Search-based application: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 14:27, 2 September 2010

Latest revision as of 22:55, 29 July 2025

(48 intermediate revisions by 34 users not shown)

Line 1:

{{refimprove|date=January 2017}}

A '''Searchsearch-based applicationsapplication''' ('''SBA''')is area [[software applicationsapplication]] in which a [[Search engine|search engine platform]] is used as the core infrastructure for [[information access]] and reporting. SBAsSearch-based applications use [[Semantic technology|semantic technologies]] to aggregate, normalize and classify [[Unstructured data|unstructured]], [[Semi-structured data|semi-structured]] and/or [[Structured data|structured content]] across multiple repositories, and employ [[Natural language processing|natural language technologies]] for accessing the aggregated information.

== Pre-Conditionsconditions ==

Search-based applications are fully packaged applications that:<ref>Worldwide Search and Discovery 2009 Vendor Shares: An Update on Market Trends, IDC #223926, July, 2010 by Susan Feldman and Hadley Reynolds.</ref>

SBAs are typically deployed when there is a need to synthesize heterogeneous content from multiple sources (text documents, multimedia files, database content, etc.), or, more commonly, they are used to replace traditional [[Relational database|relational database systems]] as the primary data access infrastructure when one or more of the following constraints exist:

* Are built on a search backbone to enable sub-second access to information in multiple formats and from multiple sources

* Are delivered as a unified work environment to support a specific task or workflow, for example: eDiscovery, financial services regulatory compliance, fraud detection, voice of the customer, sales prospecting, pharmaceutical research, anti-terrorism intelligence, or customer support.

* Integrate all the tools that are commonly needed for that specific task or workflow, including:

** Multi-source information access

** Authoring

** Collaboration

** Business process

** Reporting and analysis

** Alerting

** Visualization

* Provide pre-configured data integration with multiple repositories of information in multiple formats as appropriate for the application ___domain.

* Integrate [[___domain knowledge]] to support the particular task, including industry taxonomies and vocabularies, internal processes, workflow for the task, connectors to specialized collections of information, and decision heuristics typical of the field.

* Provide a compelling user interface and interaction design that eliminates the need for users to “pogo stick” or continually jump from one application to another. This buffers the user from the complexity of operating separate applications and enables them to focus on getting work done.

* Are quick to deploy, easy to customize or extend, and economical to administer

== Practical Usesuses ==

* ''' High volumes of data and/or users:''' <br />Search engines are optimized for fast processing of access requests ([[I/O|read operations]]), while databases are optimized for recording and storing transactions ([[I/O|write operations]]). Accordingly, search engines can provide efficient processing against very large data sets by a high number of simultaneous users (whether human users or other software applications).

SBAsSearch-based applications are used for a variety of purposes, including:

* ''' A need for real time information:''' <br />To maintain the referential integrity of data and balance transactional and access requirements, large databases are typically updated in [[Batch processing|batch processes]], resulting in [[Latency (engineering)|data latency]]. Search engines maintain indexes using continual incremental and differential update processes, supporting real-time data availability.

* ''' Enterprise Business Applications:''' For example, [[Customercustomer Relationshiprelationship Managementmanagement]] (CRM), [[Enterpriseenterprise Resourceresource Planningplanning]] (ERP), [[Supply Chain Management]] (SCM), Compliance & Discovery, and [[Businessbusiness Intelligenceintelligence]] (BI)

* ''' A need for ad hoc access and/or reporting against a broad range of criteria:''' <br />Search engines enable users to access and manipulate data according to any criteria maintained in the index— whether the criteria is extracted from a source system or created by the engine during the course of natural language processing—without advance programming of all queries and views.

* ''' Web Applications:''' Typically, B2Bbusiness to business, B2Cbusiness to consumer, and C2Bconsumer to business applications that [[Mashup (digital)|mash-up]] data and functionality from diverse sources (databases, Web content, [[user-generated content]], mapping data and functions, etc.)

The use of a search platform as the core infrastructure for software applications has been enabled largely by two search engine features: 1) Scalability 2) Ad hoc access to multiple heterogeneous sources from a single point of access.

* '''The need to extend access to specialist systems to untrained users:''' <br />Because SBAs can extract data from complex systems and make it available in an independent data layer that can be accessed using technologies such as natural language search, [[fuzzy matching]] and [[Faceted classification|faceted navigation]], SBAs are being used to extend access to the content in complex, specialist systems to non-specialists.

Search-based applications have proven popular and effective because they provide a dynamic, scalable access infrastructure that can be integrated with other features that information workers need: task-specific, and easy to use work environments that integrate features that are usually designed to be used as separate applications, collaborative features, ___domain knowledge, and security.

== Practical Uses ==

Search engines are not a replacement for database systems; they are a complement. They have been optimally engineered to facilitate access to information, not to record and store transactions. In addition, the mathematical and statistical processors integrated to date into search engines remain relatively simple. At present, therefore, databases still provide a more effective structure for complex analytical functions. Search applications also focus on providing quality results considering search relevancy.

SBAs are used for a variety of purposes, including:

==References==

* ''' Enterprise Business Applications:''' For example, [[Customer Relationship Management]] (CRM), [[Enterprise Resource Planning]] (ERP), [[Supply Chain Management]] (SCM), Compliance & Discovery, and [[Business Intelligence]] (BI)

{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==

* ''' Web Applications:''' Typically, B2B, B2C and C2B applications that [[Mashup (digital)|mash-up]] data and functionality from diverse sources (databases, Web content, user-generated content, mapping data and functions, etc.)

* Worldwide Search and Discovery 2009 Vendor Shares: An Update on Market Trends, IDC #223926, July, 2010 by Susan Feldman and Hadley Reynolds.

* Butler Group [http://www.butlergroup.com/webinarIntroduction.asp?mcr=EXA190509&scr=EXA190509 Webinar on Search Based Applications] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110112201509/http://www.butlergroup.com/webinarIntroduction.asp?mcr=EXA190509&scr=EXA190509 |date=2011-01-12 }} explaining SBAsearch-based applications and how they work

* ''' Database Offloading:''' In this case, SBAs are used to provide an alternate means of accessing database content that is non-intrusive to source systems

* ''' Data Migration:''' SBAs are sometimes used as a temporary platform to ensure continuity of information access during large scale migration projects

* ''' Information Lifecycle Management:''' SBAs are used as a complement to [[ILM]] processes and ecosystems, such as those used for [[Product Lifecycle Management]] (PLM) and [[Master Data Management]] (MDM)

The use of a search platform as the core infrastructure for software applications has been enabled largely by two evolutions in search engine technology: 1) the capability of later generation engines to retain and exploit the semantics embedded in structured data, and 2) the integration of mathematical and statistical processors to provide reporting, analysis, and, occasionally, geospatial capabilities.

Search engines are not a replacement for database systems; they are a complement. They have been optimally engineered to facilitate access to information, not to record and store transactions. In addition, the mathematical and statistical processors integrated to date into search engines remain relatively simple. At present, therefore, databases still provide a more effective structure for complex analytical functions.

==References==

* Butler Group [http://www.butlergroup.com/webinarIntroduction.asp?mcr=EXA190509&scr=EXA190509 Webinar on Search Based Applications] explaining SBA and how they work

* Presentation on [http://www.informationbuilders.com/support/developers/presentations/?109 Search Based Applications] by [[Information Builders]]

* IDC Executive Brief [http://www.exalead.com/software/forms/download.php?resourceid=69 "The Information Advantage: Information Access in Tomorrow's Enterprise,"] October 2009, downloadable from the [[Exalead|Exalead.com]] website. Adapted from [http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=217936 Hidden Costs of Information Work: A Progress Report] and [http://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=219883 Worldwide Search and Discovery Software 2009–2013 Forecast Update and 2008 Vendor Shares] by Susan Feldman, IDC.

Line 38 ⟶ 44:

* KMWorld article [http://www.kmworld.com/Articles/Editorial/Feature/Search-based-applications-support-critical-decision-making-66062.aspx Search-based applications support critical decision making]

* Kellblog post [http://www.kellblog.com/2010/02/11/idcs-definiton-of-search-based-applications/ IDC's Definition of Search-Based Applications]

* Steve-Kearns' [http://lucene-euroconwww.orgbasistech.com/slidesknowledge-center/Buildingsearch/2010-05-Multilingualbuilding-Searchmultilingual-Basedsearch-Applications_Stevebased-Kearnsapplications.pdf Building Multilingual Search Based Applications] presentation at Apache Lucene EuroCon 2010 conference

* Information Today article [http://newsbreaks.infotoday.com/NewsBreaks/Attivio-Upgrades-Its-Active-Intelligence-Engine-67608.asp Attivio Upgrades Its Active Intelligence Engine]

* [http://lucidworks.com/blog/debugging-search-application-relevance-issues/ Debugging Search Application Relevance Issues] by Grant Ingersoll. Accessed October 22, 2014.

* [http://www.mind7.fr/en/information_intelligence.html Explanatory video on search-based applications and content analysis]

* [https://sinequa.github.io/sba-angular/intro.html Introduction to the SBA framework]

== See also ==

{{col-begin}}

{{col-2}}

* [[Agile application]]

* [[Agile development]]

* [[Business Intelligence 2.0]] (BI 2.0)

* [[Enterprise Search]]

* [[Search oriented architecture]]

* [[Software as a service]]

{{col-end}}

<!-- Categories -->

[[Category:Enterprise application integration]]

[[Category:InformationInternet retrievalsearch engines|*Search-based application]]

[[Category:Internet search engines| ]]

[[Category:Internet terminology]]

<!-- Interwikis -->

[[es:Search based applications]]

[[fr:Application orientée recherche]]