NLM Toolbars blog live on Februari 19th 2008

NLM Toolbars blog goes live on Februari 19th 2008.
What could I possible add more to it? Please give me your comments and suggestion.

• If you think I missed any usefull search option as a direct search option, tell me.
• The "grouped" Toolbars that come with the NLM Toolbars are "under construction", but will be completed within the next few weeks.
• A more extended introductory movie will be available soon. For now there is only a "quick and dirty" one.
• If you need just a selection of the long list of search options of the NLM, focussed on a specific subject or research range, please contact me. You could easily use the NLM SearchBox widget. But having created this complete toolbar, allows me to -fairly easily- create, for a selecting of search engines:
• a floating searchbox somewhere on one of the NLM Toolbars, like the QuickSearch on the NLM Toolbar
  
• a searchbox (html) with selected/limited search to be placed on webpage or intranet
• a Netvibes widget (UWA) to add to your personal start page
  

Tags: nlm, toolbar, toolbars, ncbi, pubmed, medlineplus, pmc, nih

NLM SearchBox

Today I added the NLM searchbox to the left menu of this blog. Mainly to show that the widgets can be added to your own Netvibes, but also to several other platforms.
The NLM searchbox has the search options: NLM Gateway (one-stop-search), NLM Website Search (with Vivisimo), MedlinePlus, Pubmed, ToxSeek (Meta-Search), Haz-Map, Free Books & Journals.
See more details of this widget at my collection of Netvibes widgets

Tags: searchbox, nlm gateway, medlineplus, pubmed, Haz-Map, ToxSeek, nlm website, vivisimo

TermFinder Added as Search Option

The TermFinder option is added to the Searchbox of the NLM Toolbar.
Direct link: http://gateway.nlm.nih.gov/gw/Cmd?GMBasicSearch%26loc=nccs

Find terms, their definitions, and related terms, using NLM's MeSH and UMLS Metathesaurus.

Medical Subject Headings (MeSH) is NLM's controlled vocabulary thesaurus. MeSH terminology provides a consistent way to retrieve information that may use different terminology for the same concepts.
NLM's Unified Medical Language System (UMLS) Metathesaurus contains information about biomedical concepts and terms from many sources.

NLM Toolbar : features and info

NLM Toolbars : features and options

1. Purpose and Objectives:
• promote services and resources of the NLM in general, including quick-search facilties in all databases.
• The Toolbar should be and stay freely available for anybody to use.
  
2. Major elements

• link homepage: the NLM logo on the left of the toolbar links directly to the NLM website
• Search : Basic Usage Steps
1. select one database from the drop-down menu, available from the small triange in the left corner of the search box.
   
2. Type your search term(s).
3. Activate the search by clicking on the -button.
4. repeat the search in a different database by changing it from the drop-down menu, available from the small triange in the left corner of the search box. No need to click the -button again.
5. You can add any text selection from any page directly into the search box. Just select it with your mouse. It will be placed into the box, ready to be searched.
6. your search history is saved in the drop-down menu in the right corner of the toolbar and can be re-used at will.
7. Your search history can be deleted/removed via the drop-down menu at the right of the NLM-logo
   
   
• highlight: highlight your search term(s) by clicking the yellow pencil. It will also offer word count. This option can also be used in any document opened within the browser, even without activating a search.
  
  
• News: all available News-feed offered by the NLM are listed in this overview.
  
  • The RSS-icon indicates unread news-items.
  • Moving your mouse over a specific News-feed show a number of news-items, which can clicked to be linked directly to read more.
  • The News-item overview offers options to refresh, delete, mark unread or read.
    
    
• The Whole NLM: this drop-down menu with sub-menus offers an overview of the NLM products and services
  
  
• For: this drop-down menu offers direct links to specific target audience overviews
  
  
• Journals & Books: Overview of the Bookshelf with free e-books, free handheld computer resources and free e-journal via PubMedCentral
  
  
• Movies: experimental overview of available movies and tutorials.
  • movies are shown in "floating" windows that can be minimized or dragged into another place in your screen. It will visible in your screen, even when you browse to other webpages. To drag the window, click and hold your left-mouse-button in the top-region of the window and drag it to the desired place. Click the X to close the window. Click the _ to minimize.
    
    
• About: shows all information about the NLM organisation and it's departments, including visit and contact information
  
  
• Radio/Podcast player: The radio player offers MedlinePlus NLM Directors Comments ánd the NIH podcasts to be listened to directly from this toolbar. The player can be minimized and you can add your selection of favorite radio stations.
  

4. Toolbar Options: Found by clicking on little triange right of the NLM logo, as indicated in the red mark on the next image
   
   
   • Upgrade: only appears when a new version or upgrade is available
     
   • Tell a Friend: noticy someone of this tool if you think it is usefull
     
   • Gadgets: fun elements, but also little little info tool are available, to be activated from your toolbar
     
   • Help: Frequently Asked Questions and their answers
     
   • Privacy: Privacy and Security statements and explanations
     
   • Homepage: Example page with all Search facilities, to be used for people who can NOT install the Toolbar for some reason. Including some News-feeds, a chat function to chat with everyone that has this Toolbar installed.
     
   • About: Version information and Toolbar ID
     
   • Contact: Send an email to Costumer Support with a question or suggestion
     
   • Refresh Toolbar: Use this to refresh Toolbar content, for instance to see if there are News-item just published
   • Clear Search History: Use this to remove the saved search term that you used previously
   • Shrink/UnShrink Toolbar: Shrink the Toolbar to make it even more compressed. To unshrink click again.
   • TOOLBAR OPTIONS Menu:
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   • Personal Components: select or de-select
     
     • email
     • Privacy Component
       
     • weather
     • Online Radio Player: this item is by default included because of the Podcasts of MedlinePlus and the NIH
       
       
       
   • Predefined Components
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     • leave out elements you don't need
       
       
       
   • Useful Components
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     • Useful components that can be activate from the Toolbar
       
       
   • Additional Settings
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     
     • Enable Search Box History
     • Suggest Search from My history Search
     • Clear Search History
     • Send Usage Statistics
     • Enable Selected Text to Search Box (selecting text on the page will send it to the search box)
     • Enable switch back to default Search Engine
     • Show tooltip when community toolbar is detected on a website. Enabling this will give you tooltip screen when you are browsing on a webpage/community that has a Conduit toolbar available.
       
       
     • Grouping
       • Save space for users and offer the option to "toggle"between toolbar
       • Join installation of two or more toolbars into one with +
     • Alerts

Disclaimer: NLM Toolbars are created with Conduit software. Read their Privacy and Security statements here.