Conventional wisdom holds that queries to information retrieval systems will yield more relevant results if they contain multiple topic-related terms and use Boolean and phrase operators to enhance interpretation. Although studies have shown that the users of Web-based search engines typically enter short, term-based queries and rarely use search operators, little information exists concerning the effects of term and operator usage on the relevancy of search results. In this study, search engine users formulated queries on eight search topics. Each query was submitted to the user-specified search engine, and relevancy ratings for the retrieved pages were assigned. Expert-formulated queries were also submitted and provided a basis for comparing relevancy ratings across search engines. Data analysis based on our research model of the term and operator factors affecting relevancy was then conducted. The results show that the difference in the number of terms between expert and nonexpert searches, the percentage of matching terms between those searches, and the erroneous use of nonsupported operators in nonexpert searches explain most of the variation in the relevancy of search results. These findings highlight the need for designing search engine interfaces that provide greater support in the areas of term selection and operator usage.

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The COVID-19 pandemic impacted every aspect of the personal and professional lives of healthcare providers. Nursing professional development practitioners are challenged with ongoing classroom education, new hire onboarding, and just-in-time education for staff. This article is intended to present the unique challenges that the COVID-19 pandemic placed on nursing professional development practitioners in a large academic medical center and how opportunities presented to revise old education practices.

. Two of the experimental treatments were based on the type of training the users received. The first of these treatments was the presence or absence of training on the principles of the use of Boolean operators, henceforth referred to as logic training. The second was the presence or absence of training that focused on the specific characteristics of the assisted search interface, which we will refer to as interface training. The third treatment was the type of interface used by the participants, namely, simple or assisted. The impacts of logic and interface training and the type of search interface used on correctness, time, satisfaction, and confidence were measured and analyzed. Given that time is money, Web searching can be a very expensive proposition. Even with the best search technology, the usefulness of search results depends on the searcher's ability to use that technology effectively. In an effort to improve this ability, our research investigates the effects of logic training, interface training, and the type of search interface on the search process. In a study with 145 participants, we found that even limited training in basic Boolean logic improved performance with a simple search interface. Surprisingly, for users of an interface that assisted them in forming syntactically correct Boolean queries, performance was negatively affected by logic training and unaffected by interface training. Use of the assisted interface itself, however, resulted in strong improvements in performance over use of the simple interface. In addition to being useful for search engine providers, these findings are important for all companies that rely heavily on search for critical aspects of their operations, in that they demonstrate simple means by which the search experience can be improved for their employees and customers.

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