Abstract:

Search engines today utilise many methods in order to provide users with relevant search results. Relevant results can only be provided if search engine strategies are able to discern the users’ information seeking goal. However the tremendous growth of the Internet and the variety of users using the search engine make it difficult for search engines to satisfy the user’s diverse information seeking goal. In this paper we discussed three methods: query expansion, user search history and re-ranking- in an attempt to provide searchers results that match their information needs. Currently, these techniques are not satisfactory when assessed against providing users with relevant results. In this paper, we discuss a direction of how we can tailor results to individual needs. Rather than just limiting it to technical implementation/aspect, the bigger picture of the search process needs to be looked into.