Library Services

Help with Searching

How to Search our Library Catalogue

Search by Keyword
  • search for gender to retrieve all records that have “gender” in their description, title, category or author field.
  • employment equity or employment & equity retrieves items with both employment and equity in the entire record.
  • try partial words such as wom to search for both woman and women
Search by Title word or words
  • violence will retrieve all records that have the word “violence” in a title.
  • family violence retrieves items with both family and violence in the title.

Narrowing search: put e.g. intimate partner in the “Search Within Results” box to narrow your search.

Search by Author
  • smith
  • smith,p
  • smith,p.k.
Search by Subject
  • aboriginal will search for records that have “aboriginal” in the subject line.

Narrowing search: put e.g. services or service in the “Search Within Results” box to narrow your search.

Partial Word Searches

If you are not really sure how the name is spelled or how many variants in spelling (like Eldridge/Eldredge/Aldridge) or in comprehensiveness (Neal, B.F., Neal, Marie F., Neil, Maria F.) might occur in the records, you might prefer a parial word or name search. You may enter as little as one letter to get to a list of potential names.

A search on Eich allows you to scroll down the complete list of entries with those letters and to check all the names you are interested in.

Displaying Results

The Brief Record list of records displays the Catalogue number, Title, Author, Date and a link that allows you to see the full record, e.g.

302.2308352 G778 1997 , Round table on the Portrayal of Young Women in the Media Convened by the Secretary of State for the Status of Women, the Honourable Hedy Fry., Graydon, Shari , 1997.

The Full Record list of records displays most of record, including series, the subject headings, format, status of item, and the URL address (when applicable).

Sort My Results

You can sort your results alphabetically by clicking one of the little triangles next to the Title, Author, and Date headings. The list of your results will sort ascending or descending depending on the direction of the triangle mark.

Limit By / Refine Search

If you found to many records you can limit your search by selecting another keyword, relevant to your search strategy, and placing it in the “Search Withing Results” box.

Add To My List

You can also add records to your own list. Just click on the empty check box next to each record and the record will be added to your list of favorites. You will see a check mark appear in the box and the selected record will display a bolded text making your list easy to view.

Click on the “My List” heading to view your list.

Downloading Results

Use the “Download My List” option to download all items selected by your search. These are downloaded in text file format. Click “open” on the File Download box to see your list displayed on the computer screen.

Print My List

Once you opened the “My List” selected results list, you can also save the file to your computer. Just click the “save” button of the displayed File Download box to save the file to your computer.

Additional Search

You can also search Government Libraries Consolidated Catalogue from the Provincial Library website at ncompass.library.ns.ca/.

How to Search the Recommendations database?

Search using “All Fields” option e.g.
  • violence will retrieve all records that have a word “violence” in any field.

Narrowing search: put e.g. domestic in the “Search Within Results” box to narrow your search.

Search “Document Title” by word or words
  • reproductive
  • reproductive technology or reproductive tech
  • reproduc would retrieve entries containing both "reproduce" and "reproductive"

The results will return all items that are described by this phrase.

Search by Subject
  • pensions or pension will search for records that have “pensions” in the subject line.

Narrowing search: put e.g. homemaker in the “Search Within Results” box to narrow your search.

Search by Recommendation Text
  • gender to retrieve all records that have “gender” in their description.

Narrowing search: put e.g. employment or employment equity in the “Search Within Results” box to narrow your search.

The search will retrieve items with both employment and equity in the Recommendation Text field of the record.

Search by Fiscal Year e.g.
  • search by a year e.g. 1999 will bring all records that refer to that year or to the fiscal year of 1999-2000.
Partial Word Searches

If you are not really sure how the name is spelled or how many variants in spelling that might occur in the records, you might prefer a partial word or name search. You may enter as little as one letter to get to a list of potential entries of records.

Displaying Results

The Brief Record list of records displays the Document Title, Recommendation, Document Type, Date, Fiscal Year and a link that allows you to see the full record, e.g.

Brief to the Federal Standing Committee on Finance, 1999 ; Review the process of budget making to improve openness and transparency and explain the process clearly to Canadians ; (097) ; Brief ; 1999 ; 1999-2000.

The Full Record list of records displays most of record, including series, the subject headings, format, status of item, and the URL address (when applicable).

Sort My Results

You can sort your results alphabetically by clicking one of the little triangles next to the Title, Author, and Date headings. The list of your results will sort ascending or descending depending on the direction of the triangle mark.

Limit By / Refine Search

If you found to many records you can limit your search by selecting another keyword, relevant to your search strategy, and placing it in the “Search Withing Results” box.

Add To My List

You can also add records to your own list.

Just click on the empty check box next to each record and the record will be added to your list of favorites. You will see a check mark appear in the box and the selected record will display a bolded text making your list easy to view.

Click on the “My List” heading to view your list.

Downloading Results

Use the “Download My List” option to download all items selected by your search. These are downloaded in text file format. Click “open” on the File Download box to see your list displayed on the computer screen.

Print My List

Once you opened the “My List” selected results list, you can also save the file to your computer. Just click the “save” button of the displayed File Download box to save the file to your computer.