Project Muse Guide

The Search page allows you to construct search requests of the entire database all journal titles.

To construct a search:

1. Type a word or phrase in the box labeled: "Search for" and select the sections you wish to search. The default is All Fields (w/text), which searches everything including full-text, subject terms, journal titles, and citation information such as volume, year and page numbers.  To focus your search, select All Fields except text, which will search everything except the full-text.You may also search by Journal or by LC Subject.
2. Use truncation to retrieve different endings of root words:
revision* (yields records with revisionary, revisionist, revisionism, etc.)
Note:  Be careful not to truncate short roots (like "cat") because the results could be unrelated to your query
3. Do not enter Boolean operators (and, or) but select the buttons below the box:

              "AND" - all terms must occur in each hit.
              "OR" - only one term must occur in each hit.
              "Exact Match" - terms occur exactly as entered (phrase search)
4. If you know the author of the article you are looking for, enter it next to "Article Author".
5. Results will come up sorted by relevancy (determined by occurrence of search terms) unless you choose to change this option.

Sample Screen: Basic Search

1. Display 5, 10, 20, 40, 80, or 160 items per page to view on one screen. Remember that the larger number you choose, the longer a page will take to load. No matter what you select here, you will always have the option of looking at the "previous" or "next" screens.
2. Click on Search to obtain your results.

The Results page provides you with the first 10 of the total number of documents found. Under each article listing there will be a relevancy score and an abstract when available. From this page, you can access only one article at a time.

• To see more of the list: Scroll to the bottom of this screen and click on More Results.
• To access a complete article: Click on the [View This Document] link located below the abstract. Larger files will take longer to load.

• The full journal information will be in the top box.
example: Modern Fiction Studies 44.2 (1998) 364-392
• The second box from the top will contain the following buttons which are repeated at the bottom of this screen, as well as the article title and author's name linked to affiliation and brief biography:
• Muse – To connect to the Project Muse home page with information about the project.
• Search – To return to the search screen for a new search
• Journals – This links to a list of the journals and publishers available in Project Muse.
• This Journal – To go to information about the journal title.
• Contents – This will take you to the Table of Contents for the journal title the current article is in. Use this to find out if similar articles are available from the same journal.
• If it is available, you will also find an option to [Access article in PDF] (see print options below).
• Below that will appear the full-text of the article. To find the term(s) you entered in retrieved text, click on Netscape's Edit button at the top of the Netscape frame, then select find in page. Enter your term(s) in the find what box and click on the find next button.

• end notes linked to the actual text of the notes
• figure notes linked to the actual drawings, diagrams, or photographic images
• end page numbers (Make sure to note these in a paper citation)
• full works cited information

• Use your back button or
• Click on "Go" at the top of your screen and select "Muse - Search Archives - Results."
• This will return you to the results list for other article options.

The Advanced Search will allow you to search in several different fields at the same time and to define the type of document you will be retrieving.

• Search boxes default to phrase.
• Enter terms not in phrases in separate boxes and combine with Boolean operators in pull-downs on left (and, or, not).
• Select "fields" to search using right-hand pull-down menus (see field explanations).
• Search authors of Muse articles by entering last name, first name and changing the pull-down menu to Article Author.
• See Limiting Searches (below) to narrow the search results to specific sets of journals or articles.

Sample Screen:  Advanced Search

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Limiting Searches (Advanced Search)

From the Advanced Search Screen, you may use limits to search on subsets of the MUSE database.

• By Type (can be combined with one of the following limits)
• "All Documents" searches across articles and reviews. (default)
• "Articles" make up approximately 57% of the entire database
• "Reviews" make up approximately 43% of the entire database
• "Poetry," "Fiction," and "Drama" are included in "Articles" but may also be pulled out of the MUSE database separately.
• By Date
• Select the year(s) you wish to search from the drop-down boxes.
• By Journal
• Choose a Journal Limit Category:  Journal Title, Subject Group, or Collection.
• Depending on which of the preceding you have selected, various choices will appear in the next menu box.

(Subject Groups tend to be the most useful unless you are searching a specific journal title.)
• Select one "journal title," "subject group," or "collection," or as many as desired in one category by holding down the control or command key.
• See the database holdings pages for lists of journals in the different collections.

To print Text Only, use your browser print function when viewing the full-text.
In Netscape, click on File.

Select Print Preview. This will allow you to see how many pages the actual printout will be before you print—some of these can be quite long. Click on the print icon.

To save records:

• In Netscape, click on File.
• Select Send page… in order to mail the document to an e-mail address.
• Enter your complete email address <yourname@foma.wsc.mass.edu>
• You will receive a copy of the full-text article with a subject heading of the article title.

• Use your back button or
• Click on "Go" at the top of your screen and select "Muse - Search Archives - Results."
• This will return you to the results list for other article options.

Format:
Author(s).  "Article Title."  Journal Title volume number.issue number (year):

            pagination.  Date accessed day month year <URL>.
Example:
Cummings, Scott T.  "Interactive Shakespeare."  Theatre Topics 8.1 (1998):

            93-112.  16 June 1999 <http://muse.jhu.edu/journals/theatre_topics/

            v008/8.1cummings.html>.

Format:
 Author(s). (date). Article title. Periodical title, volume number(issue number),
      page number(s). Retrieved Month day, year from Database Name.
Example:
Cummings, S.T. (1998). Interactive Shakespeare. Theatre Topics, 8(1),
      93-114. Retrieved September 4, 2001, from Project Muse database.

Look for the online Help link on the blue bar on the Search Muse Database screen and to the right on the Results screen.  Help is also available at the Reference Desk.