Thesaurus

The thesaurus tool enables you to create a comprehensive list of terms with relational mapping, which can be applied as a backing store to text fields in your metadata schemas. In Metadata Designer, click the Thesaurus icon in the left-hand panel. Existing thesauri will be listed here.

Using the Thesaurus

The thesaurus can be accessed from two field types. These are:

  • Text fields
  • Textareas
  1. Enter a term in a text field or textarea.
  2. If the term exists in the thesaurus, the dropdown displays a list of related terms, terms you could use, broader terms, and narrower terms.

To create a new thesaurus:

  1. In the Thesaurus tab, click the + symbol on the right hand side.
  2. The Create new Thesaurus pop-up is displayed.
  3. In the Name field, enter a name for your thesaurus. You cannot have multiple thesauri with the same name.
  4. From the Visibility drop down, select which accounts, sub-accounts, and groups that you would like the thesaurus to be visible in.
  5. In the Description field, enter an optional description.
  6. Click Create.

To add and delete terms

  1. Once the new thesaurus is created, you can begin to add terms.
  2. Click Add new term and in the field, enter a new term.
  3. Click the + button.
  4. Add as many terms as you would like to your thesaurus. You can also return to your thesaurus to add more terms at a later time.

Managing your Thesaurus

In the Thesaurus tab of Metadata Designer, you can see a list of all your existing thesauri. Here you can perform a number of actions.

  • If you have a large number of existing thesauri, you can sort through the list using the search and sort functionality.
  • You can also filter between Enabled and Disabled thesauri.
  • Clicking on an existing thesaurus will allow you to see the details for it in the right-hand panel.

To search for a thesaurus:

  1. In the Thesaurus tab, in the search box, enter a search term.
  2. Click the Search icon, or hit Enter on your keyboard.
  3. The list of thesauri will narrow down to display only those which contain that term.

To disable a thesaurus:

  1. Find the thesaurus you want to disable and click the More icon on the end of the row
  2. From the drop down menu, select Disable.
  3. You can find the disabled thesaurus by using the filter and sorting by Disabled.

Editing a Thesaurus

You can edit your thesaurus by adding new terms, deleting terms, or changing the relationships between terms. You can also edit thesaurus properties.

To edit a thesaurus:

  1. Choose a thesaurus from the list.
  2. You can open the canvas to begin editing using one of the following ways:
    • Click the More icon on the end of the row and select Edit from the drop down menu.
    • Click on it and in the panel on the right-hand side, click Edit.
    • Double click on the thesaurus you want to edit.
  3. The canvas opens, and you can make changes to the thesaurus, such as edit and add new terms.

To edit thesaurus properties:

  1. Find the thesaurus you want to edit and click the More icon on the end of the row .
  2. From the drop down menu, select Edit to open the panel. You can edit the following metadata fields associated with a thesaurus:
  • Display Name
  • Visibility
  • Enabled
  • Description
  1. Hover over the field you wish to edit and click the Edit icon.
  2. Click the Edit icon and make your changes.
  3. Click the tick icon to save your changes.

To edit a term:

  1. Hover over the term and click the Edit icon, located on the right-hand side of the term.
  2. Make your edits to the term using the panel on the right. It allows you to edit the relationships between your terms.

To delete a term:

  1. Hover over a term and click the Delete icon.
  2. In the Confirm cancellation? box, click Continue.
  3. The term is deleted from the thesaurus.

To delete a thesaurus:

  1. Click the Delete icon.
  2. In the Confirm cancellation? pop up window, click Continue.
  3. The thesaurus is now deleted.

To search for terms

  1. On the thesaurus canvas, click inside the search box and enter a search term.
  2. Click the Search icon, or press Enter.
  3. The list of terms in the thesaurus filters down, to display only those that contain the phrase you have entered.

Creating Relationships Between Terms

The following relationships can be created between terms in the thesaurus:

  • Related Term: When one term is closely related to another term. For example, you might want the word “t-shirt” to be a related term for “clothing”.
  • Use: When you want a specific term to replace the user entered term. For example, “outwear” could replace “clothing”.
  • Used For: When you want to suggest a specific term instead of the user entered term. For example: “outwear” could be used instead of “clothing”.
  • Broader Term: When one term is related to another particular term, but also has a wider meaning. For example, you might want the word “jacket” to be used as a broader term for “blazer”, “overcoat”, and “parka”.
  • Narrower Term: When one term is related to another particular term, but also has a more specific meaning. For example, you might want the word “blazer” to be a narrower term for “jacket”.

To add a relationship between two terms:

  1. Hover over an existing term and click the Edit icon.
  2. In the right-hand panel, select a relationship category, for example NT (Narrower Term).
  3. Click on another term from the thesaurus and drag it into the right-hand panel.

By default, the thesaurus is set up so that you can make the relationships reflexive. For example, if you added “jacket” as a broader term for “blazer”, the thesaurus would automatically make “blazer” a narrower term for “jacket”. If you don’t want a particular term to have a reflexive relationship, deselect the Reflexive checkbox whilst editing that term.

Configuring the Thesaurus as a Backing Store

You must associate your thesaurus with specific fields in a metadata schema in order for users to use it in the user interface.

To associate a thesaurus with a text field in a metadata definition:

  1. In the Metadata Designer, open the metadata schema.
  2. Select a text field or textarea in the definition.
  3. In the Configuration panel on the right-hand side, select the Backing Store check box.
  4. Expand the Backing Store complex.
  5. From the Type drop dow menu, select Thesaurus, and select the thesaurus that you have created (the thesaurus must be enabled to be listed).
  6. From the Filter drop down menu, select a thesaurus.
  7. Click Save to associate the thesaurus with that field.