Use the Descriptive Field Search on the left-hand side if you have some information on a specific item, for example

• all documents laid by the Department of Health in 2021,
• all reports by the Oireachtas Joint Committee on Health,
• the 2019 annual report of the National Asset Management Agency (NAMA), or Statutory Instrument No 356 of 2020

How to use the Descriptive Fields Search

1. Use specific terms such as annual report or health act 1947 rather than general terms such as research or policy

Tip: Click on the icon to add additional fields such as another Date of Publication.

2. Click on the icon to remove additional fields.
3. To run the search: Press enter or click the icon at the top

Tip: Click on the Date Laid field to filter by documents laid in a particular period (Yesterday, Last 7 days, or a custom date etc.)

Tip: To clear a previous search and start a new search, click on the icon within the letterbox search at the top of the screen

Tip: If you cannot see the Descriptive Fields search on the left-hand panel, click on the 3 parallel lines icon on the top left corner.

1. Use the letterbox search at the top of the screen when you are looking for a word or phrase within the full text of a document.
2. Type a word or words into the letterbox at the top of the screen.
3. Enclose multiple words in quotes if you are looking for a phrase or concept for example, "artificial intelligence", "carbon offsets", or "land use policy".
   
4. From the list of results, click on the title of each document to jump straight to the page or pages containing the specific word or phrase. The term(s) or phrase will be highlighted in yellow.
5. Click the Next button if there is more than one page on the document with that search term or phrase.
6. Click on the button in the top right corner of a document to return to the initial results list.
   

1. Type forestry in the Creator field and 2021 in the Date of Publication field.
2. Press enter or click the icon at the top

This search is illustrated below:

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches

1. Enter full title Dumping at Sea Act 1996 (Section 5(12)) (Commencement) Order 2021 in the Title field.
2. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Tip: If you get no results:

1. Shorten the Title to Dumping at Sea Act 1996
2. Enter 2021 in the Date of Publication field
3. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches

1. Type health in the Creator field
2. Choose Last 7 Days in the Date Laid field
3. Choose Statutory Instruments from the Subcollection drop-down list
4. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Tip: If you get no results, try broadening out the Date range in the Date Laid field to the Last Month instead of the Last 7 Days.

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches

1. Choose Post-enactment reports from the drop-down list in the Subcollection field
2. Type 2020 in the Date of Publication field
3. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Tip: You can search for multiple years by adding extra Date of Publication Field(s):

1. Hover your mouse on the right side of the Date of Publication field to display the icon
2. Click on the icon to add another Date of Publication field
3. Type an additional year in the new Date of Publication field
4. Press enter or click the icon at the top

For example:

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches

1. Choose Oireachtas Publications from the drop-down list in the Collection field
2. Type horses in the Title field
3. Type 1989 in the Date of Publication field
4. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches

1. Type COM (2021) 170 in the Title field
2. Type justice in the Creator field
3. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches

1. Type work programme in the Title field
2. Type joint committee in the Creator field
3. Type 2021 in the Date of Publication field
4. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches

1. Choose L&RS Publications from the drop-down list in the Collection field
2. Type cervical* in the Title field
3. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Tip: Use the * symbol (which is known as a wildcard) to find the word cervical as a stand-alone word and also where it is part of a phrase or joined to another word (in this case CervicalCheck)

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches

1. Type in edward fitzgerald in the Title field
2. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches

1. Type "Dublin and Kingstown Railway" in the full text or letterbox search on the top of the screen
2. Press enter or click the icon at the top

This search is illustrated below:

You can run this search by clicking on this link.

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1. Type Investment in Education in the Title field
2. Type 1965 in the Date of Publication field
3. Press enter or click the icon at the top

Tip: If you can’t find the document, extend your search to other years by adding additional Date of Publication fields:

1. Hover your mouse on the right side of the Date of Publication field to display the icon
2. Click on the icon to add another Date of Publication field
3. Type an additional year in the new Date of Publication field
4. Press enter or click the icon at the top

This extended search is illustrated below:

Jump back to the list of Sample Searches