Grainger Engineering Library: An Object-Enhanced User Interface for Information Retrieval

Abstract

Summary Telnet and HTML-based information retrieval user interfaces provide searchers with neither the power nor the flexibility required for effectively searching multiple databases. Nor do they exploit the existing power of PCs or make good use of client-server technology as a whole. lODyne is an example of an information retrieval client that views databases and queries as objects which you can combine arbitrarily. It has a commandless, hypertextual user interface incorporating modelessness, direct manipulation, feedback, and object persistence. It uses multiple windows to show multiple views of databases simultaneously, and allows you to arbitrarily juxtapose these views. Besides bibliographic retrieval, lODyne provides navigational tools for subject thesauri, classification systems, keyword-in-context (KWIC) databases, and other term suggestion services, represented as distributed objects which are all integrated into a seamless drag-and-drop environment. Persistent representations of sets of queries and repositories can be saved and shared among lODyne users. 10-Dyne demonstrates that, with recent advances in computer and network hardware, as well as object-oriented development environments, entire information systems can be designed around the needs of users rather than the limitations of technology.