2017 TLA Conference

In their classic article, "Amazing, Magic Searches!" (Library Journal, Nov. 1st 2005, pp. 44-46) Kornegay, Buchanan, & Morgan show how subdivisions (phrases authorized by LC to be tacked on to subject headings) can be used to advantage in keyword searching in online library catalogs. Their first example: college sports and economic aspects. I work at a library which has replaced its free-standing online library catalog with OCLC Discovery Service -- a window into WorldCat which lets you limit your searches to materials in your library. Volunteer State librarians will be pleased to discover that if one reruns KB&M's sample searches in OCLC Discovery, limited to materials held in your library, the magic still works 12 years later, in the newer environment. The Library of Congress hasn't changed a single one of the subdivisions in the magic searches. Presence or absence of _and_ no longer matters unless in quotation marks. Singular vs. plural, important 12 years ago, no longer matter.