Bar Ilan Software Support - Chapter 15 Responsa Indexes
Introduction
The Bar Ilan Responsa Program includes two comprehensive, searchable indexes: (1) an index to selected responsa, with hyperlinks to the relevant responsa and to the Shulchan Aruch, and (2) an index of 30,000 articles about halachic topics in 400 periodicals from 1970–2007. This index contains only references to the titles of these articles; the Responsa CD does not contain the actual text of these articles.
You can search for topics in either of these indexes, or you can perform a full-text search on these indexes for any expression of your choice, including names of authors and titles in the Index of Periodicals.
• Each of these approaches has its advantages. Selecting topics from the index directly is likely to make your search faster, although there is a good chance of missing relevant material if you use this option.
Since the indexed responsa are hyperlinked to one another and to the Shulchan Aruch, you can also use the responsa index to locate additional responsa or passages in the Shulchan Aruch dealing with themes discussed in the responsum which you’re currently viewing.
Looking up Topics in the Indexes in the Bar Ilan Responsa Disc
1. From the main menu bar, click Indexes, and then click the name of the index you want to search.
2. Scroll through the list of topics till you reach the topic of your choice. Or click Find Topic, type the name of the topic, and click OK.
If you’re searching the Index of Responsa Topics, click the plus sign next to the topic to open the list of subtopics, and proceed as explained below.
3. After the name of the desired topic or subtopic appears on screen, double-click it, or click it once and click Display Topic.
4. A list of entries will appear in a new window. If you are searching the Index of Bar Ilan Responsa Topics, click the number of the desired entry to display a list of relevant passages; then click the entry of your choice to display the desired text.
• Responsa displays only that section of the responsum or the Shulchan Aruch which deals with the topic you specified. If you want to display the entire responsum or section of the Shulchan Aruch, expand it by clicking the Full Text icon 
.
• After displaying a responsum or part of the Shulchan Aruch this way, you can redisplay the list of topics, index entries, or relevant passages by clicking the Back icon 
on the main toolbar.
• To close the list of entries, right-click the window in which they appear, and then click Close Window.
• You can use the scroll bars to scroll through the list of topics, index entries, or passages located, or alter the size of the relevant display windows by dragging the sliders.
Performing Full-Text Searches on the Bar Ilan Responsa Project Indexes
To perform full-text searches on the Responsa indexes:
1. From the main menu bar, click Indexes. Then click Responsa Index.
2. Click Search. Then specify what type of search you want to perform – simple, regular, or advanced – and type the search text. (You can specify variants when searching the Indexes in the same way as when performing any other search.)
3. Click OK.
4. The list of results will appear on screen. To display the relevant texts in the Bar Ilan Reponsa Software Index, click the numbers of the desired results.
• References to related material in the Index of Periodicals may sometimes be given as You can use the scroll bars to scroll through the list of topics, index entries, or passages located, or alter the size of the relevant display windows by dragging the sliders.
Performing Complex Searches on the Index of Periodicals
1. From the main menu bar, click Indexes, and then click Periodicals.
2. Click Search. Then specify the relevant search parameters - title of the article, author's name, and/or ttitle of the periodical - in the relevant search boxes.
3. Click Search or press Enter OK.
4. The list of results will appear on screen. To display the relevant texts in the Bar Ilan Responsa Index, click the numbers of the desired results.
• Unless you perform an Advanced Search (see below), Responsa will only find exact occurrences of the word you specified. For example, searching for תמר (under Author's Name) will only list references to תמר, but not to תמרי.
• If you type several words in the search box, Responsa will find articles containing all of these words, even if the relevant words do not appear next to one other. For example, searching for בן מאיר (under Author's Name) will find articles both by הרב יהושע בן מאיר and by הרב בן ציון מאיר חי עזיאל. To search for articles containing the exact phrase you specified, click the Search for Exact Words checkbox .
• To perform more complex searches containing prefixes, suffixes, and the like, click Advanced, and then specify the relevant search components.
• References to related material in the Index of Periodicals may sometimes be given as hyperlinks. To display this material, click the links.
• To close the list of entries, right-click the window in which they appear, and then click Close Window.
Displaying Related Responsa
To display other responsa in the Bar Ilan Software Program dealing with topics discussed in or related to the responsum currently displayed:
1. From the View menu, click Subjects. A new window will appear, listing the topics discussed in the responsum currently displayed.
2. Do one of the following:
To locate references in other responsa or the Shulchan Aruch to a topic discussed in the responsum currently displayed, click the number of that topic from the list of topics.
To locate references in other responsa or the Shulchan Aruch regarding related topics, click the words נושאים קרובים. A list of index entries dealing with related topics will be displayed. Click the desired entry to display the items you want to view.
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