Knowledge workers such as healthcare information professionals, legal researchers, and librarians need to create and execute search strategies that are effective, efficient and error-free. The traditional solution is to use command-line query builders offered by proprietary database vendors. However, these are based on an archaic approach that offers limited support for the validation and optimisation of their output. Consequently, there are often errors in search strategies reported in the literature that prevent them from being effectively reused or extended. In this paper, we demonstrate a new approach that takes inspiration from software development practice and applies it to the challenge of search strategy formulation. We demonstrate a prototype ‘debugger’ which provides insight into the construction and semantics of search strategies, allowing users to inspect, understand and validate their behaviour and effects. This has the potential to eliminate many sources of error and offers new ways to validate, optimise and re-use search strategies and best practices.

Knowledge workers (such as healthcare information professionals, patent agents and legal researchers) need to create and execute search strategies that are accurate, repeatable and transparent. The traditional solution offered by most database vendors is to use proprietary line-by-line 'query builders'. However, these offer limited support for error checking or query optimisation, and their output can often be compromised by errors and inefficiencies. Using the healthcare domain for context, we demonstrate a new approach to search strategy formulation in which concepts are expressed as objects on a two-dimensional canvas, and relationships are articulated using direct manipulation. This approach eliminates many sources of syntactic error, makes the query semantics more transparent, and offers new ways to optimise, save and share search strategies and best practices

Knowledge workers such as patent agents, recruiters and legal researchers undertake work tasks in which search forms a core part of their duties. In these instances, the search task often involves formulation of complex queries expressed as Boolean strings. However, creating effective Boolean queries remains an ongoing challenge, often compromised by errors and inefficiencies. In this paper, we demonstrate a new approach to structured searching in which concepts are expressed as objects on a two-dimensional canvas. Interactive query suggestions are provided via an NLP services API, and support is offered for optimising, translating and sharing search strategies as executable artefacts. This eliminates many sources of error, makes the query semantics more transparent, and offers an open-access platform for sharing reproducible search strategies and best practices.

Professional search is a problem area in which many facets of information retrieval are addressed, both system-related (e.g. distributed search) and user-related (e.g. complex information needs), and the interface between user and system (e.g. supporting exploratory search tasks). Professional search tasks have specific requirements, different from the requirements of generic web search. The aim of this workshop is to bring together researchers to work on the requirements and challenges of professional search from different angles. We will have an interactive workshop where researchers not only present their scientific results but also work together on the definition of future challenges and solutions with input from information professionals. The workshop will deliver a roadmap of research directions for the years to come.

Lexis Answers is a question answering service deployed within a live production system. In this paper we provide an overview of the system, an insight into some of the key AI challenges, and a brief description of current evaluation techniques.

Search is not just a box and ten blue links. Search is a journey: an exploration where what we encounter along the way changes what we seek. But in order to guide people along this journey, we must understand both the art and science of search experience design. The aim of this tutorial is to deliver a course grounded in good scholarship, integrating the latest research findings with insights derived from the practical experience of designing and optimizing an extensive range of commercial search applications. It focuses on the development of transferable, practical skills that can be learnt and practiced within a half-day session.

A proposal summary for the EuroHCIR workshop at SIGIR2013.