iFind simplifies the task of finding information from internet sources. Two paradigms exist for using iFind: general exploration of a topic, and specific information search.
When researching with iFind, scan resulting terms to quickly gain insight into a topic and the terminology associated with that topic. Discovered terminology is often a good place to start on iterative searches. Searching on 'bioterrorism' is an example of this type of usage. A search using 'Who was Truman's vice-president?' is an example of searching for a specific piece of information.
To get started, use the following steps:
1. Optional - Select Query Portal and /or Sample Size
You may select the query portal (i.e., search engine) from which iFind will retrieve data. IFind results may vary according to which portal has been selected.
Use the selection box to the right of the portal selection box to set the maximum sample size. Note that the number of results could be less than this maximum depending on the number of documents that are discovered. The selected sample size will directly affect how long Ifind will take to process the entered query. For example, use the smallest sample size for the fastest queries. Default values are available for both.
2. Enter the Query
Use the text box near the top of the iFind window to enter the query that will be used to retrieve a sample. Do not press the <Enter> key until you are ready to begin execution.
Query strings use standard search engine syntax. Multiple case-insensitive terms may be entered (e.g., 'vacation beach January'). By default, iFind assumes an 'AND' relationship between the terms, meaning the resulting sample will always include documents containing allof your terms. Quotation marks may be used to group words into phrases: "civil war photography". Preceding a term with '-' will exclude documents containing that term from the sample (e.g., "civil war" -films -art).
Additional operators: $: Preceding a term with “$”stipulates that it is to be used to “shape” the sample information domain (i.e., used in the search retrieval), but not to influence the subsequent scoring. For example, “ $Shakespeare $plays irony” would sample documents containing Shakespeare, plays, and irony, but focus only on “irony” when ranking individual terms.
3. Execute the Query
Once the query has been entered, execute it by either pressing the <Enter> key while in teh query entry text box, or by selecting the toolbar 'Start' icon (green traffic light).
A moving icon in the upper right hand corner of the dialog will indicate that the iFind session is executing. Text-based session status information (such as the current URL being processed) is displayed in the status bar on the bottom of the dialog.
An executing iFind session can be stopped by either closing the session window or by selecting the toolbar ‘Stop’ button (red traffic light).
4. The Results – Interacting With An IFind Session
IFind results appear in the two large text frames inside the iFind window. The left frame contains the discovered “terms”, and the right frame contains hyperlinks associated with those terms. iFind results may be examined while the session continues to execute.
In the terms frame, Ifind displays a continuously-updated list of terms, sorted based on a rank order value that is computed “on the fly”. The terms may also be sorted in alphabetical order by clicking on the ‘Sort by Term’ button, above the term list.
The list of documents associated with the terms is displayed in the hyperlinks window. Click on the blue hyperlink to display a document using your system’s default web browser.
At any time, you may select one or more terms from the list (using Ctrl-click for multiple selection). The term list will then reflect the union of all terms contained in documents that contain the selected terms (all other terms will be ‘greyed-out’). In addition, the document list will reflect only those documents that contain the selected terms. Selecting the ‘Reset’ Button will clear the selection list.
Ifind provides the capability to influence the scoring of discovered terms. When one or more terms are selected that you feel are particularly relevant to the topic, selecting the ‘Promote’ button will elevate their scoring within the list (and also, to a limited extent, all other terms in the documents containing the selected terms). Similarly, terms that are not especially relevant may be demoted by selecting the ‘Demote’ button. Finally, the ‘Purge’ button will expunge all selected terms and all other terms in the associated documents from the scored list. The ‘Reset’ button will not restore promoted, demoted, or purged terms to their original scores.
Finally, the ‘Launch’ button will open a new iFind session window with an initial query composed of the current query appended with selected search terms. This allows you to explore more detailed, specific paths while maintaining the original session. Pleas note that the new session needs to be explicitly started.