Real life, real users, and real needs: a study and analysis of user queries on the web

We analyzed transaction logs containing 51,473 queries posed by 18,113 users of Excite, a major Internet search service. We provide data on: (i) sessions — changes in queries during a session, number of pages viewed, and use of relevance feedback; (ii) queries — the number of search terms, and the use of logic and modifiers; and (iii) terms — their rank/frequency distribution and the most highly used search terms. We then shift the focus of analysis from the query to the user to gain insight to the characteristics of the Web user. With these characteristics as a basis, we then conducted a failure analysis, identifying trends among user mistakes. We conclude with a summary of findings and a discussion of the implications of these findings. # 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.

[1]  Donna Harman,et al.  Multi-task multi-modality SVM for early COVID-19 Diagnosis using chest CT data , 2021, Information Processing & Management.

[2]  Tefko Saracevic.  Users lost: reflections on the past, future, and limits of information science , 1997, SIGF.

[3]  Amanda Spink,et al.  Users' Searching Behavior On The Excite Web Search Engine , 1998, WebNet.

[4]  Stephen E. Robertson,et al.  On relevance weights with little relevance information , 1997, SIGIR '97.

[5]  Carol H. Fenichel,et al.  Online searching: Measures that discriminate among users with different types of experiences , 1981, J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci..

[6]  Ingrid Hsieh-Yee,et al.  Effects of Search Experience and Subject Knowledge on the Search Tactics of Novice and Experienced Searchers , 1993, J. Am. Soc. Inf. Sci..

[7]  Amanda Spink,et al.  Real life information retrieval: a study of user queries on the Web , 1998, SIGF.

[8]  Azer Bestavros,et al.  Self-similarity in World Wide Web traffic: evidence and possible causes , 1997, TNET.

[9]  Sally Jo Cunningham,et al.  Usage analysis of a digital library , 1998, DL '98.

[10]  Amanda Spink,et al.  Failure analysis in query construction: data and analysis from a large sample of Web queries , 1998, DL '98.

[11]  Huberman,et al.  Strong regularities in world wide web surfing , 1998, Science.

[12]  W. Bruce Croft,et al.  Providing Government Information on the Internet: Experiences with THOMAS , 1995, DL.

[13]  Giles,et al.  Searching the world wide Web , 1998, Science.

[14]  Amanda Spink,et al.  Interaction in information retrieval: selection and effectiveness of search terms , 1997 .

[15]  Edward A. Fox,et al.  Shared User Behavior on the World Wide Web , 1997, World Conference on the WWW and Internet.

[16]  Amanda Spink,et al.  From Highly Relevant to Not Relevant: Examining Different Regions of Relevance , 1998, Inf. Process. Manag..

[17]  Susan Siegfried,et al.  An Analysis of Search Terminology Used by Humanities Scholars: The Getty Online Searching Project Report Number 1 , 1993, The Library Quarterly.

[18]  SpinkAmanda,et al.  Real life information retrieval: a study of user queries on the Web , 1998 .

[19]  Amanda Spink,et al.  Searchers, The Subjects They Search, And Sufficiency: A Study Of A Large Sample Of Excite Searches , 1998, WebNet.

[20]  Azer Bestavros,et al.  Self-similarity in World Wide Web traffic: evidence and possible causes , 1996, SIGMETRICS '96.

[21]  Tom Peters,et al.  The history and development of transaction log analysis , 1993 .