Online Search Interface Design

Abstract

There is a huge amount of information and data stored in publicly available online databases that consist of large text files accessed by Boolean search techniques. It is widely held that less use is made of these databases than could or should be the case, and that one reason for this is that potential users find it difficult to identify which databases to search, to use the various command languages of the hosts and to construct the Boolean search statements required. This reasoning has stimulated a considerable amount of exploration and development work on the construction of search interfaces, to aid the inexperienced user to gain effective access to these databases. The aim of our paper is to review aspects of the design of such interfaces: to indicate the requirements that must be met if maximum aid is to be offered to the inexperienced searcher; to spell out the knowledge that must be incorporated in an interface if such aid is to be given; to describe some of the solutions that have been implemented in experimental and operational interfaces; and to discuss some of the problems encountered. The paper closes with an extensive bibliography of references relevant to online search aids, going well beyond the items explicitly mentioned in the text. An index to software appears after the bibliography at the end of the paper.

What is used during cognitive processing in information retrieval and library searching? Eleven sources of search information

“…Allen points out these categories may not be mutually exclusive, nor exhaust all possibilities. Vickery and Vickery (1993) distinguish between experience with computers, in librarianship and of information retrieval. They also say that user models in online interfaces may include knowledge of subject domain, databases, IR systems, and IR technique.…”

“…Allen ( 199 1) points out that domain knowledge can vary in both degree and how it is organized. One can also measure the width and depth of a searcher's knowledge of a subject domain (Vickery & Vickery, 1993). Are there degrees of domain knowledge that crucially affect search behavior?…”

Fifty years of UK research in information science

“…The growing desire for flexibility in handling retrieval problems soon suggested the possibility of employing techniques from the developing world of artificial intelligence. This has led to the construction of a number of intelligent interfaces for use in online searching, including valuable work in the UK [31]. As yet, most of the systems that have been devised have remained experimental.…”

Supporting ease-of-use and user control: desired features and structure of Web-based online IR systems

“…When Vickery and Vickery (1993) criticized the over-elaborated existing interfaces, they called for the need to design simple systems that allow flexible dialogue between user and the system. Hendry and Harper (1997) proposed the creation of an informal information-seeking environment to reduce the problem of over-determined information system.…”