Connecting to IGM
URL: http://igm.nlm.nih.gov/
When you arrive at the main IGM search screen, click on POPLINE in the
"Select Database to Search" list on the left of the screen.
Basic Search Features
- Context Specific Help
The Blue Information Icons are located in various places on the IGM
screen. Each one leads to a different part of the help text,
explaining the usage of specific Internet Grateful Med functions near
the icon. Use the "Back" function of your World Wide Web
browser to return from the help text to wherever you came from. In
this case, the "Back" function will return you to the
Internet Grateful Med introductory screen.
- Entering Your Search
Enter your search in one or more of the three "Enter Query
Terms" boxes near the top of the screen.
Notice that the query boxes:
* Are connected by the word "AND". This is the Boolean
operator that will assure that all your retrieved records will contain
terms from each of the query boxes that you have used.
* Each has a search selection guide to the right of the box. This
pull-down menu will allow you to select Subject, Author Name or Title
Word search for each query box. All query boxes can be set to the same
search type, or any combination of search settings may be used.
Information on performing subject, author and title word searches can
be found by clicking on the Blue Information Icon for that section of
the IGM Search Screen.
* Are accompanied by an "Add OR" button to the far right
of the query boxes. This button will allow you to expand each query by
including alternative phrasings or synonyms separated by the Boolean
"OR" operator. Enter your first word or phrase, and then
click the "Add OR" button. IGM will respond by opening up a
space to enter an alternative word or phrase beneath your first term.
Add your additional term. Select subject, author or title word search.
If you have further alternative words or phrases to include, click on
the "Add OR" button again and add your term. Repeat these
steps until you have included all your alternative words or phrases.
- Applying Limits
After you have entered your basic search in the query boxes, you
can make your search even more specific by scrolling down the search
screen to the "Apply Limits" section. Here you may limit
your retrieval by choosing from any of three pull-down menus:
(1) languages
(2) publication types
(3) year ranges or a single year.
Click on the pull-down menu to see the options; then click on the
desired option to select it.
The default for languages, publication types, and years is
"All". Year ranges are in ten-year increments. To search in
a single year, click the "radio button" to the left, and
enter the year in which you wish to search.
- Performing Your Search
After entering your basic search and applying any desired limits,
click on the "Perform Search" button at the top or bottom of
the search screen.
- Viewing the Results
After you click on the "Perform Search" button, you will
see a list of citations. To see the full record for an article, click
on the title. You will see a complete POPLINE record, including
abstract and keywords. You may print your results using your World
Wide Web browser print option, or you may download some or all of the
citations you retrieve by clicking the IGM "Download to
Disk" button on the top or bottom of the search screen and
following the instructions.
If you are not completely satisfied with your search results, you
may choose to click on the "Details of Search" button to see
how IGM actually performed the search and to identify search strategy
problems. Then you can click on the "Return to Search
Screen" button at either the top or bottom of the search screen.
At this point you may add or delete terms or apply or remove limits.
Then click the "Perform Search" button again.
Note: Always use the IGM navigation buttons when available.
Searching Specifics
- Narrowing Your Subject Search
You may want to make your subject search more precise. One way is
searching by POPLINE keywords. This is explained in the POPLINE
searching section of the Enter Query Terms help text. For an even
narrower search, try searching on title words, described in Searching
for Titles, later in this document.
- Searching For Authors
Enter an author's name into the first query box, starting with the
last name, followed by the first initial then an optional middle
initial. Then click on the drop-down menu to the right of the
"Subject" box. Select "Author Name" from the menu
that appears.
For example, search for:
Piotrow P
This will retrieve citations by Piotrow P and Piotrow PT.
If the author name has multiple words enter the last name followed
by a comma and initials.
Examples:
de Souza e Silva, R
von Sonnenburg, F
For truncation of author's names see Advanced Search Features,
later is this document.
Author names can be ANDed and ORed with other author names or with
subject or title terms. For example, if you are looking for a
particular article and you know two of the authors, enter the authors'
names into query box 1 and 2. IGM will retrieve only documents written
by both authors.
Corporate names may also be searched as authors. Remember to set
the drop-down menu for Author Name. Enter each name in full.
Examples:
Population Council
Alan Guttmacher Institute AGI
Pan American Health Organization PAHO
United Nations
- Searching For Titles
You may wish to search for title words/phrases (1) when you are
trying to find a particular document and know part of the title, or
(2) when a subject search is not specific enough for your needs.
To begin your title word search, enter your first word or phrase in
the first "Enter Query Terms" box. After entering your first
term, click on the search selection arrow to the right of the query
box. Select "Title Word" from the pull-down menu.
You may also wish to enter synonyms or alternate phrasings
connected by the Boolean operator "OR". After entering your
first word/phrase, click on the "Add OR" button to the right
of the query box. IGM will respond opening up a space to enter an
alternative word or phrase beneath your first term. Add your
additional term. Select "Title Word" from the pull-down
menu. If you have further terms to OR, click on the Add OR button
again and add your term. Repeat these steps until you have included
all your alternative words or phrases.
You may combine Title Word, Author Name and/or Subject search. Just
use the pull-down menu to the right of each query box to indicate the
type of search for that box.
Advanced Search Features
- The Forward Slash and Pre/Post Qualifier. By using the forward
slash, you disable the specific IGM search instructions that operate
behind the scenes, and go directly to ELHILL. You can enter more than
one term per Query box:
You can AND 4 terms in each Query box.
You can OR 10 terms in each Query box.
Yon can not combine Boolean ANDs and ORs in the same Query box.
Either ANDing or ORing, the forward slash must be present in as many
Query boxes that are used.
IGM accepts both pre and post-qualified terms.
- Searching POPLINE Keywords
Enter POPLINE keywords in a query box with the pull-down menu set
to "Subject". Enter a forward slash (/), then the Keyword
followed by (kw).
Example:
/family planning programs (kw)
Keywords with an embedded "and" must be searched with the
"and" disguised as "a#d", as follows:
/organization a#d administration (kw)
There are two ways to connect keywords with the Boolean
"OR" operator. The first method is to enter the first
keyword as subject, then click on the "Add OR" button. IGM
will respond by opening up a space to enter another keyword. Enter
your second keyword and press "Add OR" again. Repeat these
steps until you have included all your keywords. Remember to use the
forward slash and pre/post-qualify each keyword.
The second method is to use the forward slash, the (kw) pre/post
qualifier, then OR each of the remaining keywords. There is a limit of
10 ORed keywords per Query box.
Example:
/ethiopia (kw) or somalia (kw) or eritrea (kw) or djibouti (kw)
There are two ways to connect keywords with the Boolean
"AND" operator. If you have three or fewer keywords to AND,
enter each in its own query box, preceded by the forward slash and
followed by (kw). If you have four or more keywords to AND, enter 3 or
4 keywords in any query box. A forward slash precedes the first
keyword in each query box. All keywords must be pre/post-qualified
with (kw).
Example:
/family planning (kw) and population growth (kw) and developing
countries (kw)
- Author Searching
By using the forward slash and pre/post qualifier (au), authors can
searched in IGM. There is no need to change the Query box to "
Author Name". Use a colon for truncation.
Examples:
/ma lj (au)
/piotrow p: (au)
/von sonnenburg: (au)
/de morell: (au)
- Year Ranging
The POPLINE citations are arranged roughly in date order- the
newest ones are first. In the "Apply Limits" the year range
is broken down into decades or single year of publication. For those
wishing to narrow the year range may use the following:
In one of the Query Boxes, use the forward slash, either a 2 or
4-digit year, then the pre/post qualifier (yr).
Example:
/1989 (yr) or 1990 (yr) or 1991 (yr)
Remember by ranging, you are going to use one of the three Query
boxes.
- Searching POPLINE fields
The following specific fields can be searched on POPLINE IGM:
(AB) Abstract
(AU) Author
(CN) Corporate name - Can be searched as author.
(EM) Entry Month - This is not displayed in IGM citations, it still
can be searched -Example: /9903 (em).
(KW) Keyword
(LA) Language - For more specific non-English languages.
(MH) MeSH Headings
(PT) Publication Type
(SE) Series title - Example: /Papers on Population (se)
(SO) Source
(SI) Secondary Source ID - the PIP/IND/CPC/CPFH # - Example:
/pip/078031 (si)
(TI) Title
(TW) Text Words - Will be searched anywhere in the citation.
Helpful Information
IGM:
IGM Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ): http://igm.nlm.nih.gov/splash/IGM_faq.html
Internet Grateful Med User's Guide: http://igm.nlm.nih.gov/splash/IGM.survival.guide.html
Specific Information on New Features: http://igm.nlm.nh.gov/splash/whats-new.html
POPLINE:
POPLINE 1999 Keyword Manual (PDF format): http://www.nlm.nih.gov/pubs/osrm_nlm.html
Located under "Additional Search Tools" POPLINE Homepage: www.jhuccp.org/popline/
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