Online retrieval history; how it all began: some personal recollections

Abstract

Purpose

This paper aims to discuss the history of online searching through the views of one of its pioneers.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper presents, and comments on, the recollections of Jim Hall, one of the earliest UK‐based operators of, and writers on, online retrieval systems.

Findings

The paper gives an account of the development of online searching in the UK during the 1960s and 1970s.

Originality/value

The paper presents the perspective of one of the pioneers of online searching.

Citation

Hall, J.L. (2011), "Online retrieval history; how it all began: some personal recollections", Journal of Documentation, Vol. 67 No. 1, pp. 182-193. https://doi.org/10.1108/00220411111105506