GUIDE TO THE BIBLIOGRAPHY

Last updated: 29 September 2002

Cardbox

The Bibliography is held on Cardbox® for Windows™ - a data storage and retrieval system that will search, sort, and print the data as required.

Cardbox is user-friendly: i.e., the screen will usually prompt you as to the possibilities you may take advantage of (or give you instructions) and indicate the keys to press.  There is an on-line Help file which is a copy of the standard Help file for Cardbox for Windows. It refers to some features that do not exist in the Cardbox Client, or are implemented differently.

This Help file will be replaced by a fully comprehensive and accurate one in due course.  Meanwhile, it is provided as a general guide to Cardbox.

To the left are listed reference pages which give particular information about using the Bibliography database.

In addition, certain abbreviations are used in the ‘NB’ (notes) part and in some other parts of the Bibliography, and which are needed in order to retrieve some data.  For example, if you want to find items about 'To the Lighthouse', you need to know the abbreviation ‘TTL’.

The database

'Virginia Woolf Bloomsbury' contains the ‘index cards’ which make up the Bibliography.

The Cardbox Client

To run and search the database, you require the Cardbox Client, which is available for free download.  If you do not already have the Cardbox client installed, please download it now.

This link takes you to the Cardbox company's own website, to the 'System requirements' web-page.  If you look at the top and you have Windows 98 or above, you should be OK.  (I do not think that Apple Macs will be able to use the Cardbox client.)  If you have Windows 98 or above, click on 'Downloading' in the left-hand column.

This takes you to the 'Downloading the client' page.  Click on the yellow F next to Cardbox Client (6 MB).  You will then get instructions about downloading.  Choose 'Save this program to disk' option.

All of this is free.  

In summary, you will have to:
·    Download the Cardbox client.
·    Install the downloaded program.
·    In most cases, close the browser and re-open it so that it recognises Cardbox links.

Once you have the Cardbox client installed, double-click on the icon on your desktop, then click on File: Open.  Ensure that database.cardbox.net appears in the Server box; if necessary, click on View and then on Virginia Woolf & Bloomsbury.  Then click on Open.

Tips

If you intend using the Bibliography more than once, it is suggested that you note the date in the last line of the last record, so that on returning to the Bibliography at a later date you can search for new records.  For example, if the last date was 2001.10.19 (yyyy.mm.dd), use the SEARCH button to Select: Field=RF, Search for=2001.10.20:
This will select all records added after 19 October 2001 (without the colon, only records added on 20 October 2001 will be selected).
Also, keep an eye on What's new.
While new records are added to the DB from time to time, existing records are generally neither deleted nor amended.  It is (just) possible that I may have further information about incomplete existing records.