From:
"Sukie Crandall"
Date: 2009-02-12 19:27:04 UTC
Subject: [ferrethealth] using the archives (had several requests for this info recently)
To: ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com
Here are some resources for you if Yahoogroups
completely crashes (unlikely, but we'd rather have
people be able to be helped than not):
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
http://www.miamiferret.org/
http://www.ferrethealth.msu.edu/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/
http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
and people may want to look in the Links section
and bookmark the health links they like.
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/FHL7943
has tips to make searches EASY:
From: Sukie Crandall
To: fhl <ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com>
NOTICE that the FML Archives moved since part of the following first
ran. The FML Archives can be found at
<http://listserv.ferretmailinglist.org/archives/ferret-search.html>
and that this address is in the header of each day's Ferret Mailing
List.
The FHL Archives can be found at
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
and there are multiple links to it from the Ferret Health List homepage.
Okay, below is what I sent on to an FHL member who requested this info
and i will copy this to her, too, to make sure she has the right URLs.
Honestly, the instructions at the FHL Archives and the FML Archives
should suffice because practicing by just trying things is not going to
break anything, but I understand that sometimes having a bit more info
before starting can be reassuring, so I hope this helps.
---
Oh, it is EASY. All it takes is PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE and you
won't hurt anything by practicing.
Use the links in my links page (last of the URLs in my sig lines),
too. Some are dead now, but most still work. I just totally lack
time to redo it.
Also, play around with
http://www.google.com/
Notice that you can click on restricted searches like just images, or
the whole web, or just news, or just scholar, etc.
I actually wrote some past posts on how to search. Let me see if I
can find any of them really, really fast for you.
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/FHL5736
> From: Sukie Crandall
> Date: Fri, 08 Aug 2008 12:34:09 -0400
> To: fhl <ferrethealth@yahoogroups.com>
> Subject: [ferrethealth] EASILY finding info while many are away
>
> This is one of those times of year when many people are gone and the
> rest of us are overworked so getting a personalized reply becomes
> harder.
>
> Luckily, there are wonderful resources!
>
> So, I am going to list some resources and ways to find more, and show
> people step-be-step how to very, very easily do searches. The FHL
> Archives hold about 7 and 1/2 years of data, and the FML goes back
> about 20 years (though I think the archives for that cover about 15
> years).
>
> Here are some recommended resources:
> http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/links
> http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/files/
> http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
> http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
> http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
> http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/
> http://www.ferretcongress.org/
> [Helen has updated the links very recently.]
> http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
> http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
> [I need to go through the links because a few need updating but there
> are links to all sorts of things: sites by vets, sites which have
> some of their write-ups by vets or checked by vets and noted as such,
> rabies info, links pages info, animal abuse and hoarding info, things
> to help handicapped ferrets, animal poison control, further links
> sites, etc.]
>
> The FML Archives has moved since I wrote this
> but this old post will never-the-less help you find
> information. Current FML Archives:
> http://listserv.ferretmailinglist.org/archives/ferret-search.html
>
> At the time this was written the FHL was living
> on Smartgroups (since defunct) after having
> originally had a Yahoogroups address which was
> taken later by someone else. Mike Janke was
> still alive then and Patty Kaczorowski and
> Julie Fossa had not yet joined us FHL moderators.
>
> Thank goodness for Archives! So many of us
> lead very busy lives that unless others who have
> been doing reading have time to answer questions
> there are those day when without the Archives
> answers would not be found.
>
> Links lists are also incredibly useful that way as
> are Files Sections.
>
> > Date: Thu, 31 Aug 2006 18:37:51 +0100 (BST)
> > To: ferrethealth@
> > Subject: [ferrethealth] How to use archives
> >
> > Often I look things up for people, but at times my eyes or the time
> > needs of my off-list life don't cooperate. Knowing how to search and
> > where to search can only help.
> >
> > There are three ferret list archives I regularly use:
> >
> > http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
> > http://listserv.cuny.edu/archives/ferret-search.html
>
> [Change that one above to:
> http://listserv.ferretmailinglist.org/archives/ferret-search.html
> as per note at the start of this post]
>
> > and
> > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ferret-Genetics/
> >
> > In the FHL Archives kindly provided by FHL Co-moderator, Pam Sessoms
> > (There are 5 of us co-moderators.) and her husband, Eric Sessoms,
> > notice that you can either search or you can browse. Try a bit of
> > each to notice that you can be helped by either, depending on your
> > needs at the time.
> >
> > At the top notice:
> >
> > START QUOTE
> >
> > This searchable database contains the complete archive of the Ferret
> > Health List, formerly hosted at YahooGroups, as well as the messages
> > from its current home at Smartgroups. Smartgroups messages are
> > updated daily. The search engine uses Boolean Logic (and, or, not).
> > "Words inside quotation marks" will be treated as an exact phrase.
> > Boolean and is implied where there are adjacent words with no
> > quotation marks.
> > About substrings: Substrings are simply parts of words. Using
> > substrings can be helpful for broadening a search. For example,
> > lympho is a substring for lymphoma, lymphosarcoma, lymphocytes.
> > Similarly, searching for diabet will return messages mentioning
> > either diabetes or diabetic. Simple plurals are handled
> > automatically and do not require substring searching (leg will also
> > find legs).
> >
> > END QUOTE
> >
> > Let's say that you decide to search for post that contain BOTH
> > Epogen and Lupron. In that case the content you are looking for will
> > be
> >
> > Epogen and Lupron
> >
> > Okay, let's say that instead you also want posts that might mention
> > only one of those. Then you will search for posts that contain
> >
> > Epogen or Lupron
> >
> > Going further, let's say that you just found that you want to search
> > on Epogen but you do not want posts that contain the word Lupron,
> > then you will be looking for posts that contain
> >
> > Epogen not Lupron
> >
> > There are three boxes into which you can put what you are seeking.
> >
> > The first says "Search message body for" and that looks at the
> > content to give you your search results. Notice that you can even
> > search for a specific phrase if you just put it inside quote marks.
> > Example:
> >
> > "estrogen precursors"
> >
> > will bring up only posts containing that phrase.
> >
> > Okay, play with those sorts of examples given above. Don't worry.
> > It's easy and safe and you don't have to worry about refining your
> > search yet by filling in other boxes. Most of the times when I
> > search I wind up searching only on content. Sometimes I narrow a
> > search more by also looking for posts from a specific address. It is
> > not often that I use the box covering subject line, but when needed
> > that is incredibly useful.
> >
> > Notice that the search boxes show next to them how some examples for
> > searching can be written.
> >
> > Look at what you find and try refining your search by using multiple
> > boxes. It is safe and it is easy. All that it takes is a little
> > practice, and it doesn't even take much of that because it is so
> > easy to use. Not only does it not bite you, but it rewards you with
> > the data you need once you get used to using it.
> >
> > Okay, let's look at the FML archives which contains a lot of
> > behavioral stuff to help members. Although it looks different this
> > is actually a very similar construction.
> >
> > The FML Archives can be found at
> >
> > http://listserv.cuny.edu/archives/ferret-search.html
> >
> > Notice that you can browse by choosing a month, or you can select
> > the top line which says
> >
> > Search the Archives
> >
> > Click that open.
> >
> > Often I look things up for people, but at times my eyes or the time
> > needs of my off-list life don't cooperate. Knowing how to search and
> > where to search can only help.
> >
> > Notice that there is a difference in how to specify a phrase. This
> > engine used parentheses marks around a phrase instead of quote marks
> > so instead of "lucky ferret" you would write (lucky ferret).
> >
> > Because there are so many years of FMLs in the archives (14 years
> > because the earliest FMLs were never entered, but can be gotten a
> > different way, though without searching) the FML search engine also
> > lets a person narrow the time frame.
> >
> > Examples at the FML Archives illustrate how to write things
> >
> > Okay, let's search for
> >
> > pyrethrins
> >
> > from Jan 2000 - June 2006
> >
> > There are 7 results. Below the results a brief quote from each post
> > appears, most recent first.
> >
> > If you were to search in something with more results you would
> > notice a click on phrase to bring up further results.
> >
> > Mostly, even though it looks different it is like the FML Archives
> > in terms of what you need to do to get it to work well for you.
> >
> > Finally,
> >
> > http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Ferret-Genetics/
> >
> > has the standard Yahoo list search capability. Instead of brain
> > power to refine a search by selecting your words to be searched upon
> > most effectively this one will require some time on your part
> > because once you put what you are searching for in the list search
> > box (instead of the web search box) you will need to keep clicking
> > to the next earlier page till you find what you are seeking.
> >
> > As you see, using archives is actually easy. All that it takes is a
> > little practice, a bit of time, and reasonable vision. (If you do
> > not have reasonable vision find out how your own browser allows
> > words to be enlarged -- sadly not an option for all sites or all
> > pdfs, either.) Mine uses the apple/ clover leaf key plus + to do
> > that. Also check your broswer's view menu for instructions. If your
> > vision is very bad you may need someone to get it going or to
> > initially transcribe the instructions for you. Sadly, most
> > instructions themselves on how to enlarge things are usually in
> > small print which is just plain stupid -- kind of like back when
> > literacy classes used to be advertised in print media instead of by
> > radio or television.
> >
> > (BTW, When you use some other search engines, like Google.com or at
> > Pubmed, you will also find that at times you will want to search
> > using apostophies around a word instead of quote marks or
> > parentheses, for example: 'lucky ferret' or will want to use +
> > before a word to mean "and" such as lucky +ferret, or minus to
> > exclude a word such as ferret -albino, even lucky +ferret -albino.
> > The more you play with fun searches on any topic that interests you,
> > they more you will get used to those minor differences.
Sukie (not a vet)
Recommended ferret health links:
http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/ferrethealth/
http://ferrethealth.org/archive/
http://www.afip.org/ferrets/index.html
http://www.miamiferret.org/fhc/
http://www.ferretcongress.org/
http://www.trifl.org/index.shtml
http://homepage.mac.com/sukie/sukiesferretlinks.html
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