How to use Lexis-Nexis
On this page
Select database
Click on Start (bottom left of screen) then click on Lexis-Nexis.
Get help
Always look for instructions on the screen. For help searching Lexis-Nexis, click on the Help button in the LEXIS-NEXIS Searcher window or select Help from the menu.
Search
If the LEXIS-NEXIS Searcher window is not open, click on Search in the top toolbar.
Client
This is a mandatory field. Enter any string of characters. Example: xyz
Look in Sources
To see all sources available, click on More Sources (button on right side of screen). Sources will be displayed in a topical format. (An Alphabetical Source List and a Library File List are also available from the pull-down menu labelled View).
Click on the topic folder that most closely meets your research needs. If sub-topic folders appear, continue selecting the folders you want until the right side of the screen displays sources. Click on the source you wish to search and then on OK.
Combining sources: you can search in more than one source at a time if the sources have the red and blue circles icon. To combine sources, hold down the CTRL key and click on each source and then on OK.
Search Request
Type a word or phrase in the Search Request text-entry window. Click on the Search button to launch your search.
Examples:
- word: ecotourism
- phrase: pay equity
Connectors
To BROADEN your search: To broaden your search by including synonyms or related terms for a concept, use the connector OR.
Example: civil rights OR civil libertiesTo NARROW your search: To combine more than one idea, or if you retrieve too many records, narrow your search by using the connectors W/n, PRE/n or AND.
Examples:
- civil rights W/10 Indonesia [2 terms have to appear within 10 words of each other]
- John PRE/2 Williams [John must be no more than two words in front of Williams]
- Toyota AND Chevrolet [2 terms have to appear in the same document]
Click on Connectors to view other ways to connect your search terms.
Truncation/Wildcard
To search for similar words: Use the exclamation mark (!) to replace multiple letters at the end of a word root to retrieve all words starting with that root.
Example: automo! [to retrieve automobiles, automobile, automotive, etc.]Use the asterisk (*) to replace a single letter within or at the end of a word.
Example: wom*n [to retrieve both women and woman]
Segments
You can limit your search to specific segments or fields of the document.
Example: HLEAD(civil rights) [to retrieve documents that contain the phrase "civil rights" either in the headline or the lead paragraph in a news source]Click on Segments to see fields available in the source you are using. Click on Add to enter keywords to be searched within that segment and click on OK to copy your search strategy to the Search Request window.
Date
If you want to limit your search to documents published before, on, or after a certain date or during a certain window of time: select appropriate option from the Date pull-down menu (click on the down arrow to see all options).
Formats of dates: Year: 2002; Month: 05/02; Day: 05/24/02 or 24 May 2002
Start Search
When all fields have been completed, click on the Search button to launch your search.
Display Results
After you have launched your search, Lexis-Nexis will tell you how many documents were retrieved by that search. (If you find there are too many, you can go back to the LEXIS-NEXIS Searcher window to modify your search by clicking on Edit Search.) Lexis-Nexis will ask you to select a format to view the documents (Full for fulltext, KWIC to see your search keywords in context and Cite for citation only). After selecting a format, click on Browse to display the documents.
Click on the title of a document in the table of contents window to see that document displayed on the screen. To view the next or previous page of a document, click on Next Page or Prev Page in the top toolbar or use the Page Up and Page Down keys.
Mark Results
To mark (or tag) only the documents you want so you can save/print them all together at the end of your search, click inside the checkbox beside a title in the table of contents window.
Print Results
IMPORTANT: You need to cancel print jobs left by previous users prior to sending your documents if you do not want to print documents that you haven't selected. To cancel print jobs, click on File in the menu and select Print Manager. If there are print jobs listed, cancel them by typing "C" followed by a space and the print job number; type "Y" to confirm.
Examples:
- C 09099
- C 09099,09100 [to cancel multiple print jobs]
To exit the Print Manager, type "E" and press Enter.
When ready to send your search results to the printer, click on the Send button in the top toolbar. In the LEXIS-NEXIS Sender window, make sure that File or Attached Printer is selected under Send To:. Under Range, change selection if needed. Under View, select format desired. Make sure you click inside the checkbox beside Send All Now (bottom left of window). Click on OK. In the Send All Now window, click inside the checkbox beside Attached Printer and click on OK.
Go to the networked printer station in the Reference Area. Your print job will be identified on the screen by the computer workstation number. Insert your Concordia debit card and follow instructions on the screen.
Save Results
To save results to your formatted diskette, follow instructions under PRINT Results until you get to the Send All Now window. Click inside the checkbox beside File in that window and make sure that the checkbox beside Attached Printer is empty. Enter a: in the Save in: text-entry window. Enter a filename in the Name: text-entry window. Click on OK.
Begin a New Search
To modify your search or to enter a new one, click on the Search button in the top toolbar.
Exit Lexis-Nexis
Click on the Sign Off button in the top toolbar. Click on No when prompted "Do you want to save your research?"
