Visual Search on databases

A staffer at LS went to TRL for an orientation session and brought back news of this nifty search function in Ebsco products. "Visual Search allows you to search efficiently across broad subjects, and then returns a visual map of results, organized by topic."

Here's how to do it:
Go to an Ebsco product in Ingenieum or All In One Search (MasterFile Premier, Canadian Reference Centre, Alt-Healthwatch or Health Source.)

Choose Visual Search tab above search box.
Type a search term in the Find field and click Search.

You get a visual map which contains:

Circles, which represent categories of results. Categories can include subcategory circles. Click on a circle (category) to explore its contents.

Squares, which represent links to articles. Click on a square to load / read the article.

Moving in the search results:
Move back by clicking outside of a circle or square.
View the entire map by clicking on Top Level on the frame at the top of the map.
There are filters as well - keyword, publication, date.
See Help above for additional information.

This might be handy for visual learners, for younger searchers, to find related topics and to get an overview of a topic.