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WorldCat Local search-related FAQs

• How does relevancy ranking work in WorldCat Local?
  

  WorldCat Local determines relevancy in the same way as WorldCat.org, but also factors in the holdings of your library to elevate items in search results.

  WorldCat.org's proprietary algorithm produces relevancy ranking for a standard, nonindex-specific search by evaluating the appearance and proximity of the search terms in fields within WorldCat records. Primary weight is given to title; secondary and tertiary weights are given respectively to author and subject. The algorithm also matches against other bibliographic fields, but these three receive the most emphasis. Also considered is how recently an item was published or released and how many WorldCat institutions hold the item.

• Does WorldCat Local searching support search of eBook full text?
  
  No. eBook searching is performed at the metadata level.
• Can users limit search results to only available items?
  
  No. WorldCat Local does not currently have the ability to limit to only available items.
• Is there a way to limit search results to one location?
  

  Yes. WorldCat Local supports scoping of search results. Scoping is based on how a library has set up ranking of search results. For example, libraries can set the default scope to display just items held by their library or by their consortium (which would include their holdings) or all libraries in WorldCat).

  In addition, WorldCat Local supports branch-level scoping. OCLC will work with libraries during their retrospective batch project to set Local Holdings Records to identify items held in their branches.

• How does the FRBR algorithm used in WorldCat.org affect a library's local holdings display in WorldCat Local?
  

  Items derived from a source work are combined into work sets using the FRBR algorithm developed by OCLC Research. Multiple-language items are placed into their own work sets so that they may be represented separately within the search results.

  On WorldCat.org, the representative records for the work sets are those items that are the most widely held; in WorldCat Local, the representative records for the work sets are those items that are the most widely held or the most widely held that are also held by the institution/group.

  All items in a work set may be discovered under the Editions link in the detailed WorldCat record.

• What are OCLC's plans to expand searching to include non-OCLC databases?
  

  OCLC plans to expand the eContent that users reach when they search WorldCat Local to include additional sources.

  Some content will be indexed within WorldCat. Examples of this are article-level records for GPO, ArticleFirst®, MEDLINE, ERIC and the British Library Inside Serials that are already included in WorldCat. OCLC has also announced plans to index article-level records from MLA, H. W. Wilson, and EBSCOHost published databases in WorldCat. Some content may be accessible through a planned metasearch option.

  OCLC and Index Data are working together to extend the discovery capabilities of WorldCat Local to include licensed and full-text resources of a library. This functionality will be available July 2009.

  Register now for e-mail updates about enhancements to the service.

• Can library staff control the order or composition of the faceted results? For example, could staff remove or rearrange facets?
  
  Facets related to result sets are not configurable. OCLC may revise, add or remove facets depending on user feedback and usability testing on the use of the WorldCat.org service. Facets are currently presented by frequency of use.

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