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Can you answer these questions without using search field tags? Or constructing lengthy searches in the PubMed search box?

1. Bibliographic citations in PubMed come from journals published internationally. But, how many different languages is that, really?

2. What if I have a good search strategy forming but it's a bit too broad. What can I do to narrow it down without breaking it into chunks and using the History function?

3. How many Publication Types are available in PubMed? Limits show seven. Is that all there is?

4. How many times does the word "garlic" appear in PubMed?

5. I want to select terms from a list, not type my terms into the search box. Can I do that on PubMed?

6. What's the other way to find all the articles written by D Colter?

7. After using the Journal Browser to do a search for all the articles from a particular journal, how can I limit my retrieval to a certain volume number?

I'll bet you knew from just the title of this issue of PubMed Particulars that these questions could be answered using the Preview/Index function of PubMed. That's because you're astute readers. You pay attention. That's what I like about you.

Preview/Index, however, is an often overlooked functionality of PubMed. As indicated above, it is a good way to narrow a broad search by adding terms. But that's not all it can do.

Ah, but let's begin at the beginning. Where is Preview/Index? Under the search box at the top of the PubMed page is a gray bar with the following links: Limits, Preview/Index, History, Clipboard, Details. Simply click on the words "Preview/Index" to access the page.

Once there, it may look oddly familiar. In fact, it looks a lot like the History page. That's because the last three searches completed are displayed here in the same way they are on the History page. If no searching has been done, there will be a note saying "No history available." (Note: If the current History is cleared, the searches in the Preview screen will also be cleared.) But, scrolling down, the Preview/Index page changes and assumes its own look and feel.

Clearly noticeable is a box that says "All Fields" with a drop-down arrow beside it. Clicking on the arrow, a list of PubMed fields is displayed. Users may select a single field to search or search "All Fields." Adjacent to that is a text box followed by two buttons: "Preview" and "Index." Beneath that, an instruction: "Click AND OR NOT to add a term to the query box."

Using Preview/Index is rather simple, really, once one understands the concepts here. First, select a field to search. Then, in the adjacent box, type the appropriate word or term.

Using the "Preview" button: The Preview button here (as in other places in PubMed) will result in a listing under the history section of this page showing the number of results for this particular search and a providing a hot link to those results.

To add a term to a search: Click on the "AND" or "NOT" or "OR" button beneath the text box. The term will be added to the search box at the top of the page along with the correct field search tag and whatever Boolean connector you chose. This is easy to experiment with. As many terms as are necessary can be added to a search this way.

Using the Index button: To find out how many occurrences of this particular term are in PubMed, click on the "Index" button adjacent to the text box. This will open a new box and in it will be a list of terms followed by numbers in parentheses. As in #4 above, if "garlic" is entered into the text box, "All Fields" selected, and the "Index" button is clicked, the resulting display should look like this:

The word "garlic" appears 1,583 times in PubMed. Of those, 67 of them are "garlic/adverse effects" and 52 are "garlic/analysis" and so on. From this screen, the user can highlight which variation of the word "garlic" will be added to the search. Once highlighted, select from the "AND" or "NOT" or "OR" buttons as mentioned previously.

To find the answer to question #1 above, select "Language" and then click on "Index" for a listing of the various languages represented in PubMed. Of course, counting them all will take some time and will required scrolling down through the listing, but it can be done. This same process will show how many Publication Types are actually used in PubMed.

So, it should be apparent now that using the Index function actually allows users to select terms from a list and add them to the search box (answering question #5 above). Entire search strategies can begin right on the Preview/Index screen.

Selecting multiple terms from the Index list: More than one term can be selected by holding down the "Ctrl" key (PC) or Command key (Mac) on your keyboard and highlighting the terms needed. Then select the appropriate Boolean connector to add them to the search. Please note that terms selected in this manner will be automatically OR'd together.

Before closing this column, it is important to note the use of the "@" signal in conjunction with author names in the Index function. Looking for articles authored by D Colter:

Click to add terms selected from Index to the query box.