A previous post on retrieval, precision and recall discussed the distinction between the three important concepts in search. In another post, we described the two main approaches for retrieval, and saw that, for faceted search, retrieval with high precision is the foundation for a good search experience. In other words…

We have spoken about the fact that relevance is subjective. However, this does not mean that lines need not be drawn. In the area of search, there are generally two approaches of bringing results back given a user query. The first one, which partitions the entire collection into relevant versus…

And it is especially true in the case of online search products. In a previous article, we discussed why figuring out and using proper metrics that are aligned with customer outcomes is important. In this article, we explore the traits of metrics which are fit for purpose. …

One of the common mistakes that product development teams make when they test the features of their products is to default to vanity metrics and the approach of tracking everything and hope that something moves in the right direction. …

I visited a cat shelter one day with the intention to adopt a few cats. The shelter had 50 cats; 25 of them were black, 10 were brown and 15 whites. The shelter worker was colour blind but he had some other techniques to distinguish the colour of the cats…

Search is an empirical field of work. What this means is that we make headway in what we do through the analysis of observations, experiences and then acting on the findings. To illustrate this; consider you have just prepared green curry for the first time and you plan to sell…

Consider this: I want to cook green curry for the first time. Hence, I have a need, a need for information to help me prepare the dish. I first get onto a recipe search site and express my need using the keywords “green curry”. The search engine returns about 1,200…

Search is an important and fundamental tool in the information age and facilitates information discovery and connection. We all know the story that Google claims $80 billion of economic impact on the US economy in 2012. …