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Inktomi Search has a simple
query syntax which gives you the pinpoint search power of
Boolean logic, without having to remember complex queries. The table
below shows the Inktomi Search operators that correspond to
Boolean operators:
Inktomi Search operator |
Boolean equivalent |
default operator: you need not use any special symbols |
OR |
+ |
AND |
- |
NOT |
phrase operator: enclose the phrase with double quotation marks |
ADJ |
Boolean queries use the logical operators AND, OR, NOT and ADJ
(adjacent). Suppose you wanted to find plain paper color laser printers
made by companies other than HP. This query can be specified in Boolean
logic as:
(laser ADJ printer) AND (color OR (plain ADJ paper)) AND NOT (HP OR
Hewlett-Packard)
Using Inktomi Search operators, the complex query above may
be typed into the search box as:
+"laser printer" color "plain paper" -HP,
-Hewlett-Packard
This query specifies that:
- All returned documents must contain the phrase "laser
printer".
- Documents containing one or more of the terms
"laser printer", color, or
"plain paper" will be ranked at the top (the
more terms matched, the higher the ranking).
- None of the documents returned will contain either HP or
Hewlett-Packard.
Statistical Weighting and Inktomi Search
Searches
A traditional Boolean search returns an unsorted list of all items
that match the search condition. Inktomi Search goes considerably
beyond this by using advanced statistical search technology to
return the results sorted with the "best" matches listed
at the top. Unlike plain Boolean searches, Inktomi Search
automatically weights your query terms based on their statistical
uniqueness. Common terms, such as "shall," get a much
lower weighting than less frequently occurring terms, such as the
phrase "golf courses."
Inktomi Search's advanced statistical weighting
allows you to just type in relevant words and phrases, and the
system will provide the answer to your query in the top few
documents! Since there are cases in which it is convenient to
narrow a query using Boolean operators, Inktomi Search
Server allows you to use the + and - Boolean operators. With
Inktomi Search, you get the accurate ranking of
statistical searching combined with the information filtering of
Boolean searching.
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