Q. How can you use Power Search in LEAP to get faster search results?

Power Search Using Command Codes

Lisa Treichler at FX compiled the following information to help us with our Power Search skills. Document was updated in August 2024. There is a printable PDF version located under Files.

Power Search

Field Codes
TI - title
AU - author
SU - subject
KW - author, title, subject, summary
SE - series (if materials have been cataloged with series information)

Symbols
<    Less than 
<=  Less than or equal to 
<>  Not equal to 
=    Equal to 
>    Greater than
>=  Greater than or equal to 

Combine any of these field codes (TI, AU, SU, KW, SE) with the codes for assigned branch, collection, circulation status, or publication date. (These codes are listed at the end of this document.)

If you are looking for individual items such as what is available at a specific branch, use the Item Record search. Otherwise, use the Bibliographic Record search to find titles and place holds. Always verify that there are items to fill holds; some records have a “withdrawn” status but still appear in Polaris.

Examples:

• Picture books, beginning readers and easy beginning readers (duck books) about friends who are sad. You want books that are currently in the branch at FX.
  • Find tool - Item record search – Power Search
  • Insert the terms you want in between the quotation marks and add additional criteria as needed
  • KW ALL "sad friend*" AND AB=5 AND COL={21,22,23} AND CS=1
  • Or, because you can do things multiple ways in Polaris, you can delete the KW ALL “” string and type your own search. You don’t need the quotes around sad and friend in the following search:
  • KW=sad friend* AND AB=FX AND COL={jp, jr, duck} AND CS=in

• Star Wars - children's chapter books, series or graphic novels anywhere in the system
  • Find tool - Bibliographic search - Power search
  • KW ALL "star wars" AND col={2,16,18} is the same as kw=star wars and col={jfic, jgraphic, jseries}

• Adult fiction books written by James Patterson and published after 2021
  • Find tool – Bibliographic search – Power search
  • AU=james patterson AND PD>2021 AND COL=1

• Children's nonfiction science experiments or projects about the environment
  • Find tool - Bibliographic search - Power search
  • SU ANY "project* experiment*" AND kw=environment* AND col=5

• Adult fiction books currently "in" at BC on the new books shelf that were published before 2024
  • Find tool – Item record search – Power search
  • SHELF=new AND PD<2024 AND AB=12 AND COL=1 AND CS=1

• Nonfiction books about the history of Rome currently on the shelves at FX
  • Find tool - Item record search - Power search
  • SU ALL "rome history" AND ab=5 AND cs=1 and col=4 is the same as
  • su=rome history and ab=fx and cs=in and col=nf

• Harry Potter books - either juvenile or young adult fiction - currently "in" at TY
  • Find tool - Item record search - Power search
  • TI=="harry potter*" and col={2,3} and cs=1 and ab=11 is the same as
  • Ti=harry potter and col={jfic, yfic} and cs=in and ab=ty

General Tips:

• Capitalization is optional.
• Combine nearby branch codes if your customer is willing to drive to nearby locations.
• Example: ab={5,22,23} OR ab= {fx,ok, ph} looks for items at FX or OK or PH.
• Combine collection codes such as jp, jr and duck books in col={21,22,23} OR col={jp, jr, duck}. 
• PD Publication date PD>=2024 finds books published in 2024 and later.
  • TI=dummies AND PD>=2024 finds books with dummies in the title and published in 2024 or later.
  • You could also enter TI=dummies AND PD>2023 and get the same results.
  • (Be aware that there is a 9999 pub date for some items.) 
• There is a code for digital which includes databases but not Overdrive books.
  • Use AU=overdrive to find eBooks, eAudiobooks and eMagazines that are available from the OverDrive collection.

Searching Tips:

• Use ANY to search any of the words in the string of text. ANY is an "OR" search.
  TI ANY "harry potter fire" finds 2108 titles with either harry, potter or fire in the title (bib record search)
• Use ALL to search all of the words in the string of text. ALL is an "AND" search.
  TI ALL "harry potter fire" finds 11 results with all the words harry, potter, fire in the title (bib record search). Shortcut: ti=harry potter fire
• Use == for an exact search (only for a particular word).
  Ti=="pigeon" finds The Pigeon by John Galsworthy but not The Pigeon Spy by Terry Deary
• Use ==* to search for a phrase at the beginning of the title.
  Ti=="pigeon*" finds The Pigeon finds a hot dog but not Don't let the pigeon drive the bus

Additional Codes

AB (Assigned branch)/CIL (Check-in Location) | CS (Circulation Status) | SHELF (shelf location)

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Use the code COL if you want to limit by collection.

Example: to limit by adult fiction, you would enter COL=FIC or COL=1  ; (FYI: no need to capitalize.)

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