1,721,148 research outputs found
A Transfer Report on the Development of a Framework to Evaluate Search Interfaces for their Support of Different User Types and Search Tactics
No full textAs the understanding of search systems, user needs and seeking strategies is developing, the design of search user interfaces is evolving to support more complicated and exploratory forms of search. With the design of new search features that enable these richer modes of exploration, comes the need to better understand the support they provide. In this report a new evaluation framework is presented that analyses search features for how they a) contribute to an overall interface, b) allow users to carry out different search tactics, and c) support different types of users and their needs. The novel contributions of the framework improve on some of the limitations of typical user studies, and allow search systems to be systematically analysed in much more detail and in much less time. The presented evaluation framework is then validated in three ways. First the validity of the models used as the building blocks of the framework are investigated through related work. Second the method of integrating these building-block models is validated and strengthened by consensus of expert opinion. Third, the overall approach is validated by comparing its analyses to the results of previously carried out user studies. The validation process has shown both the value of the framework and identified areas of future work that should be addressed for the framework to be completed. This report concludes with the set of contributions that the framework makes, and why the remaining work will be challenging, but critical to the final design
A Validated Framework for Measuring Interface Support for Interactive Information Seeking
No full textIn this paper we present the validation of an evaluation framework that models the support provided by search systems for different types of user and their expected types of seeking behavior. Factors determining the types of users include previous knowledge and goals. After an overview is presented, the framework is validated in two ways. First, the novel integration of the two existing information-seeking models used in the framework is validated by the correlation of multiple expert and novice analysis. Second, the framework is validated against the results produced by two separated user studies. Further, the refinements made by the first validation technique are shown to increase the accuracy of the framework through the second technique. The successful validation process has shown that the framework can identify both strong and weak areas of search interface design in only a few hours. The results produced can be used to either revise and strengthen designs or inform the structure of a user study
A Nine Month Report on Progress Towards a Framework for Evaluating Advanced Search Interfaces considering Information Retrieval and Human Computer Interaction
No full textThe Exaggerated Role of Perception Within Collaborative Information Seeking
No full textThis position paper proposes a taxonomy of perception in Collaborative Information Seeking. Individual searchers can have limited perceptions of their own information needs. In Collaborative Information Seeking, however, individuals must convey this need to other people, who then may have a limited perception of the message. Further, the information need may be shared by a group and perceived differently by each member. This paper draws upon the notions of perception from key related fields and defines three dimensions of perception in Collaborative Information Seeking: Direction, Communication, and Subject
Using Twitter to Assess Information Needs: Early Results
No full textInformation needs tell us why search terms are used, helping to disambiguate, for example, what exactly people are looking for with queries such as ‘Orange’ or ‘Java’. It is hard to understand goals and motivations, however, from the keywords entered into search engines alone. This paper discusses the pilot analysis of 180,000 tweets, containing search-related terms, to try and understand how people describe their own needs and goals. The early analysis shows that some terms academically associated with searching behaviours were infrequently used by twitter users, and that the use of terminology varied depending on the subject of search. The results also show that specific topics of searching tasks can be identified directly within tweets. Future analysis of the still on-going 5-month study will constitute more formal text analytical methods and try to build a corpus of real search tasks
Keyword Search: Quite Exploratory Actually
No full textThis short position paper describes some evidence found that counters the argument that there are better ways to support exploratory search than keyword search. Instead, this paper suggests that keyword search actually provides people with the freedom to search in relation to their own current state of understanding, rather than in the terms controlled by a search system. The challenge for future exploratory search systems, therefore, may be to maintain and enhance such freedoms
EPrintCast – A Document Repository Podcast
No full textIn this paper, we describe a simple method of reusing an EPrints RSS2.0 feed and Dublin Core meta-data to produce a synthetic-voice podcast that includes both citation and abstract details, which can be easily added to iTunes. Rather than allocating precious time to reviewing the latest institutional releases at work, this system allows users to listen to the details of papers during unutilized time, where the eyes and hands might be otherwise engaged. Early work has already produced the podcast and upcoming work will look at automatically producing a ‘to read’ list with pre-downloaded full texts, based on track ratings given to each item
Evaluating Collaborative Search Interfaces with Information Seeking Theory
No full textDespite the many implicit references to the social aspects of search within the history of Information Seeking and Retrieval research, there has been relatively little work that has specifically investigated the additional requirements for collaborative search software. In this paper we re-assess a recent evaluation framework, designed for individual information seeking experiences, to see a) how it can still be applied to collaborative search software; b) how it can produce additional requirements; and c) how it could be extended in future work to be even more appropriate for collaborative search evaluation. The results of the investigation reveal that it can be used to evaluate the available interactions with collaborative search software, while providing new insights into their requirements. Finally, future work will investigate roles within collaborative groups as a means to extend the framework
Structured Inspections of Search Interfaces: A Practitioners Guide
No full textIn this paper we present a practitioners guide on how to apply a new inspection framework that evaluates search interfaces for their support of different searcher types. Vast amounts of money are being invested into search, and so it is becoming increasingly important to identify problems in design early, while it is relatively cheap to rectify them. The inspection method presented here can be applied quickly to early prototypes, as well as existing systems, and goes beyond other inspection methods, like Cognitive Walkthroughs, to produces rich analyses, including the support provided for different search tactics and user types. The guide is presented as a detailed example, assessing a previously unevaluated search interface: the Tabulator, and so also provides design recommendations for improving it. We conclude with a summary of the benefits of the evaluation framework, and discuss our plans for future enhancements
mSpace: What do Numbers and Totals Mean in a Flexible Semantic Browser
No full textWith the Semantic Web community’s growing interest in Human Computer Interaction, this paper addresses a challenge for user interface design and future shifts in search paradigms. Where browsers using current search paradigms often use numeric values to indicate volumes of sub-hierarchies, future semantic browsers will not be limited to fixed hierarchical datasets, but allow flexible exploration through multiple intersecting domains. With the future use of similar numeric indicators uncertain, research here suggests that the inclusion of such indicators should be based around focal data objects within each information domain. Further research is required, as a significant number of contradicting participant expectations were present. It is the concern of the Semantic Web community to make sure that future btic search paradigms can best support their users
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