Why did my Knowledge Base search not find any results?

Note: Some individuals have access to internal documents based on their ADS group. If you do not find any documents on a subject you expect to be covered, try logging into the Knowledge Base on the upper left.

Tips for searches

The Knowledge Base works best when you construct your searches in a particular way. Following are some guidelines for effective Knowledge Base searches:

• Check your spelling.
  
  
• Use two to five significant words in your search. Using too many words will eliminate many Knowledge Base documents that might contain your answer, while using too few words will give you too many documents to read. Either of the following are good examples: mac os x vpn connection install windows 8
• Try using other forms of the words in your search. For example, if your search for adobe installation doesn't find the document you want, try searching for adobe installing, or better yet, adobe install .
  
  
• Try using synonyms for your search terms. For example, if you don't find anything by searching for windows dead, try windows crash .
  
  
• If you're looking for information that isn't specific to a particular software version, try omitting version numbers in your search. For example, search for internet explorer rather than internet explorer 9.0 .
  
  
• Avoid searching for specific filenames. For example, rather than searching for sndrec32.exe , try looking for windows sound .
  
  
• Many common words (like "the") are ignored in Knowledge Base searches. See In Knowledge Base searches, what words are ignored?
  
  
• Most punctuation marks and single characters are ignored in Knowledge Base searches. See How does the Knowledge Base handle punctuation marks and single characters?
  
  
• Using quotation marks in certain circumstances may help you find what you're looking for; see In Knowledge Base searches, should I use quotation marks?

Information not included in the Knowledge Base

It may be that the information you're looking for isn't in the Knowledge Base at all, perhaps because:

• Your question isn't related to Indiana University or information technology (IT). The Knowledge Base contains mainly IT-related information. If you're searching for medical terminology, for example, you're not going to find the information here.
  
  
• Your question isn't related to systems used at IU (for example, we use PPP, not SLIP). The Knowledge Base is driven by the information needs of the IU IT community.
  
  
• Your question is too specific. The Knowledge Base contains information about questions that are frequently asked at IU. If your question hasn't been asked often, it may not be in the Knowledge Base. However, those at IU can get individualized help by completing the Ask a Question form.
  
  
• The information simply hasn't been entered into the Knowledge Base yet. Staff add and update Knowledge Base content every day, but KB answers do not cover every computing problem. If you need further help, contact your campus Support Center and you will receive prompt assistance.