Writing a query is a way to ask a question to a search engine. The way a user asks a question in the form of a query determines which documents will be returned. The Response Line Search Screen has been designed to not only allow a user to perform keyword searches but also to provide the user with the ability to:

• include documents before or after a certain submission date;
• include documents that reference a particular document;
• include documents with all or part of a specific Interp Number;

The information below introduces how to write queries using the Response Line Search features, covering:

• Searches using the Interp ID Number
• Searches using the Referenced Standard
• Searches using the Date Issued
• How to Write Basic Keyword Queries
• How to Incorporate Verity Operators
• Query Examples

Performing Searches Using the Interp ID Number

The Response Line Search System has been configured to search for all or part of an Interp ID Number. To perform a search using this feature, enter all or part of the ID Number, using asterisks or question marks as wild card operators (see More About Wild Card Operators, below).

Performing Searches Using the Referenced Standard

The Response Line Search System has also been configured to allow users to query interpretations by their referenced standard. To perform a search using this feature, enter all or part of the referenced standard number, using asterisks or question marks as wild card operators (see More About Wild Card Operators, below). Note: If the referenced document is from 29 CFR, then omit "29 CFR" and input just the section number. For example, to search for interpretations that reference 29 CFR 1910, "1910" would be input.

Performing Searches Using the Date Issued

The Response Line Search System has also been configured to allow users to query interpretations by their date issued. To perform a search using this feature, a cutoff date (in MM/DD/YY format) is entered along with a designation of "before", "after" or "on". The results set will include only interpretations with dates that fall into the time span that was designated. Note that the earliest interpretations were logged in June of 1993.

How to Write Basic Keyword Queries

A basic query can be written using words and phrases, separated by commas. If a user wants to see interpretations about falls from ladders, they can begin with a single-word query, such as:

In this case, the query finds all the documents that include the word "ladder." However, this search would include not only documents about falls from ladders, but also documents about securing ladders. Note that users don't have to specify the plural form of a search keyword. A basic search includes stemmed variations, such as "ladders." Note also that documents about falls that did not include the word "ladder" would not be retrieved.

To ask for more specific results, several words or phrases can be entered, separated by commas, that describe the subject more precisely, such as:

In this case, the query finds documents that contain "falls" or "ladders." (Case doesn't matter in queries: a word entered in lower case will match words in upper case, lower case, or mixed case.) The most relevant documents, those that discuss falls from ladders, will appear at the top of the results list.

How to Incorporate Verity Operators

Queries can be made more specific by combining words with operators. Operators are special words that are used to indicate logical relationships between the descriptive terms that make up a query.

Basic Operators

Here are basic operators that can be specified as part of queries.

Operator	Description
AND	Finds documents that contain all of the search elements specified. Ex: nuclear AND workers
OR	Finds documents that show evidence of at least one specified search element. Ex: nuclear OR workers
NOT	Finds documents containing the word preceding it and excludes documents containing the word that follows it. Ex: nuclear NOT control rods
<NEAR>	Finds documents containing specified search terms, where the closer the search terms are within a document, the higher the document's score. Ex: nuclear <NEAR> control rods
<SENTENCE>	Finds documents that include all of the words specified within the same sentence. Ex: nuclear <SENTENCE> pressurized water reactor
<PARAGRAPH>	Finds documents that include all of the search elements specified within a paragraph. Ex: nuclear <PARAGRAPH> boiling water reactor
<THESAURUS>	Thesaurus operator that searches for documents containing words that are synonyms for the word specified. Ex: <THESAURUS> altitude
, (comma)	Finds documents containing at least one of the words specified, ranking them using "the more, the better" approach, so documents with the most evidence of the words searched for are given the highest rank. Ex: nuclear, reactor, pressurized, accident

NOTE: AND, OR, and NOT are treated as operators by default, and do not require brackets. If a user wants to use them as literal words, they must be placed in double quotes. All other operators must be placed within brackets.

More About Operators

Here are some additional operators that can be specified as part of queries.

Operator	Description
?	Wildcard operator that represents any one character. A ? can be used to specify the first letter of a word. Ex: DOE Order 420.?
*	Wildcard operator that represents one or more characters. A * can be used to specify the first letter of a word. Ex: hand* (finds handbook, handle, handball, etc.)
' ' (single quotes)	Placing a word in single quotation marks finds stemmed variations of the word. NOTE: The default behavior is to find stemmed variations if no quotation marks are used. Ex. 'edit' (finds "edited", "editing", "edition", etc.)
" " (double quotes)	Placing a word in double quotation marks finds exact matches only, excluding stemmed variations of the word. Ex: "edit" (does not find "edited", editing", edition", etc.)

Keyword Query Examples

Using these examples, queries can be written that will return exactly the information required.

Finding Words

Most queries can be written by entering the words and phrases of interest separated by commas. If a user were looking for information about falls or about scaffolding, they could enter:

This query returns documents that contain the terms "falls" (case doesn't matter in queries), "scaffolding," or both. The results list will display a ranked list of documents, with the most relevant documents at the top of the list.

Finding Phrases

Perhaps a user wants to see documents that refer to a series of words that occur in a specific order, such as "falls from scaffolding". The whole phrase could be entered:

This query returns only documents that contain all of these words in the exact sequence specified, including stemmed variations of the search terms.

Finding a Specific Subject

The simple query returned some documents about falls, some documents about scaffolding, and some about both subjects. If a user is interested in falls from scaffolding, the AND operator can be used to be more specific. The following query could be entered:

This query returns only those documents that contain both "falls" and "scaffolding" in the same document, so this list will be shorter than the results of the query written using commas. (AND can be entered in lower case and it will still be treated as an operator.)

AND is treated as an operator unless it is surrounded by quotation marks. If the word "and" is needed as part of a phrase, place it inside quotation marks. For example, to search for the phrase "oxygen and carbon monoxide", the following phrase would be entered:

Excluding Terms

Certain terms may be specifically excluded from the results list using the NOT operator. For example, a user may want to see documents about lead poisoning, while having no interest in documents about paint. The user could enter:

This query returns only documents referring to lead poisoning that do not also mention paint. If a document includes both "lead poisoning" and "paint", it will be excluded.