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POPLINE on Internet Grateful MED

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

  1. 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.

  2. 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.

  3. 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.

  4. 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.

  5. 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

  1. 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.

  2. 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
  3. 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

  1. 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.

 

  1. 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)

     

  2. 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)

     

  3. 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.

  4. 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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Last updated 04/25/01