Using Connection Files
This page contains instructions for using the connection files for various journal databases. NOTE: you cannot use connect files from the student network due to ports being blocked for security.
Instruction are available for the following database providers
Search tips for the EbscoHost connection file
The Ebsco Z39.50 server doesn't support phrase searching, except for author names.
It only supports "word list" searches, which means that it inserts the operator AND between the words that you input. With the web version of Ebsco, the standard search defaults to phrase searching. This accounts for the differences in your results. If you search the web version of Academic Search Elite for "northern" AND "territory", you will get the same results as you get when searching "northern territory" with the connection file.
Search tips for the Informit connection file
With the search option "Word Anywhere (Truncated)" you can enter the first part of a word. Searching for "histor" will retrieve "historical", "history", etc.
To limit your search to material published since a particular date, check the AND button and select the "Beginning Year" search option.
With the "Author" search option there is automatic truncation. A search for "smith, p" will retrieve "Smith, P. B.", "Smith, Peter", etc.
When searching by ISSN, you must enter the hyphen, e.g. 0004-9549.
Problems with Importing Records:
1. References to Book Sections on this database contain only very basic bibliographic data. To complete the reference you will need to search the title of the book on the National Library of Australia catalogue at http://www.nla.gov.au/webpac/
2. Names of corporate authors will not import correctly.
Search tips for the OCLC FirstSearch connection file
When using a connection file to search OCLC databases, you will occasionally encounter records that cannot be retrieved because they are too large. EndNote will display a message saying "Record exceeds exceptional record size" or "Record exceeds maximum record size".
When this happens, look at the status bar at the bottom of the window in which the retrieved references are listed. You will see a note such as "Retrieved 4 out of 13 found references." This tells you that record 5 is the record which cannot be retrieved. Perform the search again, but ask to retrieve records beginning with the record following the problem record. So, using the above example, you should ask to retrieve references 6 to 13.
If you wish to find details of the references that could not be retrieved, you will have to redo your search on the web version of the database.
Special Note: Charles Darwin University would like to acknowledge the assistance we have received from University of Queensland library and their generosity in allowing us to use their material.
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| Authorised by: Director, Learning Resources
CRICOS Provided No: 00300K | Last updated:
August 23, 2004
