New Ovid Functions
All of the new Ovid functions featured below are provided only to the faculty, fellows, residents, staff, and students officially affiliated with the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center of New Orleans.
Ask a Librarian
Are you at Ovid's Main Search Page and puzzled about how to get started with your research?
The Ask a Librarian feature provides an online form to submit questions or requests for assistance from the Reference Department while searching in the Ovid database system. It is comparable to the Library's Electronic Reference Service in that the Reference Librarians make every effort to respond to your email questions within one working day via the user's e-mail address.
Save Search
What if you're doing a search and you can't finish perusing your results?
The Ovid's Save Search feature permits LSUHSC users to store search sets that have been created during a current search session. Users may log off and retrieve a save search at a later time without having to retype each search set. Users may save a search set temporarily, permanently, or as an AutoAlert (SDI).
AutoAlert
formerly SDI (Selective Dissemination of Information)
Would you like to be informed of any recent developments on your research topic?
With Ovid's new AutoAlert feature, LSUHSC users can keep up-to-date with the latest information. An AutoAlert is a saved search that runs automatically without any intervention on the users part. When users save an AutoAlert (SDI) in a database, the AutoAlert runs whenever the database is updated. The AutoAlert profile retrieves any newly added documents on your subject and the search results are sent via email.
Session Recovery
What happens if while conducting a long, complex search strategy (history), the Ovid database system crashes?
Session Recovery permits LSUHSC users to recover search sessions that timed-out or ended unexpectedly. At login, after an interrupted search strategy, users are given the options to recover the search strategy (history) intact or begin a new search. The feature works by maintaining a time log of searches in a file located in the user's home directory.
For assistance in using the above Ovid search functions, please contact the Library Reference Department at (504) 568-6102 or (504) 568-8339 or at the Dental Library (504) 619-8507. Also, our e-mail addresses are linked from the Library's web page: http://www.lsuhsc.edu/no/library/staff.html link removed. The Dental Library staff can be reached from their web page: http://www.lsusd.lsumc.edu/libr/ link removed.
-- Carolyn K. Bridgewater
cbridg@lsuhsc.edu link removed