ZPORTAL uses Z39.50 to send your search to information providers. Z39.50 is an ISO and ANSI/NISO standard that specifies a client/server protocol for searching and retrieving information from remote databases. Information providers that do not support the Z39.50 protocol will be searched via Z2Web, using whatever search protocol is most appropriate.
Results are returned in from each search target in groups of 10 or 20 rtecords. Results from the fastest target will be displayed first, followed by results from other targets.
Search results can be sorted in two ways:
You can click on the name of the information provider whose results you want to see first. For example, if you're searching your own library catalog, Science Direct, and PubMed and your library's results display first (because that's the fastest server) - but you want to see PubMed results first - just click on PubMed at the top of the list. That moves PubMed results to the top of your result list.
You can also click on Sort Options. This allows you to sort by Author, Title, Full-text availability, Relevance, or Date.
Search results can be narrowed in two ways:
You can refine the search, making it more specific by adding one or more keywords in the search box at the top of the results page and clicking Refine Search.
Or you can filter your current search results, by clicking on Filter Options. This will allow you to filter the current results by date.
Depending on how your system is set up, each record in the search results may have its relevancy ranked by a score of 1-5 (5 is most relevant). You can also choose to sort by most relevant by clicking on Sort Options. Relevancy is determined by a number of factors e.g. if all the search terms are matched by a record then it is ranked more relevant than if only a few of your search terms are matched. You can also have some input into how relevancy works by editing your Search Profile.
Search results that were published in peer reviewed journals may be marked with a special icon. Peer reviewed articles may not always be the most relevant for your topic, but they are from high quality sources.
Normally the following icons depict the physical format of records in the search results hit list:
journal article |
large print book |
book (includes patent, thesis, report etc) |
braille |
all other types of general book/manuscript |
serial |
sheet music |
map |
graphic |
audio cassette (musical & non musical) |
CD (musical & non musical) |
LP (musical & non musical) |
DVD movie |
VHS video |
video other |
computer file, website etc |
mixed media/ kit / 3D object |
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Depending on the way your library has set ZPORTAL up for you, links to electronic content (full-text, abstracts, etc.) may be included on the Search Results page. These links are usually marked with special icons. (Your library can customize the icons, or you may see or )
If electronic content is available from several sources, you will see more than one icon. The Request (Get It!) button may also provide links to electronic content, and/or to request the item via interlibrary loan.
You can add an item to your Saved List by clicking the Save icon. You can view saved items by clicking Saved List in the menu bar. Items are kept in the Saved List as long as your ZPORTAL session is active. When you sign out, your saved list items will be lost. For more information, see Saved List
When you are signed in, you can saved a search by clicking the Save Search icon. Saved searches will be available anytime you use ZPORTAL, by clicking Saved Searches in the menu bar. See also Saved Searches
If enabled on your system a Collection link is shown for each record in the search results. This opens a new window that gives you the native search interface for that collection. You can then carry out a search in that interface while still maintaining your ZPORTAL session.
ZPORTAL automatically displays an initial set of hits. After that, you need to tell ZPORTAL you want to see more. Simply click on Get More Hits or Next at the top of your result list to have more results displayed. Displaying results as you ask to see them is a more efficient use of network resources than automatically displaying all hits.
There are several reasons why you may occasionally get zero search results:
Spelling error in your search term(s)
The server you sent the search to is not operational
The server you sent the search to is operational, but doesn’t support the search you sent (e.g., you sent a Subject search but the server only supports Keyword searches). To avoid this, choose Refinement On when doing Advanced Searches.
Your search includes too many terms ANDed together. Try a less complex search.
For suggestions about how to broaden your search, see Advanced Search