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LBSC 671 - Creating Information Infrastructures
Spring 2014 - Section 0101
Assignment G12 - Evaluating Search Engines

This homework is due before the start of the class session indicated on the syllabus. Partial credit may be awarded.

Try out two search systems from the list below and, for each, answer the questions that follow the list of systems. Be sure to try several types of searches (e.g., your personal interest, imagined academic or professional information needs, searches you see in Web logs, etc.) and to explore both basic and advanced search feautres (when the system provides multiple modes).

Here are the questions:
  1. How well does this system work? Use specific tasks to probe the system's behavior, and report specific measures such as precision and recall to characterize the results that you obtain.
  2. How does this system work? Probe the system's behavior, and also read any information that the system provides. Then explain what it is you think the system is actually doing, and offer evidence from specific results that you obtained from specific probes.
  3. How well are you able to determine what the system does and does not make available for you to find? In other words, after you have completed a search, do you have a good feel for how comprehensive your search really was?
Grading of this assignment will be done holistically, based on whether you uncovered interesting issues that could help to guide your exploration of system design issues this semester. This exercise should take you 2-3 hours, including writing up your answers to the questions). You should submit your assignment by adding it to your Wiki page.
Doug Oard
Last modified: Sun Jan 12 14:27:15 2014