Searcher

Searcher is a discovery service that you can use to search many of the Library’s online resources, including e-journals and the Library catalogue, from a single search box. Find out how Searcher can help you discover useful information for your study and research.

Use Searcher

About Searcher

Searcher is a good way to find quality information from reliable sources. You can think of Searcher working like a search engine, but returning content to which the Library subscribes or has in its own collections.

Searcher enables you to search across all of the following Library resources at the same time and, where available, provides easy access to full text:

The Library Catalogue	Library databases
Full text e-journals	Conference proceedings
e-books	Reports
Theses	Images

Use Searcher if you want to …

Find information on your subject from a vast range of sources and in a variety of formats.
Find out what information is available on your subject but are not sure where to start.
Have easy access to the full text of journal articles and be able to save and export the useful information you find.
Discover new and useful sources for your study and research.

Other Library resources may be a better option …

If you want to consult one journal in particular, use the Library Catalogue or e-journal portal or go directly to the journal’s website.
If you want to check availability of one book in particular, you may find it easier to use the Library Catalogue.
If you rely on a particular, specialist resource with additional functionality, then it may be a better option to go directly to that resource via the database A-Z or e-journal portal.

Please be aware some resources are NOT available via Searcher. If you can’t find what you’re looking for using Searcher, check the Library Catalogue, e-journal portal or database A-Z, as the Library may still provide access.

Find full text

Journal articles

Journal article results include a link to a full text PDF (or HTML full text) of the article.

When there is no link to a full text PDF (or HTML) you will see:

Click on this logo to find out if the Library provides access to the full text. If full text is available you will be able to follow the links displayed to read it .

If there are no links to full text here, check the Library Catalogue to find out if print copies of the journal are available. Use the Inter-Library Loans service to request material to which we don’t provide access.

e-books

If full text is available there will be a link provideed in the e-book result.

Refine your results

Use the refine options on the left of the screen to create a more relevant set of results.

You can refine your results by source type and select to only view books or academic journal articles.

You can also refine by date, subject and by publication, or select to limit your results to items from the Library Catalogue or to full text items.

Export your results

When you view the full record of an item you will see options to print, save, cite and export.

Selecting ‘Cite’ provides you with a citation in a variety of styles, including Harvard and MLA.

You can also export to Endnote and other bibliographic software, including the Firefox plugin, Zotero.

Set up your own Searcher account

Set up your own personal Searcher account by following the link, ‘sign in’ at the top of the screen.

When you have set up an account, you can create folders to help you save and manage your results. Your saved results will be available each time you sign in to Searcher.

You can also create alerts to receive notification, either by email or via RSS feed, when new information on your subject is available.

Accessing Searcher

Searcher is available on and off campus via EASE. Signing in to EASE gives you seamless access to available full text resources via Searcher.

Bookmark Searcher's URL:

http://searcher.is.ed.ac.uk

Alternatively, you can find Searcher on the Library channel on MyEd or on the search box on the Library Essentials webpage (you can also search the Library Catalogue and e-journal portal here).