Search results

This study aims to explore the influence of topic familiarity on the four stages of college students' learning search process.

This study clarified the effects of topic familiarity on students' learning search process by conducting a simulation experiment based on query formulation, information item selection, information sources and learning output.

The results characterized users' interaction behaviors in increasing topic familiarity through their use of more task descriptions as queries, increased reformulation of queries, construction of more purposeful query formulation, reduced attention to a topic's basic concept content and increased exploration of academic platform contents.

This study proposed three innovative indicators which were proposed to evaluate the effects of topic familiarity on college students' learning search process, and the adopted metrics were useful for observing differences in college students' learning output as their topic familiarity increased. It contributes to the understanding of a user's search process and learning output to support the optimization function of learning-related information search systems and improve their effect on the user's search process for learning.

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.

In an earlier paper (Harry & Oppenheim 1993), we described the criteria that we had developed for a standard test procedure for CDROM reviews. In this paper, we describe some evaluations we carried out using the criteria laid out on standard test forms. The purpose of these evaluations was to assess the validity of the criteria and the test forms. Appraisals of products were carried out on CDROM products available in the Library of Strathclyde University.

Clustering the output of a multi‐database online search enables a user to obtain an overview of the information that has been retrieved without the need to inspect any documents that contain only redundant information. In this paper we describe a classification scheme that characterises the degree of relationship between pairs of documents in database search‐outputs and then report the application of a range of clustering methods and similarity coefficients to 20 such outputs. These experiments demonstrate that clustering is capable of grouping documents that are identical to, or closely‐related to, other documents in the search‐output on the basis of their term similarities.

Bib/Search combines a full‐text database, a translator for downloaded files, and an output format translator. The package produces formal bibliographic listings in a variety of standard formats. A concise translation language allows users to define custom output formats and command files. The package includes about a dozen predefined translation files for popular online databases. Bib/Search runs on IBM PC/XT/AT, PS‐2, and compatible computers. The package sells for $385.00, and is available from Bib/Search. PO Box 20503, New York, NY 10009, USA. Tel: (212)477487.

The World Wide Web's search engines are the main tools for indexing and retrieval of Internet resources today. Comparison and evaluation of their performance is of great importance for system developers and information professionals, as well as end‐users, for the improvement and development of better tools. The paper describes categories and special features of Web‐based databases and compares them with traditional databases. It then presents a review of the literature on the testing and evaluation of Web‐based search engines. Different methodologies and measures used in previous studies are described and their findings are summarised. The paper presents some evaluative comments on previous studies and suggests areas for future investigation, particularly evaluation of Web‐based search engines from the end‐user's perspective.

Shopping bots are an important new innovation which support consumers with the product search and identification stage in e‐shopping. This paper reviews the search facilities offered by shopping bots. A number of shopping bots that include books in their product range, have been visited with a view to analysing their search facilities. Using trial searches for three different best‐selling books, title, author, and keyword search facilities available in a number of bots were further investigated. Finally the output from the search in terms of the number of items, and suppliers identified, and the price, was analysed. The effectiveness of bots does not only depend upon search facilities but also depends upon product coverage, and other added value features such as publisher and consumer reviews. Consumer search behaviour, in general, and the way in which consumers will use shopping bots are fruitful areas for further research.

In this series, specifications, properties and test results of microcomputer software for information storage and retrieval are listed and compared. This article is devoted to the previously defined category of end‐user software, sometimes also referred to as bibliographic formatting software. Eight different programs have been tested and assessed: Archivist, BIB/Search, Library Master, Notebook II, Papyrus, Pro‐Cite, The Ref‐Filer and Reference Manager. All programs run under MS‐DOS, though there are also Apple Macintosh versions for Pro‐Cite and Reference Manager. For each of the eight programs about 100 facts and test results are tabulated. All the programs are individually discussed as well.

This article lists and compares specifications, properties, and test results of microcomputer software for information storage and retrieval. Nine different programs which fall into the category of classical retrieval systems (see Part I of this series) have been tested and assessed: BIB/SEARCH, CARDBOX‐PLUS, CDS/ISIS, FREEBASE, HEADFAST, IDEALIST, INMAGIC, NUTSHELL‐PLUS, and POLYDOC. All of them run under MS‐DOS. For each of these nine programs about 100 facts and test results are tabulated. Each program is also discussed individually.