1. Metasearch: Top-Level Interface, Reference Applications
William H. Mischo
Grainger Engineering Library Information Center
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
ALA Annual Meeting
June 25, 2005

2. Metasearch as a Solution
World of distributed, heterogeneous resources require federation and dynamic linking.
Extension of metasearch to reference and portal views.
Aggregated search (e.g. Google Scholar, OAI search--OAISTER) vs. broadcast search.

3. Top-Level Public Interface
Not based on lists of resources.
Customized to subject -- engineering.
Based on user information seeking behavior.
Users looking for known items (citation in hand) or information on a topic.
Utilizes metasearch technologies.

4. Interface Functions Multiple online catalogs – HTTP based.
Journal title – searches e-resource registry, local files, 2 different OPAC searches.
Specific journal article – CrossRef and DOI.
Conference proceedings.
Multiple searches within same resource – OPAC, A & I Services.
Specific reference (citation) – I don’t know what I have.

5. Reference and Training Value
Deployment of algorithmic searches that mimic the behavior of a trained reference librarian.
Integration of OPAC, e-registry, A & Is, Web resources, local databases.
Training tool for graduate assistants.
Performs abbreviation lookups.
Chooses resources for metasearch based on user search terms.

6. Local Multiple Search System
Choose specific resources or resource categories.
Emphasizes discovery function as opposed to merge/de-dupe.
Can present results grouped by resource type and number of hits.
Takes user into native system at point of completed search – we teach native systems.
Citation verification function.

7. UIUC Examples Broadcast Searching over Multiple A & I Services.
Conference Search:
Algorithm: Multiple searches within OPAC for held conference proceeding + EI Village for specific paper and OCLC Proceedings. Failed conference paper search presents similar journal articles.
Journal Finder
Multiple searches: e-resource registry (based on TDNet), local serial databases, two different OPAC searches for holdings. Searches CrossRef for DOI full-text link.