Discusses reuse of existing software for new purposes as a key aspect of efficient software engineering by matching formal written requirements used to define the new and the old software. Explores two matching methodologies that use information retrieval techniques and describes test results from a comparison of two military systems. (Author/LRW)

Discusses 3 D imaging as it relates to digital representations in virtual library collections. Highlights include X-ray computed tomography (X-ray CT); the National Science Foundation (NSF) Digital Library Initiatives; output peripherals; image retrieval systems, including metadata; and applications of 3 D imaging for libraries and museums. (LRW)

Proposes a fuzzy multiset model for information clustering with application to information retrieval on the World Wide Web. Highlights include search engines; term clustering; document clustering; algorithms for calculating cluster centers; theoretical properties concerning clustering algorithms; and examples to show how the algorithms work.…

Discussion of multimedia libraries and the need for storage, indexing, and retrieval techniques focuses on the combination of computer vision and data mining techniques to model high-level concepts for image retrieval based on perceptual features of the human visual system. Uses fuzzy set theory to measure users' assessments and to capture users'…

Discussion of weighted index terms in information retrieval focuses on a method for adjusting index weights by processing text in digital libraries that has been highlighted by users. Considers weights in query processing; feedback sources; active reading while accessing digital documents; collaborative information retrieval; and improving index…

Explores factors in the history of the Open Archives Initiative (OAI) that have contributed to the positive response of the digital library and information community toward version 2 of the OAI Protocol for Metadata Harvesting. Factors include focus on a defined problem statement, an operational model in which strong leadership is balanced with…

Discusses the use of information retrieval techniques for the automatic authoring of hypertext. Presents a typology of hypertext links, describes examples of automatic construction of hypertext, and considers evaluation problems. (LRW)

Discussion of users of information retrieval systems focuses on a machine-learning approach to inferring the user's context in the Okapi system. Results of an evaluation experiment are given, and it is concluded that context learning can help information retrieval systems adapt to users' particular queries. (Author/LRW)

Discussion of information retrieval performance evaluation focuses on a case study using a statistical repeated measures analysis of variance for testing the significance of factors, such as retrieval method and topic in retrieval performance variation. Analyses of the effect of query expansion on document ranking confirm that expansion affects…

Highlights the importance of conceptual and theoretical work in designing information retrieval systems. Examines two epistemological positions leading to different solutions in digital library design: the information transfer perspective and the social constructionist knowledge production perspective. Suggests that noun-based approaches can be…

Discusses user profiles and the performance of information filtering systems used especially with the Web and describes experiments that were conducted to investigate factors that can impact the profile acquisition process, using a medical literature collection. Examines differences between user-provided profiles, machine-built profiles,…

Discusses advancements in imaging technology and increased user access to digital images, as well as efforts to develop adequate indexing and retrieval methods for image databases. Describes preliminary results of a study of undergraduates that explored the attributes naive subjects use to describe scientific diagrams. (Author/LRW)

Explores ways to apply query structuring in cross-language information retrieval. Tested were: English queries translated into Finnish using an electronic dictionary, and run in a Finnish newspaper databases; effects of compound-based structuring using a proximity operator for translation equivalents of query language compound components; and a…

Describes MARS (Museum Archive Retrieval System), a research tool which enables organizations to exchange digital images and documents by means of a common thesaurus structure, and merge the descriptive data and metadata of their collections. Highlights include theoretical basis; searching the MARS database; and examples in European museums.…

Describes the recall precision trade-off in information retrieval as the deceleration in the proportion of relevant documents retrieved over time. Several mathematical functions sharing this property are examined and it is concluded that the equation that best models recall as a function of time is the logarithm of a quadratic equation. (21…