Visual interface for evaluating internet search results

Abstract

The summary-based approach is not an optimal solution in presenting a search result for a massive collection of information. This traditional approach does not consider user's search behavior, further it lacks the capability of providing distributional and structural information of the contents, which is valuable in the user's search activity. We have developed a visualization system that presents visual abstractions of Web pages as a search result. The illustration of a Web page shows the distributional pattern of search terms and structural layout of document compactly, but informatively. The developed system reflects the significance of related hyperlinks in the visualization and it also helps users locate search terms through distinct markers. In our pilot study, the participants showed a higher degree of preference using the visual interface than the traditional approach in exploring a huge information space, the Internet. The proposed encoding algorithm makes it possible to compare retrieved results intuitively and it will boost user's understanding about the content of Web resources, eventually assisting search activities. © Springer-Verlag 2004.