Quick Guide to Searching Excelsior, the Online Catalog

Introduction

Navigating the Screens

Searching the Catalog

Search Tips and Shortcuts

Advanced Search Techniques

View/Print/Save/Email

Historic Documents Inventory (HDI)

Introduction

Excelsior is a SIRSI Unicorn system, designed to be the starting place for access to material in the New York State Library and the New York State Archives. Library collections include major holdings in law, medicine, the social sciences, education, American and New York State history and culture, certain pure sciences, and technology. Information resources include books, journals, computer files, manuscripts, government documents, newspapers, microforms, and research aids such as abstracting, indexing and looseleaf services.

Excelsior also contains information about more than 55,000 cubic feet of State government and archival records, including paper files, photographs, audio and video materials, and electronic records, available at the New York State Archives.

The Historical Documents Inventory (HDI) is also a part of Excelsior. These records are the electronic equivalent of the print county guides in the State Library's reference collection entitled "Guide to historical resources in _xxx_ County" published by Cornell University. For retrieval information see the HDI section of this guide.

Records may be searched separately for the following:

  • New York State Library
  • New York State Library's Manuscripts and Special Collections Unit
  • New York State Archives
  • Historical Documents Inventory

Please be aware that not all records are online. The following is a list of the types of materials that will not be found in this catalog:

  • Bill Jackets (New York State)
  • College catalogs
  • ERIC microfiche
  • Historical publications - many 18th and 19th century publications
  • Journal articles (full-text)
  • Journal holdings for individual unbound issues
  • Medical journals (early)
  • Microforms (individual titles in collections)
  • Newpapers (online full-text)
  • NTIS microfiche
  • Online databases
  • Patents
  • Records and Briefs (individual)
  • Series (some titles within series)
  • Standards and specifications
  • Telephone books and city directories

Volume records do not appear for unbound volumes of journals. Try requesting year/volumes not shown. You may see NONE for copies or call number in a record. Most likely, the item is in our collection and it can be requested. Ask a librarian for help locating any of these items, or any other material not located in the catalog.

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Navigating the Screens

At the top and bottom of the screen are command choices called BUTTONS. To select a button, click with the mouse. Be sure to use the GO BACK, BACK, or FORWARD buttons to move from screen to screen, rather than using the browser's buttons. Here is a list of the buttons you will encounter:

BACKWARD   Moves backward through a list of search results or through the screens of a multi-screen record.

EXIT    Returns to the New York State Library/State Archives Online Catalog opening screen.

FORWARD   Moves forward through a list of search results or through the screens of a multi-screen record.

GO BACK    Moves back one step in a search. Use it, when available, to avoid error messages.

HELP  Provides information about the screen being viewed and the options available on that screen.

JUMP    Use to move forward or backward to a particular record number.

NEW SEARCH    Returns to the beginning screen for the operation being performed. From a search results screen, it returns to the screen where the search terms were typed.

PRINT CAPTURE   Use this option to print marked results, or download.

REQUEST   When this button appears, use it to request materials electronically.

TOP   Returns to the top of the current screen.

VIEW    Select to view from a list of records. This button is located to the left of the record.


In addition, you will also see these buttons at the top and bottom of every page:

CATALOG        Brings you back to the Search screen.

INFO. DESK      Gives information on library hours, travel directions, and library, manuscripts, and state archives information.

YOUR RECORDS    Tells you if you have any books checked out, fines, holds, or messages from the State Library.

EBOOKS    Use to access the eBooks collection. For more information, click here.

Searching the Catalog

On the Login to Excelsior screen, select from the choices below:

  • All Libraries
    Search the combined records of the New York State Library (including Manuscripts and Special Collections) and the New York State Archives. NOTE: This option also includes the Historical Documents Inventory records described below. These records are not part of the New York State Library or Archives holdings but are listed here with a note as to where they are housed. These records say (Repository) at HDI on the initial search results screen.
  • State Archives
    Search only the archival records of New York State Government and selected local government records preserved by the State Archives and Records Administration.
  • NYSILL
    Use only if you are a library registered with the New York State Library's Interlibrary Loan Unit. 
  • Historic Documents Inventory
    Search catalog records for more than 25,000 archives and manuscripts collections housed in most, but not all, New York repositories (libraries, historical societies, and other organizations with established archives). The search excludes the holdings of the State Library and the State Archives.
  • MSC
    (Manuscripts and Special Collections)

    The Manuscripts and Special Collections contains the Library's collections of manuscripts, broadsides, posters, musical scores and ephemera. These collections document the history of New York State from the 17th century to the present and illustrate the history of many topics related to American history, literature, science and the arts. For more information see the Manuscripts page.

From the Search the Library Catalog screen:

Select the type of search. There are two choices: Quick Search and Power Search. In both types, if a search retrieves one record, the full record will be displayed. If a search retrieves more than one record, a list of brief records will be displayed. The number of records retrieved will be indicated at the top of the screen. If there are multiple screens, use the FORWARD and BACKWARD buttons to move between screens. To view a full record, click on the VIEW button next to the item. Use the GO BACK button to return to the list of brief records.

If no records match a search, you will get a message that no matching titles were found.You will then have the option to change your search (click the "Change" button) or select a new search from the closest matches in the browse list.

The item(s) needed may still be in the catalog. Be sure the search terms were spelled correctly or reformulate the search using different terms or another index.

Quick Search - This is the opening screen. Keyword is already selected. Click on a radio button to choose Browse or Exact.

Keyword

  1. Keyword and SEARCH EVERYTHING

    Type keyword(s) or phrase(s) and click on SEARCH EVERYTHING. Additional information on searching phrases can be found later in this document.

    This combination retrieves the largest number of results because the system searches all indexes at once. Start here if the formal subject heading is unknown. Popular language terms can be retrieved, such as casino gambling, Megan's law, school uniforms, etc.

    • TRANSPORTATION PLANNING will retrieve records with the words transportation and planning in the title, in the subject headings, in the description, etc. Both words must appear in the same field.
    • TRANSPORTATION AND PLANNING will retrieve records with the words transportation and planning in any field, and also the words in any field in the same record. (See the section on Combining Search Terms for more on searching with Boolean operators).

      Articles, prepositions and punctuation are not needed as they are ignored by the system.
      Articles Examples: a, an, the
      Prepositions Examples: at, in, to, by
      Punctuation Examples: apostrophes, colons, commas
      For hyphenated words, you may want to search both with and without the hyphen.
  2. Keyword and AUTHOR

    Type in all or part of the author's name in any order. (An author can be either a person or an organization, such as a State agency. For Archives materials, the "author" is the creating agency.) Click on the AUTHOR button.

    If no matching author name is found in the catalog, the system will provide an alphabetical listing of authors nearest the spelling entered.

    ALFRED SMITH
    SMITH ALFRED
    NEW YORK STATE LEGISLATURE
    LEGISLATURE YORK
    SHAKESPEARE
  3. Keyword and TITLE

    Type in all or part of the title in any order. Click on the TITLE button.

    DRUMS ALONG THE MOHAWK
    DRUMS MOHAWK
    MOHAWK DRUMS
  4. Keyword and SUBJECT (Library of Congress Subject Headings)

    Type in a subject phrase or a subject word or words in any order. Then click on the SUBJECT button. The system will return records which include the search term(s) in the subject headings attached to those records. If the word(s) or phrase is not found in any subject headings, the system will return an alphabetical, browsable list of subject headings nearest the spelling entered. The following searches yield the same results in this search mode:

    ACID RAIN
    ACID AND RAIN

    Note: If you are not familiar with Library of Congress subject headings, you may want to search by selecting Keyword and SEARCH EVERYTHING. Then click on the hypertext links to select a particular subject heading.

  5. Keyword and SERIES

    Type search terms. Click on the SERIES button.

    SCIENCE AND CULTURE SERIES

Browse

Retrieves a list of all headings in the catalog indexes beginning with those closest alphabetically to the search term. Click on FORWARD or BACKWARD to view other result screens.

To view an item in a Browse results list, click on the hypertext link to retrieve a list of the record(s) which match.

The following catalog indexes can be browsed:

  • SEARCH EVERYTHING (all indexes combined)
  • AUTHOR (type last name first, or name of agency or organization)
  • TITLE
  • SUBJECT
  • SERIES (library series, not an archival records series)

Exact

The system searches for terms in the same order in which they are typed, character by character. This is useful, for example, for searching exact titles. Omit a an or the at the beginning of a title, but be sure to type the rest of the title exactly:

Journal of the American College of Surgeons

Search by any of the following:

  • SEARCH EVERYTHING (all indexes combined)
  • AUTHOR (type last name first)
  • TITLE
  • SUBJECT
  • SERIES

Power Search - This screen can be used for combination searches, including author/title.

  • Click on the tab on the far right of the opening screen.
  • To change search options and Boolean commands, click on the down arrow next to each box.
  • Scroll down the screen to limit a search by library, publication year, format and more.
    Author => KENNEDY
    Title => IRONWEED

Return to Table of Contents

Search Tips and Shortcuts

  • Boolean or Positional Operators

    Words and abbreviations used as Boolean or positional operators must be placed in double quotes when used as part of a search string, or unexpected results will occur. The following are such operators:

    and       or       not       xor       adj       near       same       with

  • Exact Phrase

    To search an exact phrase, put it in single quotes (to be sure any stop words are included):

    'THE LAST OF THE MOHICANS'

  • Exact Title

    Use Exact and TITLE. If the search is unsuccessful, redo in Keyword and TITLE or Keyword and SEARCH EVERYTHING.

  • Hypertext Links

    When viewing a full record, click on the hypertext links to retrieve records for related materials.

    Hypertext links labeled Electronic Access are Internet addresses. Click on these to access a full text document.

  • Scanned documents in the State Library's collection

    For information see http://www.nysl.nysed.gov/faq/dcfaq.htm

  • Stopwords

    The following words are stopwords and must be placed in double quotes if part of a search string, or they will be ignored by the system:

    a       an       as       at       be       but       by       do       for       if       in       is       it       of       on       the       to

  • Subject Searching

    If you are not familiar with Library of Congress subject headings, use Keyword and SEARCH EVERYTHING instead of Keyword and SUBJECT.

  • Truncation

    End the first few letters of a word with a dollar sign to locate words that begin with the same letters. It is generally advisable to enter at least the first four letters. If the result is a browse list, redo the search using Boolean operators, and omit the truncation symbol.

    • TRANSPORT$ will find records containing TRANSPORT, TRANSPORTS, TRANSPORTED, TRANSPORTATION, etc.
  • Wildcard

    Substitute a question mark for one character to look for different forms of a word, or variations in spelling.

    • WOM? N will find records containing WOMAN or WOMEN.
  • Other Hints
    • The number of results from a search is displayed at the top of the screen. Up to 20 will show on each screen. If there are more than 20, scroll down to view all the results on the screen, then click on the TOP button (located at the bottom right corner of the screen). Use the FORWARD button to move to the next screen.
    • There are two ways to search part of a title and the author's last name. More precise results may be obtained by using Power Search.
      Power Search
      author==>WIGMORE
      title==>EVIDENCE

      Quick Search
      Wigmore and evidence
    • To search a general topic and any other information such as series, use Power Search options.
      keywords or phrases==>PEDIATRIC$
      series==>OXFORD MEDICAL PUBLICATIONS
    • To search a general topic and part of a Library of Congress Subject Heading, use Power Search.
      keywords or phrases==>TELECOMMUNICATION$
      subject==>DIRECTORIES

      In the above example, the same results occur by searching TELECOMMUNICATION$ AND DIRECTORIES in KEYWORD and SEARCH EVERYTHING. (Note that if you typed TELECOMMUNICATION$ DIRECTORIES in Quick Search, fewer records are in the result list because the two words are retrieved only when appearing in the same field, such as both in the title).

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Advanced Search Techniques

  • Combining Search Terms with Boolean Operators

    Use Boolean operators between two search terms to broaden or narrow a search.
    Boolean operators are:

    AND terms must be in the same record (narrows search)
    OR either one or both terms must be in the same record (broadens search)
    NOT the first term must be in the record, and the second term must not be in the record (narrows search)
    XOR one or the other term must be in the record, but both terms cannot be in the same record (narrows search)

    Examples:

    ALCOHOL AND ABUSE$ (the $ sign is the truncation symbol)
    ALCOHOLIC OR ALCOHOLISM
    DOGS OR CATS
    ALCOHOL NOT DRUG
    NARCOTICS XOR ALCOHOL
    POLLUTION AND (WATER OR AIR)
    (ADIRONDACK$ OR CATSKILL$) AND (PARKS OR RECREATION)

    Note: If Boolean operators or stopwords are part of a search string, put them in double quotes. To search the term not-for-profit, type "NOT FOR" PROFIT.

    If two or more terms are typed in a text input box without using a Boolean operator between them, the system understands the positional operator SAME (the terms must be in the same field) and requires all the terms to appear in the same field.

    Note: Boolean operators do not work in Browse or Exact search options, which match words with indexes character by character.

  • Combining Search Words With Positional Operators

    Use positional operators between two words to retrieve records in which the two are in a particular physical relationship to each other. Positional operators are:

    SAME terms must be in the same field
    WITH terms must be in the same sentence in a field
    NEAR terms must be adjacent to one another, in any order
    ADJ terms must be adjacent to one another and in the order in which they were entered

    Examples:

    REVOLUTION SAME CLAIMS
    INVESTIGATION WITH INFORMANTS
    DELINQUENT$ NEAR JUVENILE$

    Note: If stop words or operator words are part of a search string, put them in double quotes. To search for the phrase NEAR EAST, type "NEAR" ADJ EAST

  • Grouping Search Terms with Parentheses

    Use parentheses to refine a search by grouping words with operators.

    EDUCATION AND (CHILD OR CHILDREN OR ELEMENTARY OR PRESCHOOL OR KINDERGARTEN)

    (SPATIAL OR GEOSPATIAL) AND (DATA OR METADATA)

    MARINE ADJ (BIOLOGY OR ECOLOGY) AND (ARCTIC OR ANTARCTIC OR POLAR)

  • Search Limits

    When doing a Power Search, search limits are at the bottom of the screen. When doing a Quick Search, the search can only be limited after results are retrieved. On a screen of brief records, scroll to the bottom of the screen to view the limits. Type in or select the limits, scroll up, and resubmit the search.

    Limit a search by publication year, format, language, location, etc. (click on the down arrow, when available, on any box to view options.)

    • Format
      Selecting the format "serial" will limit a retrieval set to records for serials.(Caution: not all records have format information.)
    • Itemtype
      Ask staff for assistance if needed.
    • Language
      Not all records can be searched by language.
    • Library
      • ALL - The combined collections of the New York State Library, its Manuscripts and Special Collections unit, the State Archives and the Historical Documents Inventory.
      • Historical Documents Inventory
        - Search catalog records for more than 25,000 archives and manuscripts collections housed locally at repositories throughout New York State (libraries, historical societies, and other organizations with established archives). The search excludes the holdings of the State Library and the State Archives. Note: The HDI collections are NOT housed in the State Library.
      • Manuscripts and Special Collections - Includes catalog records for manuscripts, prints, maps and scores collections in the New York State Library's Manuscript and Special Collections Unit.
      • New York State Archives - Search only the archival records of New York State Government and selected local government records preserved by the State Archives.
      • New York State Library - Cataloged holdings of the New York State Library, excluding Manuscripts and Special Collections, Historical Document Inventory and State Archives records.
    • Location

      Qualifying a search by location may be useful in certain instances. For example, to search for only New York State documents, limit the search by selecting

      location ==>D-NYS-DOC

    • Match On

      The options are Keyword, Partial or Exact. May be useful in Power Search.

    • Pubyr
      > greater than Example: > 1990
      < less than Example: < 1950
      a range of years Example: 1990-1994
      exact year Example: 1999
    • Sort by

      Determines the display order of search results. Results are not sorted if more than 100 records are retrieved.

  • Searching by OCLC number, ISSN, ISBN

    From the Keyword and SEARCH EVERYTHING option

    To search by OCLC number, type the 3-character prefix "OCM" in upper case followed by 8 digits of the OCLC number. Add 1 or more zeros between the "OCM" and the number if the number has fewer than 8 digits. Records with an ID number 100,000,000 or higher (items after April 2007) will get the prefix ocn (followed by the 9 digit number.)

    • OCM01553347
    • OCM29750123
    • OCN123456789

    To search by ISSN, type the number exactly:

    • 0366-5313

    To search by ISBN, type the number without hyphens:

    • 0913582271
  • To search by MARC tags, use the { } brackets:
    • hudson{650}
    • harcourt, brace {260}

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View/Print/Save/Email

View/Print/Save/Email Marked Results

  • Marking and preliminary steps are the same for viewing, printing, saving and emailing records.

    To mark records, click in the small box to the left of a brief record, or above and to the left of a full record. Then click on the PRINT/CAPTURE button at the top of the screen.

    When records are marked, the record numbers are displayed on the PRINT/CAPTURE screen. However, if needed, these can be changed by just typing other record numbers from the search (1,11-15,22).

    Options:

    The options on the screen default to those needed for request slips.

    • Type of output. If you need a MARC record, select FLAT ASCII.
    • Sort by title, author, call number, or publication year
    • View of records. Display choices are ALL, FULL or BRIEF.
    • Library
    • Sort by ascending or descending call numbers

    After selecting from the above options and clicking on the VIEW, SAVE, or PRINT button, a pop-up window will appear.

    • To View - Results will show on the screen.
    • To Save - Use your browser's save command from this pop-up Window.
    • To Print - Use your browser's print command from this pop-up window.
    • To Email Search Results - simply input the email address to where you want to send the results and click EMAIL.
  • Printing a Request Slip

    For items that need to be retrieved from the stacks, print marked records and submit to the Circulation Desk. Please do NOT submit printouts with a list of records (brief display) since this display does not contain the information needed for retrieval.

    Be sure the printout has bibliographic information (title, author, etc.), call number and location. A printout of a marked record will include all the needed information. (For more information, click on Info Desk at the top of any page, click on Library Information and view the item called Onsite Request for Materials .) Items with an Archives or MSC call number should be taken to the 11th floor.

    For records with lengthy holdings, such as serials, be sure to print only the first two pages to provide the information necessary for retrieval. For instructions, please ask staff for assistance.

Historical Documents Inventory

The Historical Documents Inventory (HDI) was a project undertaken by Cornell University in 1976, and completed in 1993. Therefore in some cases the information may be 20 years old.

These records are the electronic equivalent of the print county guides in the reference collection entitled "Guide to historical resources in _xxx_ County" published by Cornell University. The print county guides are still available for purchase from the State Archives . The guides include either repository descriptions or summaries of the holdings of particular repositories.

Some HDI items are in the New York State Library, but an HDI location code cannot be used for retrieval. Records or items in the New York State Library's collection will have a State Library call number, not an HDI location code. To eliminate the HDI records, select the New York State Library. However, this will exclude the State Archives and Manuscripts and Special Collections records which may be pertinent to your search.

Selecting a library from:

  • Quick Search - Libraries can be selected by clicking on the down arrow of the Library box, located to the right of the text box.
  • Power Search - Scroll down, if needed, to the Library box under Search Limits.

Return to Table of Contents

If you do not find a specific item,
we welcome inquiries.
On-site visitors should ask a librarian for help.
Web visitors can leave a question.

Last Updated: May 22, 2009