How can we improve Primo?

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Add a true "exact" search to Advanced search type

The available search types do not include a true "exact" search, where the results inlcude the query term(s) and only the query term(s). This type of search is very useful for one-word queries, especially when it is a common word. Using "begins with" in these situations can still result in dozens of results. We can construct a search, but it's not something the average user would know how to do, e.g.:

Title begins with intervention
NOT
Title begins with intervention?

This is a convoluted construction, and we'd prefer a true "is exactly" search type.

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Andrew Welch shared this idea  ·   ·  Admin →

9 comments

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  • Norman Howden commented  · 

    The functionality should include handling of hyphenated words and contractions.

  • Norman Howden commented  · 

    Good grief - this isn't already in the product???

  • Veronica commented  · 

    Yes, I agree. This is absolutely necessary in Primo. The way it behaves now, is not good enough, and it is confusing to users.
    At least, the option should be given, to include or exclude related results.

  • Blake Galbreath commented  · 

    Yes, it would be great if the "Exact" search would exclude records with strings outside of the matched query. That would be different functionality. It seems to me that the current design simply recreates a "Contains" search with the query in quotation marks.

  • Stacey van Groll commented  · 

    I should add as well that I'm aware that such a precise 'only' exact phrase search will drastically limit results returned, especially given the great deal of variation with PCI citations in different collections. In many cases, this is the actual end goal, but it is worth noting. For us, with our Advanced Search usage at around only 8-9% of all searches, I would argue an expectation that users deliberately going to a search titled as 'Advanced' and selecting exact phrase have a greater level of understanding, tolerance and indeed requirement for the need for precision, and that this is exactly the type of user which this enhancement would support.

  • Stacey van Groll commented  · 

    We have also noted this undesirable behaviour, of Advanced Search ‘exact phrase’ also including metadata outside the specified phrase.
    As an example, if I choose to do an Author/Creator search by exact phrase for: Marshall Green
    I expect to see results returned where the search PNX creatorcontrib fields have precisely just: Marshall Green
    Instead, I also see additional results such as: Lydia Marshall Green

    smithsonian_soai_biodiversitylibrary_org_item_264605
    <search>
    <creatorcontrib>Green, Lydia Marshall</creatorcontrib>
    <contributor>Lydia Marshall Green (Firm) (Corporate Author)</contributor>

    The OLH describes the exact phrase search as follows:
    "is (exact) – Returns results that contain phrases that exactly match the phrases specified in the query."
    https://knowledge.exlibrisgroup.com/Primo/Product_Documentation/050New_Primo_User_Interface/End_User_Help_-_New_UI/020Performing_Advanced_Searches

    This means that currently ‘exact phrase’ is behaving as described and this is not a bug, but I believe that users actually expect the behaviour to be as follows:
    "is (exact) – Returns results that contain phrases that exactly match the phrases specified in the query, and only those phrases."

  • Andrew Welch commented  · 

    I should add that we would like this functionality in both the classic UI and new UI.

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