Department of Agriculture and Food, Western Australia : Finding information on DAFWA Online
Finding information on DAFWA Online
You can find information on DAFWA Online by browsing or searching.
Main Navigation
The top section appears the same across the whole website. It provides information on corporate information [ABOUT US], coming events [EVENTS], advertised vacancies [JOBS@AG], publications listed by subject and by series [PUBLICATIONS] and help [HELP] on using the DAFWA Online website and the basic and advanced search functions.
The left column provides top level topics and allows users to drill-down further to more specific topics.
You can return to the Department's homepage at any time, by clicking on both logos on the top banner or selecting the HOME button on the navigation bar.
The bottom navigation bar (footer links) provides information on Disclaimer, Privacy, Copyright, Site Map and Contact details.
View by Topics
Select a topic of interest from the left column - 'View by Topics'. Information related to this topic will be displayed in the middle column.
To view a document, click on the title link (underlined in blue text). The content will display in the middle column. To return to your previous selection list, select the topic again from the left column.
If the document selected is a PDF file, it will open in a new browser window. To return to your previous screen, close the browser. You can choose to view a text version of the PDF file by selecting the 'View as Text' link.
The middle panel will display information related to the topic selected or you can drill down further and View the Sub Topics.
View by Sub-Topics
You can drill-down to more specific information from the list of related sub-topics which appear when you select a Main Topic e.g. Animals + Animal Products.
To select a sub-topic click on the sub-topic.
Information related to the sub-topic you have selected will be displayed in the middle column.
To view a document, click on the title link (underlined in blue text). The content will display in the middle panel. To return to your previous selection list, select the sub-topic from the right column.
If the document selected is a PDF file, it will open in a new browser window. To return to your previous screen, close the browser. You can choose to view a text version of the PDF file by selecting the 'View as Text' link.
View by Topics / sub-topics - refining your display
You can refine the information returned when 'viewing by topic'. By changing the 'Limit Content in Topic To' option at the top of the page, you can filter your content to display only certain selections. After making your selection, click on the GO button to activate your selection.
The information returned is automatically sorted by date (latest information displayed first), however, you can choose to sort by title from the drop-down list. Click on the GO button to activate your selection.
Searching DAFWA Online
You can also find information on the website using the search functions. The easiest way to search is to type in a word or phrase into the 'Search for' box at the top right hand corner and click on the GO button. This will return a listing of all documents containing those words.
To view the document, click on the title (underlined in blue text). For PDF files, you have the option to view the document in a 'Text only' version. Click on the 'View as text' link to view the document in a text only version.
You can filter your search results further by selecting from the 'Limit Topic To' drop-down list. You can also change the sort order of your search results by selecting from the 'Sort By' drop-down list. Sorting by date will display results in descending date order - latest items first.
The search will return fully matching documents - matched ALL of your search words and partially matched Documents - matched ANY of your search words are displayed last.
Other filtering options are available from the Advanced Search page. The Advance Search is available from the top navigation bar. You can set a number of filter combinations to return a more specific search by typing in your search words in the 'Search for' box and the selecting from the drop-down boxes. Click on the GO button to activate your search. Results returned are restricted to the combination you selected above.
Filtering options available from the Advanced Search page:
Title search: Searches for documents that match the search term(s) in both the 'Search for' box and the title box. Query example: Type in the word sheep in the 'Search for:' box, type in the word lupins in the Title box. Click on the GO button. Result: Returns all documents containing the word sheep and has the word lupins in the title.
Publication Items: Searches for documents that match the search term(s) in both the 'Search for' box and the selected Publication Item from the Publication Items drop-down list Query example: Type in the word sheep in the 'Search for: 'box, select Farmnotes from the Publication Items drop-down list. Click on the GO button. Result: Returns all Farmnotes available on the website with the word sheep.
Topics: Searches for documents that match the search term(s) in both the 'Search for' box and the selected topic from the Topics drop-down list Query example: Type in the word sheep in the 'Search for: 'box, select Agribusiness + Markets from the Topic drop-down list. Click on the GO button. Result: Returns all documents available on the website with the word sheep which are related to the Agribusiness + Markets topic.
Search by date: Searches for documents that match the search term(s) in both the 'Search for' box and the publication dates Query example: Type in the word sheep in the 'Search for: 'box, select farmnotes from the Publication Items drop-down list, select 01 Jan 2005 from the Published After drop-down list. Click on the GO button.
Result: Returns all farmnotes available on the website with the word sheep which are published after 1 January 2005.
Search in Archive: Searches for archive documents that match the search term(s) in the 'Search for' box.
Query example: Type in the word sheep in the 'Search for: 'box, select Archives from the Search in drop-down list. Click on the GO button. Result: Returns all documents available on the website archive with the word sheep.
Sort your results: you can sort your search results by relevance, date or title. Select from the Order by drop-down list. Query example: Type in the word sheep in the 'Search for: 'box, select Archives from the Search in drop-down list. Select Date from the Order by drop-down list. Click on the GO button. Result: Returns all documents available on the website archive with the word sheep in descending date order (31 January listed before 1 january).
If your search returned zero documents, you can broaden your search if the search is too specific, or if your search is too generic, you can narrow your search using the options available in the right hand column. Example: the search term sheep returned 1,346 documents. You can refine your results to ewes, lambs or lambing by selecting the option under the 'See also' section on the right column.
Viewing PDF documents
To view PDF documents you will need Adobe Acrobat Reader plug-in, which is free. If you do not have a copy of the reader, you can download a copy from the Adobe website.
PDF documents will be opened in a new browser window. To save a PDF document, choose the 'SAVE' button from the PDF toolbar. To print, a PDF document, choose the 'PRINT' button from the PDF toolbar.
Older browsers are not supported, as they will not render this website correctly.
Screen Resolutions
This website is designed to be viewed on screen resolution 800 by 600 pixels or higher. To set your monitor to display at this resolution, change your resolution in the 'Display' option under Control Panel.
Steps:
Click on START, select SETTINGS, then CONTROL PANEL
Double click on DISPLAY
Select the SETTINGS tab
Drag the bar under SCREEN AREA to the right to increase your screen resolution
Click OK
After the settings have been changed you may need to close and re-open your browser
You should have your browser maximised to take advantage of the screen space. To maximum your browser, click on the 'Maximise' icon on the top right hand corner.
If you are looking for a topic/subject and cannot find it, there may be no content on that topic. However, we may be able to provide you with a contact or help you find the information from other sources (eg: library), if you contact the Department on +61 8 9368 3333 or by email: libenquiry@agric.wa.gov.au
If a page you are looking for has expired, please advise us (webteam@agric.wa.gov.au) so we can correct the link. Please provide the URL of the page you are trying to access.