Slide 1
Welcome to Using the Dialog Finder Files. This short module illustrates why you should use these powerful files, and provides examples of their different uses. The module assumes that you are familiar with how to conduct a basic search on Dialog. It may also serve as a refresher on using the company name, journal name and product code Finder files so you can get to the right databases faster. The content found in Dialog is available through many interfaces. This module uses the DialogClassic Web interface to illustrate the Finder Files.
Slide 2
First, we will describe the Finder Files, including why they are important search tools. Then, we will conduct a search in each Finder file: the Company Name Finder; the Journal Name Finder; and finish our examples in the Product Code Finder. Finally, we'll summarize and suggest other training tools that might be helpful to you.
Slide 3
Designed to allow you to search multiple database indexes with common search elements, the Dialog Finder Files are databases that will help you to select the appropriate file when the topic requires a search on a specific company name, journal name or product code. There are three Finder Files: Dialog Company Name Finder (File 416), Dialog Journal Name Finder (File 414) and Dialog Product Code Finder (File 413). These three files have a special feature that lets you create a REPORT specific to the search term you enter. Once a set of records is created, you can use a particular Dialog command to produce a preformatted REPORT, sorted first by, for example, the journal name in alphabetical order, then by the type of data, and lastly by record count.
Slide 4
Each database on Dialog is unique. Databases can be created by different database producers and while Dialog enables you to search all content with a common search language; nonetheless, names, in particular, may be entered into the databases differently. For example, a company name may be entered Intel Corp, Intel Inc., Intel Corporation or possibly other ways. Journals may be listed with abbreviations or even acronyms and products have a variety of names, for example, ice cream, frozen desserts, and others. To collect all of these variations, the Finder files let you search across many database indexes to collect and sort these names or codes to identify databases that contain the terms. You can verify company or journal names or product codes. You can locate databases with the most records containing your term and you can see what type of database contains the term, for example, a patent or trademark database, a company database, or a fulltext file. Now that you know a bit about the Finder files, we'll take a look at each type and show an example of each one.
Slide 5
Some examples illustrate how to use the EXPAND command in the Finder files. When searching the additional indexes, a two-letter field prefix code such as JN for journal is used followed by the equal sign and the name you are looking for. So, for example, if you want to find articles from the Scientific American journal, the search you would enter in the Journal Name Finder (File 414) is EXPAND or E JN= for journal name followed by Scientific American. Notice that there are no proximity connectors between Scientific and American. For company names in File 416, use the prefix CO, followed by the = sign and the name of the company. And, in the Product Code Finder you enter PC for product code, followed by the equal sign and the product code or PN= for product name, followed by the equal sign and the name of the product. Each product has a code related to it. You will see examples of each Finder file as we proceed. Note that you can also use the SELECT command to conduct a free-text search for a product or company or journal name.
Slide 6
Before we conduct a search, we'll look at the DialogClassic Web interface we are using in this module.. Logon to DialogClassic Web, at http://www.dialogclassic.com. Then enter your Dialog User ID and password and click the Log in button.
Slide 7
Once you enter your User ID and password, you will see the screen shown here. At the top of the screen the Retrieve Buffer shows the commands you have executed. At the bottom of the screen is the Type-Ahead buffer, in which you enter your search commands. You can enter your commands one at a time or prior to logging on to Dialog, once you have opened this screen after your initial logon. Note that at the bottom of the Type-Ahead buffer the Status Bar shows you the amount of time you have been connected to Dialog and any commands that have yet to be executed. At the top right side of the screen is the Databases pane. When you BEGIN in a database you will see the name of the database you have selected in the Databases pane. Clicking the link shows the Bluesheet for that database. The session pane contains a list of all commands you enter during your search. Now let's try search examples in the different Finder files.
Slide 8
This first example shows how to use the Company Name Finder. The Company Name Finder helps locate files where company information can be found. It searches over 100 databases that contain a company name, patent assignee, trademark owner or copyright owner. The results of a search show the form in which the names appear in the original database index, including abbreviations, punctuation and spelling variations. Entries are limited to 46 characters and longer names are truncated. When using EXPAND do not use proximity connectors like (W) and (N). Remember, too, that names can be listed in more than one way; therefore, it is often a good idea to use the SELECT command with connectors and operators when a company name contains, for example, an ampersand like in Baskins and Robbins. We'll see how this works next.
Slide 9
In our first example we will use the Company Name Finder (File 416) to find databases that contain information about any patents or trademarks the Heald Corporation might hold. Heald at one time manufactured machine tools but I don't think it is still in business. BEGIN 416; then EXPAND in the company name field (CO=) to find Heald. We'll follow the command summary listed here to conduct our search.
Slide 10
To begin our search, we'll type BEGIN or B in the type-ahead buffer followed by the file number 416, the number of the Company Name Finder database.
Next, we use the EXPAND command to see how the name of the company is entered into the different databases. We type EXPAND or E, the two-letter prefix for Company (CO), the equal sign and the company name Heald Corp.
A list of E numbers displays alphabetically near the part of the index with Heald. You will also see the number of records for each entry and the spelling of the indexed terms. E3 contains the entry as you entered it. Notice that there are 0 entries for Heald corp. However, E4, E5,E6 and E7 contain entries for Heald. Notice that Heald is a part of the company Cincinnati Milacron. Words following the slashes are the first words of the company name. If you did not know that Heald was a part of Cincinnati Milacron you might not have found this company in other databases.
In the next step we'll enter the SELECT or S command to select the appropriate entries: e4 or e5 or e6 or e7. We can also use a colon to select a range: E4:e7.
Slide 11
From our search we retrieved 12 databases that contain the company name Heald Corp. To see the listing in a tidy table, we use the REPORT feature found in the finder files. Use REPORT, the set number, followed by a slash and the word company. Once we enter the REPORT command as shown we enter a menu format and we will be prompted through the menu. The table that displays contains the name of the company as it is listed in each database, the file number, the type of file and the number of records you will find in that database. For example, for this company we see the records are in patent and trademark files.
To search one or more databases, type the number of the entry, in this case, 2 to see the record in File 351, Derwent World Patents Index, File 351. Note that to conduct a comprehensive search you may want to try EXPANDing using other terms, for example, e co=heald machine. You can also use the SELECT command and proximity connectors as SELECT HEALD(S)MILACRON to find Heald in the same paragraph or subfield with Milacron. These additional searches might turn up more results. Even though this company may no longer exist you can still find the patents and trademarks it held quickly and easily.
[This is a great example of ferreting out a company name. The one thing that begs the question is, why didn't any records come up for this company in directory or news files. You might want to explain that to be comprehensive, they need to take this information and try some other expands, such as e co=heald machine. They also can search the Finder Files with proximity connectors. For example, they can SELECT HEALD(S)MILACRON and then create a report from those 43 results, if they're looking for news or D&B records, etc. This is probably an older company that no longer exists, but that's the value of Dialog. It's so easy to get patent and trademark information on some companies, that might have taken a lot of work to find. In the Company Name founder, this came up in seconds.
Slide 12
When we select an entry, we are prompted to type Yes to save the search so it will automatically be conducted in File 351. Notice the SearchSave that Dialog automatically created. We leave the Company Finder file and Dialog automatically completes the search in File 351. We can TYPE the record T s1/9/1 to see the entire record we found in the Company Name Finder.
Slide 13
The patent record shows this is a patent for an internal rotary grinding machine with the Patent Assignee Cincinnati Milacron. Notice in the U.S. part of the record it does list Heald Corp as part of Cincinnati Milacron.
Slide 14
In Example 2, we'll search for databases that contain a specific journal name in the Journal Name Finder (File 414). This works the same way as the Company Name Finder we just saw. In this example we want to find information about art in the Santa Fe area of New Mexico in the magazine Southwest Art. We'll use the Journal Name Finder File (File 414) and follow the command summary as listed.
Slide 15
Once we BEGIN 414 to enter the Journal Name Finder, we EXPAND using JN= for journal name followed by the name of the journal. Note that E3 shows the journal name the way we entered it. Now SELECT the appropriate E number E3.
Slide 16
We see that we have 11 databases that index the journal Southwest Art. We can use the REPORT command to see the results in a table containing the file numbers, type of databases, and number of records. Once you enter the REPORT command you are in a menu format which we'll look at next. We can also check the Bluesheets for descriptions of these databases.
Slide 17
We have selected the journal from File 990, entry 7. Now we want to exit the menu in Journal Name Finder and go to File 990 Dialog Newsroom, the database we selected. Type Yes or y and you see that the search you completed in Journal Name Finder is saved temporarily, and will be transferred to File 990.
Slide 18
The search you completed in Journal Name Finder has been saved temporarily and automatically conducted in File 990. We have 53 results in this database. Since we want art in the Santa Fe area we'll narrow the search to articles about Santa Fe and retrieve 26 records. Note that since this is an art magazine we do not have to enter the term art. Again, we can type out records knowing they will all be from the Southwest Art magazine.
Slide 19
For our last example we'll search for databases that contain a specific product name using the Product Code Finder (File 413). This works the same way as the Company and Journal Name Finder examples we just observed. However, in this example we want to find the product code for ice cream. We can use the product name to locate and view the code for that product in File 413 and follow the command summary as listed.
Slide 20
First, we BEGIN in File 413, the product code finder. EXPAND the product name PN= followed by the name of the productóice cream. From the resulting list of E numbers we select E3 to focus on ice cream in general.
Slide 21
Next, REPORT S1/product to see the list of 8 databases. If we checked the Bluesheets we would see that the list of files are business and industry databases. We'll select entry 1 from the menu File 9 Business & Industry. Notice the Product Code numbers are listed. We can use that product code and the prefix PC= to search by product code and not have to worry about which keywords to use.
Slide 22
Again, we type yes to save our search and conduct it in File 9.
Slide 23
Because the number of records in Set 1 (S1) is quite large we may want to narrow the search as we did here to a company that makes ice cream. We could have used the Company Name Finder but here we searched for the company name using the proximity connector to pick up Baskin AND Robbins or Baskin & (ampersand) Robbins. Then combine your sets and type out some records.
Slide 24
To summarize, here are some tips as you begin using the Finder Files:
Slide 25
Slide 26
This completes our demonstration of the Finder files. Thank you for your interest in Dialog. Keep checking with us for other At a Glance modules added regularly.