Comparison of two approaches to building a vertical search tool: a case study in the nanotechnology domain

ABSTRACT

As the Web has been growing exponentially, it has become increasingly difficult to search for desired information. In recent years, many domain-specific (vertical) search tools have been developed to serve the information needs of specific fields. This paper describes two approaches to building a domain-specific search tool. We report our experience in building two different tools in the nanotechnology domain -- (1) a server-side search engine, and (2) a client-side search agent. The designs of the two search systems are presented and discussed, and their strengths and weaknesses are compared. Some future research directions are also discussed.

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INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.3 INFORMATION STORAGE AND RETRIEVAL
      H.3.3 Information Search and Retrieval
          Subjects: Clustering

Additional Classification:
  H. Information Systems
  H.3 INFORMATION STORAGE AND RETRIEVAL
      H.3.3 Information Search and Retrieval
          Subjects: Information filtering; Search process
      H.3.7 Digital Libraries

Keywords:
indexing, information retrieval, internet searching and browsing, internet spider, noun-phrasing, personalization, post-retrieval analysis, self-organizing map, summarization, vertical search engine, web search engine