On how electronic dictionaries are really used

In this paper it is shown how a real-world electronic dictionary can be simultaneously compiled and its use studied. While the results of the dictionary use study may be successfully fed back into the compilation, the semi-automatic analysis of the use itself for the first time reveals how electronic dictionaries are really used. In order to achieve this, an intricate and multifaceted integrated log file tracks every single action of every single user – date and time stamping each lookup, ordering founds and not-founds, monitoring long-term vocabulary retention, etc. – with a multitude of summaries being presented to the lexicographers. The ultimate goal is that with such data the parameters of various user profiles could be pinpointed, with which self-tailoring electronic dictionaries could be built.

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