Utilizing visualisation for improving Web search effectiveness

Abstract

The nature of The Web implies heterogeneity, large content, and varied structures. Locating results that suit the needs of every individual is complicated and difficult, and not always feasible. Most conventional search engines return a small fraction of results per display in textual format. To find their intended documents, users have to scroll over multiple pages while reading plenty of text. Visualisation techniques can increase the possibility of displaying large sets of results without losing the ability to show many relevant features of individual search ‘hits’. Moreover, integrating the user in the process of query reformulation — by visualizing the process itself — is suggested to benefit the overall search relevance. This paper explores research concerned with visualizing the process of query reformulation and results rendering in Web search. The paper also provides research recommendations for further work intended for integrating visualisation into the process of Web information retrieval.