Search Tips

Words

To search for multiple words, separate them with spaces.

Phrases

To search for an exact phrase, surround it with double-quotation marks. Separate a series of names with commas. Commas aren't needed when the phrases are surrounded by quotation marks.

The following example searches for a document that contains the phrases "indiana karst" and "marengo cave":

"indiana karst" "marengo cave"

Plain language

To search with plain language, enter a question or concept. The Internet Query Parser identifies the important words and searches for them. For example, enter a question such as:

Where are bats living in Indiana karst?

This query produces the same results as entering:

bats living Indiana karst 

Including and excluding search terms

You can limit searches by excluding or requiring search terms, or by limiting the areas of the document that are searched.

A minus sign (-) immediately preceding a search term (word or phrase) excludes documents containing the term.

A plus sign (+) immediately preceding a search term (word or phrase) means returned documents are guaranteed to contain the term.

If neither sign is associated with the search term, the results may include documents that do not contain the specified term as long as they meet other search criteria.

Search Targets

Here is a summary of the parameters used to design the search tool.

• Karst Information Portal: draws results from all elements of the website.
• Karst Collection: retrieves results from the metadata input by the project team to describe quality information resources; not an all-inclusive list but it will grow with the support and particpation of the karst community.
• Forum: derives results from the community areas of the portal including user comments and postings.
• News: draws results from announcements, event listings, research updates, and publications announcements posted by the project team.
• KIP Google Co-op: queries a Google-powered "Customized Search Engine" that leverages participant expertise and Google's search technologies.