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#96299 - 04/23/08 11:10 AM
Dorlands online
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MidlifeMommy
Member
Registered: 02/03/06
Posts: 111
Loc: Asheville, NC
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What do you think of the changes to the Dorlands online dictionary? My opinion is that I prefered the old version of it. Takes too long to get to what I'm looking for now.
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#96312 - 04/23/08 01:15 PM
Re: Dorlands online
[Re: MidlifeMommy]
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AnnR
Member
Registered: 12/31/69
Posts: 18473
Loc: Ocean Park WA
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I agree 100%. Seems like they tried to make it really annoying so that people would buy the book instead of relying on the On-line version.
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so many docs dictate stuff that makes sense only to them. . .
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#96327 - 04/23/08 05:29 PM
Re: Dorlands online
[Re: AnnR]
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carolT
Member
Registered: 07/06/99
Posts: 1644
Loc: Canada
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I HATE it. The thing I use it most for is browsing through lists of things to find the one I want -- as a test, I looked up syndrome and found only three entries! What good is that?
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carolT
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#96356 - 04/24/08 02:59 AM
Re: Dorlands online
[Re: carolT]
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HoosierFemme
Member
Registered: 09/28/05
Posts: 1132
Loc: Parisian suburbs, France
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Yeah, I don't like how when you look up a word, that is all you see. Before, you could see all the other words that were on that page in the dictionary. Now it's just the word you look up. The only plus is that it seems to be a tiny bit faster as far as looking up the word.
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The French motto is "Liberté, Egalité, and Get Out of My Way." English author Stephen Clarke
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#96361 - 04/24/08 08:38 AM
Re: Dorlands online
[Re: HoosierFemme]
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14tonks
Member
Registered: 10/25/01
Posts: 6295
Loc: Only 3rd world country in US
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Are people discussing the Merck version of Dorland's online or the actual Elsevier Dorland's online? I get the feeling some are referring to one and some to the other, but I may be mistaken.
As nearly as I can tell, Merck is now providing only either the compact or consumer version of Dorland, although I have not taken the time to investigate that thoroughly. This is similar to Stedman, for which most online versions, including that at Stedman's own site, are a limited subset of the entries in the full dictionary. The Elsevier site does have the full Dorland, but word search versus browse works only for subscribers.
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#96364 - 04/24/08 09:05 AM
Re: Dorlands online
[Re: 14tonks]
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14tonks
Member
Registered: 10/25/01
Posts: 6295
Loc: Only 3rd world country in US
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Okay, I take it back--Merck does seem to have the full content, it's just that they have limited display.
Here is the best workaround I know, and I will note that it works for sites other than Merck/Dorland. OneLook (www.onelook.com) has a number of sophisticated search features that very few people seem to either know about or use. One is the ability to do a search on just one dictionary by going to browse dictionaries, selecting that dictionary, and clicking on more info. The search box that comes up searches on only that dictionary and supports OneLook's extensive wildcard features as well.
So, if you want to get a list of all the syndrome entries in Dorland, go to http://www.onelook.com/?d=mrk. That is the more info page you get when you do a dictionary browse to medical, Dorland. Then enter * syndrome as your search word. Bada-bing, bada-boom, an alphabetical listing of all the syndrome entries in Dorland from which you can click on the links to go to the various definitions. Considering the number of hits you will pull with that particular search, though, you probably want to do a little additional wildcard filtering based on what you can hear clearly and/or apply a concept filter to the search to winnow it down based on other likely words in the definition.
ETA: Do remember that OneLook provides special characters for a wildcard on any consonant/any vowel that can really speed a focused search on a somewhat slurred word. The crossword pattern:clue reverse dictionary search can also be extremely helpful. Check OneLook's Help file for detailed information if you are not familiar with how to use these.
Edited by 14tonks (04/24/08 09:12 AM)
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#96365 - 04/24/08 09:22 AM
Re: Dorlands online
[Re: 14tonks]
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14tonks
Member
Registered: 10/25/01
Posts: 6295
Loc: Only 3rd world country in US
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Further investigation shows that although Merck has the full content, you will not get a definition page for all words. You will, however, get a link at onelook if you use a wild card for the search. In other words, you can no longer get to a definition for hypercholesterolemia, and entering that in the search box will give you no returns. Entering h*cholesterolemia or other wildcarded variants, however, will show you that the word is in the full Dorland (i.e., h*cholesterolemia will show links to hypercholesterolemia and hypocholesterolemia, but neither will actually take you to a definition page any longer since these words are not in the abbreviated version of Dorland Merck is now offering). Furthermore, you can still get to the hypercholesterolemia definition using browse at Merck, and the search box there will also give you the dictionary link for the word. Curiouser and curiouser as they say.
Obviously Elsevier does want you to buy the latest edition and use only the registered users search at their site and has changed their licensing terms with Merck. Whether the workaround is sufficient for your purposes probably depends on what's on your bookshelf and what you need to search on.
Edited by 14tonks (04/24/08 09:35 AM)
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