Basic concepts of information retrieval systems (Free Chapter from the Book: Introduction to Modern Information Retrieval, 3rd edition ) -- G G Chowdhury

An information retrieval (IR) system is designed to analyse, process and store sources of information and retrieve those that match a particular user's requirements. A bewildering range of techniques is now available to the information professional attempting to successfully retrieve information. It is recognized that today's information professionals need to concentrate their efforts on learning the techniques of computerized IR. However, it is this book's contention that it also benefits them to learn the theory, techniques and tools that constitute the traditional approaches to the organization and processing of information. In fact much of this knowledge may still be applicable in the storage and retrieval of electronic information in digital library environments. The fully revised third edition of this highly regarded textbook has been thoroughly updated to incorporate major changes in this rapidly expanding field since the second edition in 2004, and a complete new chapter on citation indexing has been added. Unique in its scope, the book covers the whole spectrum of information storage and retrieval, including: introduction to information retrieval options database technology bibliographic formats cataloguing and metadata subject analysis and representation automatic indexing and file organization vocabulary control abstracts and indexing searching and retrieval information seeking and retreval models user interfaces evaluation of IR user needs online database search services multimedia IR mark-up languages web IR intelligent IR natural language processing systems IR in digital libraries trends in IR research. Illustrated with many examples and comprehensively referenced for an international audience, this is an indispensable textbook for students of library and information studies. It is also an invaluable aid for information practitioners wishing to brush up on their skills and keep up to date with the latest techniques. (2010; 528pp; paperback; 978-1-85604-694-7; £49.95)