Development of a modern OPAC: from REVTOLC to MARIAN

Since 1986 we have investigated the problems and possibilities of applying modern information retrieval methods to large online public access library catalogs (OPACs). In the Retrieval Experiment—Virginia Tech OnLine Catalog (REVTOLC) study we carried out a large pilot test in 1987 and a larger, controlled investigation in 1990, with 216 users and roughly 500,000 MARC records. Results indicated that a forms-based interface coupled with vector and relevance feedback retrieval methods would be well received. Recent efforts developing the Multiple Access and Retrieval of Information with Annotations (MARIAN) system have involved used of a specially developed object-oriented DBMS, construction of a client running under NeXTSTEP, programming of a distributed server with a thread assigned to each user session to increase concurrency on a small network of NeXTs, refinement of algorithms to use objects and stopping rules for greater efficiency, usability testing and iterative interface refinement.

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