NewsLink Issue 7/May 2000 =========================================================================== NewsLink is a free weekly e-mail newsletter featuring news and resources for the information industry. If you are receiving this issue as a forward and would like to become a subscriber, please visit our Web site at https://www.infotoday.com or send a blank e-mail to join-infotoday@lists.infotoday.com. ============================================================= IN THIS ISSUE ============================================================= 1) WELCOME 2) NEWSLINK MONTHLY SPOTLIGHT 3) NEWSBREAKS 4) FEATURED ARTICLES 5) CONFERENCE CONNECTION 6) BOOKSHELF ============================================================= 1) WELCOME ============================================================= Welcome to the May issue of NewsLink, Information Today, Inc.’s FREE e-mail newsletter for library and information professionals. Last month, in our NewsLink Monthly Spotlight, Paula Hane took a look at some of the latest search technology for the Web. This month she looks in depth at one particular company, Simpli.com, Inc., and its SimpliFind search technology. As companies try to find the killer search technology, Paula continues to detail their newest offerings. The National Online Meeting will take place on the 16—18 of this month. Check out the Conference Connection for the latest information, including details on free exhibit hall admission for NewsLink subscribers. Also, for those of you interested in knowledge management, the KMWorld 2000 program will be available online and in print in the next few weeks. Check back at http://www.kmworld.com/00/ for the latest info. Congratulations to Jane Dysart for once again pulling together a great program. As always, if you have any comments or suggestions on how to improve this newsletter and the information held in it, please reply to newslink@infotoday.com. All the best, Tom Hogan, Jr. ============================================================= 2) NEWSLINK MONTHLY SPOTLIGHT ============================================================= Web Searching Can Be Simpli Better By Paula J. Hane In last month’s NewsLink Spotlight, I discussed some recent developments in smart Web search tools that use the latest advances in linguistic research and information retrieval technologies, such as context analysis, concept-based searching, and natural language processing. Several of the products offer one-click linking to additional information, some without being in a browser. One company that has been working in this area is Simpli.com, Inc. (http://www.simpli.com), a privately held Internet start-up that in December 1999 introduced its SimpliFind search technology. (See our December 20, 1999 NewsBreak "Beyond Keyword Searching—Oingo and Simpli.com Introduce Meaning-Based Searching" at https://www.infotoday.com/newsbreaks/nb1220-2.htm.) Now, the company has introduced new features and design changes that promise to improve the relevancy, efficacy, and ease of use for Web searching. At the heart of the SimpliFind technology is its proprietary KnowledgeBase that, according to the company, "applies principles of linguistics and cognitive science to form a rich network of millions of word, concept, and subject associations." Recent improvements to the KnowledgeBase reportedly include significantly increased coverage that translates to more detailed search and results functionality. When you enter a term to search, SimpliFind checks it against its KnowledgeBase and generates a pull-down menu with a list of concepts. SimpliFind has now significantly advanced its expanded concept queries in the background of searches to generate a related concept cluster that automatically constructs a properly calculated and weighted search query without added work for the user. For example, a search containing the keyword "java" and the concept "coffee" will also have a Boolean weighted query rich in related terminology, such as beverage, Irish crème, cappuccino, Starbucks, etc. The bottom line, according to the company, is better search results. Users can also register and create a SimpliYours account that provides personalization features and customization capabilities. For example, SimpliFind will remember all of the concepts the user has added and store them for future use. Other new personalization features are promised for the future. SimpliLinks is a new feature that presents targeted URLs that are directly related to a user’s search concepts, in addition to the generated search results. As an example, a user searching for "Key West Florida" would be presented with the related URLs http://www.discover.key-west.fl.us and http://www.flausa.com, two sites that contain information about Key West and the surrounding areas. Now, maybe this feature would be more impressive on a difficult conceptual search, but I found as many useful links to Key West information by just typing in a quick and dirty Find search in the address box of Internet Explorer (one result was The Official Tourism Council Web site, http://fla-keys.com). However, I haven’t had a chance to properly test this or the other new search features in SimpliFind, so this isn’t a criticism, just an observation. Obviously, the Internet Explorer searching does not disambiguate among multiple meanings for a term. However, Simpli.com may find that other search engines and portal sites are interested in licensing its technology. A number of other companies are working to improve Web searching through meaning-based technology. Oingo is another company using a lexicon of word relationships (http://www.oingo.com). SurfWax uses linguistics and meaning-based searching, plus some meta-search and personalization features (http://www.surfwax.com). Ejemoni is a start-up that hasn’t yet released a product (http://www.ejemoni.com), but search engine experts are watching the company closely and there has already been media buzz about its potential. It also uses a lexicon, and information released so far indicates that the technology will search paragraphs or whole documents to provide context for a search. Some technologists have predicted it will usher in the next level of search technology. There’s certainly no shortage of companies trying to find the killer search technology. Simple keyword searching and Boolean logic may soon be obsolete. Stay tuned. Paula J. Hane is contributing editor of Information Today, co-editor with Barbara Quint for NewsBreaks, a former reference librarian, and a longtime online searcher. Her e-mail address is phane@infotoday.com. ============================================================= 3) NEWSBREAKS ============================================================= For a complete listing of previous NewsBreaks visit the Information Today, Inc. Web site at https://www.infotoday.com/newsbreaks/breaks.htm. NewsBreaks for the Week of May 1, 2000 ------------------- ScienceWise.com Launches B2B Workplace for the Science and Engineering Community By Paula J. Hane ScienceWise.com has launched a new site (http://www.sciencewise.com) geared to be a one-stop shop for science and engineering. The new site offers scientific content, news, and business tools and resources for scientists to stay current in their fields. ScienceWise.com offers a variety of information, products, and services; some are currently available and others are in development and will be added within the next few months. --> https://www.infotoday.com/newsbreaks/nb000501-1.htm ------------------- Legal Arena Continues to Buzz: West Partners With Northern Light; Supreme Court Opens Web Site By Barbara Quint The West Group (http://www.westgroup.com), a dominant player in the print and online areas of legal publishing, has partnered with Northern Light Technology (http://northernlight.com; http://NLResearch.com) to create a single, integrated search that covers commercial and legal Web sites in sequence. Meanwhile, the U.S. Supreme Court has opened a complete Web site, offering full-text case opinions, court rules and procedures, calendars and schedules, etc., for no charge. --> https://www.infotoday.com/newsbreaks/nb000501-2.htm ============================================================= 4) FEATURED ARTICLES ============================================================= For full-text coverage of the following articles please use the hotlinks provided. ------------------- Information Today Derwent Keeps Current By Richard Poynder Derwent’s managing director Peter McKay discusses his company’s successful evolution from being one of the first companies to make its information available online to becoming the pre-eminent supplier of value-added patent information. --> https://www.infotoday.com/it/may00/poynder.htm ------------------- Computers in Libraries A Wealth of Information on Foundations and the Grant Seeking Process By Janet Camarena An expert from the well-known Foundation Center has compiled this primer. It’s perfect for people who are just beginning to understand grant writing, and also helpful for experienced fund seekers who want to learn more about the finer points of the process. --> https://www.infotoday.com/cilmag/may00/camarena.htm ------------------- Searcher Magazine Sales Generation Databases By Rosemary Whitney Giving hope to "Willy Lomans" everywhere, Rosemary Whitney reviews four business databases—Dun and Bradstreet, InfoUSA, iMarket, and Harris InfoSource—that can help to breathe new life into a sagging sales territory. --> https://www.infotoday.com/searcher/may00/whitney.htm ------------------- MultiMedia Schools Saying "Yes" Instead of "No": Promoting the Fair Use Guidelines By Connie Bakker Copyright concerns have usually been a negative experience for most library/media specialists. It generally means saying "no" to the plans of well-intentioned teachers. The Fair Use Guidelines for Educational Multimedia gives library/media specialists an opportunity to promote copyright compliance in a positive light. In using these Guidelines with students, educators plant seeds of ethical judgment in an era when access to and manipulation of information is all too easy. --> https://www.infotoday.com/MMSchools/may00/bakker.htm ------------------- Link-Up You Can Get There from Here By Linda C. Allardice Whether you’re driving across the country or across town, hit the Web before you hit the streets and you may never again have to pull into a gas station and sheepishly admit to the attendant that you’re lost and need directions. --> https://www.infotoday.com/lu/may00/allardice.htm ============================================================= 5) CONFERENCE CONNECTION ============================================================= Get the latest event information available for the library and information fields in the Conference Connection. The Conference Report/Update gives you an inside look at the most recent information industry events, while the Conference Calendar is updated monthly to provide you with important contact information for up-and-coming industry events. CONFERENCE REPORT/UPDATE ------------------- Conference Update: National Online Meeting & IOLS 2000 May 16—18, 2000, New York Hilton Join us for the 21st annual National Online Meeting & IOLS 2000, North America's largest electronic information conference and exhibition. Visit https://www.infotoday.com/nom2000/tickets.htm for a free ticket to the exhibits or visit us at the New York Hilton March 16—18 and get into the exhibits for free when you mention you are a subscriber to NewsLink! Visit https://www.infotoday.com/nom2000/default.htm for more information, including access to the online program. CONFERENCE CALENDAR ------------------- May/June 2000 May 5—11 Medical Library Association (MLA) Hotel Pan Pacific Waterfront Centre Hotel, Vancouver, BC Contact: http://www.mlahq.org May 16—18 National Online Meeting & IOLS 2000 New York Hilton, New York Contact: https://www.infotoday.com/nom2000/default.htm June 10—15 Special Library Association (SLA) PA Convention Center, Philadelphia, PA Contact: http://www.sla.org June 21—25 Canadian Library Association (CLA) Edmonton, Alberta, Canada Contact: http://www.cla.ca For the complete Conference Calendar visit https://www.infotoday.com/calendar.htm. ============================================================= 6) BOOKSHELF ============================================================= Internet Business Intelligence How to Build a Big Company System on a Small Company Budget By David Vine According to author David Vine, business success in the competitive, global marketplace of the 21st century will depend on a firm’s ability to use information effectively—and the most successful firms will be those that harness the Internet to create and maintain a powerful information edge. In Internet Business Intelligence: How to Build a Big Company System on a Small Company Budget, Vine explains how any company—large or small—can build a complete, low-cost, Internet-based business intelligence system that really works. Internet Business Intelligence covers all these topics and more: • Business Intelligence—what it is, why you need it, and where to find it today • How to build an easy-to-use Internet Business Intelligence System (IBIS) • How small business owners and entrepreneurs can use IBIS to compete with giants • Key IBIS strategies for business management, marketing, and finance • Using IBIS to launch a business, find customers, test new products, and increase sales • Using IBIS to track competitors, explore markets, and evaluate opportunities and risks For more information or to place an order visit the Information Today, Inc. Online Store at http://store.yahoo.com/infotoday//inbusin.html. ------------------------ CyberAge Books 2000/438 pp/softbound 0-910965-35-8 Regular price: $29.95 Online sale price: $23.95 ============================================================= ©2000 Information Today, Inc. all rights reserved. This newsletter is published by Information Today, Inc. Editor in Chief: Tom Hogan, Jr. Managing Editor: Stacey Sochacki Phone: 609-654-6266 Fax: 609-654-4309 Web site: https://www.infotoday.com E-mail: newslink@infotoday.com