You could of course simply split the single (cfa AND analyst) OR (mba AND marketing) search into two separate searches, but the point is that you should not have to, and you would not have to if Google actually adhered to basic Boolean logic. Let’s see what Google does with it:Īs you can see, Google once again defies the Boolean logic of the search, returning results that mention 1 or more terms from both sides of the OR operator. That search, according to the Boolean logic, should not return any results that mentions of CFA and analyst as well as mentions of MBA and marketing – they should be mutually exclusive. Google also does not allow users to create searches with the following logic: (inurl:resume | intitle:resume) “business analyst” (requirement | requirements) -(job OR jobs OR sample)Īccording to the Boolean logic of the search, we should not have any results with the words “job,” “jobs,” or “sample.” Here is a screenshot the first page results – you can easily see that the search is actually returning results with the words sample, job, and jobs, defying the Boolean logic of the search string. Let’s look at the results when we try and run this search string on Google: For example, although Google supports Boolean search strings containing AND, OR, and NOT (with the minus sign) functionality, you cannot use the NOT/- operator on an OR statement.
#Boolean search logic linkedin full
What’s especially ironic about the wide spread perception that Boolean = Internet search is that most Internet search engines don’t even support full Boolean logic. That’s the equivalent of a Boolean search string that contains over 60,000 words and is approximately 120 pages long! Internet Search I got tired of entering words into LinkedIn’s search bar after cramming 316,638 characters into it. If you haven’t already, please read this post I wrote that compares searching LinkedIn using LinkedIn’s search interface with searching Linkedin using Google and the x-ray technique. In fact, it appears that you can create Boolean search strings of unprecedented length and complexity on LinkedIn. While most social networks are painfully difficult to search with their extremely limited search interfaces, LinkedIn does support creating search strings employing full Boolean logic. As I have written about many times before, Monster even supports “extended” Boolean search functionality with the incredibly powerful NEAR operator. In contrast – all of the major job board resume databases (Monster, Careerbuilder, Hotjobs, Dice, etc.) support full Boolean logic. While there are some applicant tracking systems on the market that do support full Boolean logic, it is an unfortunate fact that too many ATS’s available today do not support creating searches using full Boolean logic, which significantly handicaps sourcers and recruiters from leveraging their internal corporate candidate databases. The CPAS search interface allowed me to hand-code highly precise and effective Boolean search strings using all three standard Boolean operators: AND, OR, and NOT.
If it didn’t support full Boolean logic, this blog would probably would not exist – and if it did, I wouldn’t be writing it.
Although the CPAS product (which no longer exists) was far from a fully featured Applicant Tracking System, thankfully it did support full Boolean logic, with very few limitations. (Before Google) when my sole source of candidates was a Lotus Notes resume database by the name of CPAS, made by VCG.
I was first exposed to Boolean search back in 1997 B.G.
Now that you know Boolean logic was created in the 1800’s – it’s pretty obvious that Boolean logic is not just for searching for people and information on the Internet. Practically any information system from which you need to search and retrieve information from “speaks” Boolean to some extent, whether you realize it or not. Boolean Logic is the basis of modern computer logic, and George Boole is regarded in hindsight as one of the founders of the field of computer science. The word “Boolean” comes from the man who invented Boolean Logic in the 19th century – George Boole. If you read certain sourcing and recruiting blogs and discussion groups, you might get the impression that Boolean search pretty much equals Internet search – such as searching for people and profiles using Google, Yahoo, or other search engines. Some sourcing and recruiting professionals may be surprised to learn that Boolean logic significantly predates the Internet and even computers – by a couple hundred years!
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