Tips for Searching At its simplest, a query can be just a word or a phrase. But with
the tips on this page, you can expand the focus of your query to give you more
complete results. These tips will get you started with basic query language
and acquaint you with the full power of Microsoft Index Server. Look for words with the same prefix. For example, in your query
form type key* to find key, keying, keyhole,
keyboard, and so on. Search for all forms of a word. For example, in the form type
sink** to find sink, sinking, sank,
and sunk. Search with the keyword NEAR, rather than AND,
for words close to each other. For example, both of these queries, system
and manager and system near manager, look for
the words system and manager on the same page. But with
NEAR, the returned pages are ranked in order of proximity:
The closer together the words are, the higher the rank of that page. Refine your queries with the AND NOT keywords
to exclude certain text from your search. For example, if you want to find
all instances of surfing but not the Net, write the following
query: This query finds all pages that mention Abbott or Costello or both. Put quotation marks around keywords if you want Index Server
to take them literally. For instance, if you type the following query: Use Free Text Queries if you want
to enter queries using natural language. Index Server will examine your
query, extract nouns and noun phrases and construct a query for you. With
free text queries you can enter any text you want, from a proper question,
to a string of words and phrases, without worrying about the query language.
For example, if you type in the following query: © 1997 by Microsoft Corporation. All
rights reserved.
surfing AND NOT the Net
Abbott OR Costello
"system near manager"
Index Server will literally look for the complete phrase system near
manager. But if you type the same query without the quotation marks:
system near manager
Index Server searches all documents for the words system and manager.
"How do I use the Index Server administration
snap-in?"
Index Server will create a query for you automatically and begin the search.
Note that when you're using free text queries, the regular query language
features are disabled and keywords such as AND, OR,
and NEAR are interpreted as normal words.
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Updated: July 10, 1998