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Enter a phrase search (browse) with optional expanded terms for authority records

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Discover how to enter a phrase search (browse) with optional expanded terms in Connexion client.

When you browse for a heading, the system scans LC authority file heading indexes for the exact phrase you type.

You can browse for all forms of a heading or you can enter a subheading (expanded term) to limit the search to only instances of the heading that contain the subheading.

Most search techniques, such as truncation, character masking, Boolean operators, and combining searches, cannot be used for browsing. The phrase you enter is matched–character by character, from left to right–against the characters of the terms in the heading indexes.

To browse the LC authority file for heading phrases, you can either:

  • Use the command line search in the Search LC Authority File dialog (Authorities > Search > LC Names and Subjects). When the LC Authority File Browse List opens, you have the option to enter a subheading and do an expanded scan.
  • Open the Browse LC Authority File dialog (Authorities > Browse > LC Names and Subjects).

Use the following procedure:

  1. Navigate to Authorities > Browse > LC Names and Subjects, click the Browse LC Names and Subjects button (Browse LC Names and Subjects button), or press <Alt><F2>.
  2. In the Browse for field in the Browse Authorities dialog, enter the first words of a heading
    Or
    Select a previous browse term from the list of up to 10 of your last searches.
    • Omit initial articles.
    • When browsing for a personal name, if you enter the name in inverted order, include the comma after the surname.
      Example: mozart, wolfgang amadeus
    • You can enter diacritics and/or subfield codes. The system removes them before processing the browse query. Click Enter Diacritics to open the Enter Diacritics dialog. See Insert diacritics and special characters for more information.
       Caution: If you paste terms that contain diacritics from another program or file, Connexion may not be able to normalize the results correctly. OCLC recommends you enter diacritics using the Enter Diacritics dialog.
  3. In the index list, select one of the following indexes:
    • Personal Names
    • Corporate/Conference Names
    • Titles
    • Topicals
    • Geographic Names
    • LCSH
    • Subdivision Headings
    • LC Names
    • Children’s Subjects
  4. (Optional) In the Expanded Term field, enter the first letters or words of a subheading.
    Or
    Select a previous term from the list of up to 10 of your last searches.

    Including an expanded term shows the expanded subheadings for the closest heading match.

    Alternative: Leave the Expanded Term field blank and expand the scan in the browse results window:
    1. In the Browse LC Authority File dialog, enter a heading in the Browse for field but leave the Expanded Term box empty, and click OK or press <Enter>.
    2. In the Expanded Term field of the LC Authority File Root Browse List, enter a subheading and click Do Expanded Scan.
      • By default, the client keeps your search term and index selection (but clears your expanded term if any) the next time you open the Browse LC Authority File dialog.
      • To clear the Browse for field, click Clear Search. The client retains your last index selection, clears the Browse for field but retains the last ten terms for both the Browse for field and the Expanded Term field in the drop-down lists.
  5. Click OK or press <Enter>.
    • The headings and record counts in the browse results may not be accurate as they are pulled from a list that the system does not update immediately when authority records are added or replaced.
    • The LC Authority File Browse list displays a list of matching terms. Your browse term (or the closest match) is highlighted.
    • If more than one record matches a phrase in the list, the number of matching records appears to the right of the record title.
    Or
    Click Cancel to cancel browsing and close the dialog.
  6. To view the authority record, or to view a list of matching records if multiple records match, double-click an entry in the Browse LC Authority File List or highlight an entry and press <Enter>.
    • If more than 100 records match, the client displays a list of only the first 100 entries. You get a message telling you the total number of matching records. The message also tells you how to view the next 100 records.
    • To navigate lists of more than 100 records:
    • To move forward in the list - Click View > View Next 100, press <Ctrl><Alt><Shift><X>, or select the last record in the list and press the <Down arrow>.
    • To move back in the list - Click View > View Previous 100, press <Ctrl><Alt><Shift><U>, or select the first record in the list and press the <Up arrow>.