This is a short section meant to assist RAs, reference and other public service staff who are active Halifax Public Libraries blog contributors (for example, contributors to The Reader) or who assist in creating content for special pages on HPL’s website.

With our classic catalogue, Horizon, many of you created linkable or “canned” searches by duplicating the search, copying the link and pasting it wherever you needed it. In our HPL blogs, this helped link into results pages for authors or other timely searches that reflected the topic discussed. On our webpages, such as the Teens page or Readers page, this linkable feature was also used to highlight reading lists. However, with Discover, you will note that when a search is performed, the link does not change.

So, how can we still create linkable reading lists, canned searches or author searches in Discover? While the information below is somewhat detailed, the *basic* structure will help all of you create a simple author or canned search. For the more intricate or detailed searches, you are encouraged to contact Laurel Tarulli, the Collection Access Librarian.

Rather than copying a link, Discover requires that you create a link based on the search you want reflected. Here is the criteria:

Step 1. Always use http://discover.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/?q= as the base for all of your links. You will always build upon this link.

Step 2. Determine what type of link you want to create. Is it to an author? A reading list? A specific “canned” search?

Step 3. Add the appropriate addition onto your base link:

General anyword/anywhere

http://discover.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/?q=

Title

http://discover.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/?q=title:

Author

http://discover.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/?q=author:

Subject

http://discover.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/?q=subject:

ISBN

http://discover.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/?q=isbn:

Reading List

http://discover.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/?q=librarylist:

To read more about the creation of links, see the article How to: Deep Linking in AquaBrowser

Let’s try creating a couple of links!

Example 1. Try creating an author link for Stephen King

Example 2. Try creating a general, anyword/anywhere link for the terms Micmac art

*Tip - create the link IN Discover in the address box

Copy and paste your link into a Word document.

You should have created the links below:

http://discover.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/?q=author:Stephen%20King

http://discover.halifaxpubliclibraries.ca/?q=micmac%20art

The %20 that you see represents the spaces between terms. If you had created a link where Stephen King was either entered without a space like this: StephenKing or had a space but no %20, Discover would remove the space in your link, reading it as StephenKing. The %20 implies a space. Note: the %20 does not appear in the Discover address box - only when you copy and paste it.

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