This article outlines when and how to use Advanced Search.
Advanced Search takes in a set of keywords as a search query and returns search results based on the contents of both documents and videos.
Documents are divided into individual pages. Videos are transcribed and split into approximately a page’s worth of text. Search queries must be found within a single page (document or video) to be returned.
The advanced search allows operators such as AND, OR, wildcards, and fuzzy matching.
A search using the AND operator can be constructed by using the + operator between keywords.
Here is a list of supported Advanced Search operators.
Using the AND operator
A search using the AND operator can be constructed by using the + operator between words.
For example, running a search for:
construction + project
will require that both construction and project must be on any page in your search results.
Using the OR operator
A search using the OR operator can be constructed by using the | operator between words.
For example, running a search for:
construction | project
Will allow for either the word construction or project to be on pages in your search results.
Using Fuzzy match
A search using the fuzzy matching operator can be constructed by using the ~ operator with a number value to control how many characters a keyword can be different from its initial spelling or how many words can separate words within a phrase.
For example, running a search for:
construction~2
will return all documents or videos that contain keywords that are similar to construction but with up to 2 characters changed such as constructing.
For example, running a search for:
"water project" ~1
This will return all documents or videos that contain keywords that include the exact phrase water project but will also return phrases with one (1) word between the words water and project, such as water treatment project or water line project.
Using the Wildcard operator
A search using the wildcard operator can be constructed by using the * character.
For example, running a search for:
build*
will allow for pages in search results to have keywords that start with build, such as building, buildings, or builder.
Tips and Tricks:
Tip 1: Be Specific
Try to be as specific as possible in your search query to narrow down the search results. Use phrases or search operators to combine keywords for more precise results.
Tip 2: Use Wildcards and Fuzzy Matching
Use wildcards and fuzzy matching to expand your search results to include keywords that may be spelled differently or have different endings.
Tip 3: Boost the Relevance of Exact Phrases
If you're searching for an exact phrase, use the " character to wrap the phrase for searching. You can also boost the relevance of documents or videos that contain the exact phrase by adding the ^ character followed by a boost value, i.e ^2.
Tip 4: Use Prefix Queries
Use the * character at the end of a term to perform a prefix query. This will return all documents or videos that contain keywords that start with the prefix, i.e. constuct*.
Tip 5: Use Precedence with Parentheses
Use parentheses to group parts of your query and specify the order of operations. This is particularly useful when combining boolean operators and other query types.
Tip 6: Use Fuzziness for Similar Matches
Use the ~N character after a keyword to specify an edit distance (fuzziness) for matching similar keywords. This is useful when you're not sure of the exact spelling or want to include variations of a keyword, i.e. ~2.
Tip 7: Use Slop for Phrase Queries
Use the ~N character after a phrase to specify a slop amount for matching the phrase. This is useful when you want to include additional keywords between the keywords in the phrase, i.e. ~2.
Bonus Material
Here are some additional examples of how to use the operators in the Ontopical Advanced Search:
Example 1: Searching for Keywords with a Prefix
Suppose you want to search for documents or videos that contain keywords that start with "build". You can construct the query as follows:
build*
This will return all documents or videos that contain keywords that start with "build", such as "building", "buildings", or "builder".
Example 2: Grouping Queries with Precedence
Suppose you want to search for documents or videos related to "building permits" OR "zoning", but you want to exclude any results that also contain the keyword "noise". You can construct the query as follows:
("building permits" | zoning) -noise
This will return all documents or videos that contain either "building permits" or "zoning", but do not contain the keyword "noise".
Example 3: Using Fuzziness for Similar Matches
Suppose you want to search for documents or videos that contain keywords that are similar to "construction", but may be spelled differently. You can construct the query as follows:
construction~1
This will return all documents or videos that contain keywords that are similar to "construction" within an edit distance of 1.
Example 4: Using Slop for Phrase Queries
Suppose you want to search for documents or videos that contain the phrase "building permit" with up to 2 additional keywords between the individual keywords in the phrase. You can construct the query as follows:
"building permit"~2
This will return all documents or videos that contain the exact phrase "building permit", but can have up to 2 additional keywords between the individual keywords in the phrase, such as "building new application permit".