HathiTrust – It Just Gets Better

HathiTrust full-text search now leverages the richness of bibliographic data, and building and searching collections just got easier!  Read on for more details of what this means for researchers.

Full-text Search

The HathiTrust full-text search index now includes bibliographic data, adding value in major ways:

•  Search results are ranked more usefully.  For example, searching for “squirrel habitat” now ranks Abert Squirrel Cover Requirements in Southwestern Ponderosa Pine as the #1 hit, and Management Recommendations for the Northern Goshawk as #16.  Before the integration of bibliographic data, the second volume would have ranked higher (even though it is less relevant) because it registers twice as many hits for the search phrase. (See http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=%22squirrel+habitat%22&a=srchls&a=srchls;sz=100;pn=1)
• Users can refine results with bibliographic facets, including Subject, Author, Language, Publication Place and Date, and Original Format.  Original Location and Viewability are also available (as before).  Results update in real-time as facets are added or removed.

The HathiTrust Collection Builder interface and functionality have been improved, making the tool much clearer and easier to use:

• Collections are displayed in a cleaner layout, with description and owner information more easily visible.
• A new search box narrows and displays results as a query is typed.
• Users can now filter collections by featured status, most recently updated, and number of items. They can also choose to show only their own collections.  This works in tandem with the new search feature.   Try it:  http://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/mb?