/MAJ), fulltext documents, patents and more. You can also specify multiple limits. See the database Bluesheet to view the limits available in a particular database. Limit examples can be found in the Dialog Pocket Guide.

OneSearch® is the ability to search more than one database at a time, allowing you to search up to 60 databases and enter the search term(s) once to search all files chosen. You can search individual databases, categories or both. OneSearch categories ensure that indexing is similar in databases within a category for ease of searching. The Dialog Database Selection Guide provides a listing of OneSearch categories and examples for using OneSearch.

A Thesaurus—a dictionary of subject headings—is included in a number of biomedical and technical databases on Dialog. The thesaurus is helpful in identifying additional related search terms for a topic. HELP THESAURI provides a list of databases with thesauri online. Using the thesaurus with the EXPAND command is illustrated in the section Viewing Online Thesauri. See also the EXPAND Command for more information.

Dialog Command Language Search Basics 

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