VDOT OneSearch: Quick Start Guide: About

VDOT OneSearch is a special online tool that allows VDOT employees to search all of the library's core engineering, business and transportation databases (both subscription and public) simultaneously and return results from those sources in real time. It also lets you search across multiple VDOT information silos, including VDOT's Youtube Channel, Flickr Photostream and News Release Archive. Because it can be such a huge timesaver (especially if you need to search multiple databases to be reasonably thorough) we often tell patrons: If you only have time for "one search" consider using OneSearch!

A basic search is fast and easy. From the main search screen simply enter search terms, set limits, select databases and click "Search" (as shown below):

Step 1: Type in simple search terms.
Step 2: Enter limits if you want (Ex: date range, full-text only...)
Step 3: Select which database or database "Categories" you want to search. Note: By default all 25 databases are selected. The next section shows options.
Step 4: Click "Search" to start receiving results.
 

HINT: Covered bridges, shown in the example above, is a specific search term, but since it is a phrase (two words put together to express a single concept) OneSearch will look for resources with either word in any order. To search multiple words together as a phrase simply use quote marks around them, like this: "covered bridges"