Design and implementation of an online private information retrieval system for a technology‐based consultancy Available to Purchase

This paper considers factors central to the design, specification and implementation of a private bibliographic database for internally generated techno‐commercial report documentation: emphasis is placed on pragmatic solutions resulting from experiences at PA Technology in developing a system based on custom‐designed menu‐driven software for an existing Wang VS computer installation. A systematic survey of potential users highlighted the Company's needs and requirements, identified the desirability of a distributed search capability and consequently the paramount importance of user‐friendliness. Subject access to documents emerged as an overriding need which led to the development of a retrieval language based on a controlled vocabulary structured hierarchically. Existing thesauri were assessed for use in indexing and searching the documentation and rapidly developing areas of technology were felt to be inadequately represented; hence a dynamic vocabulary was developed in‐house. Further additional searchable fields conveyed a high degree of flexibility and satisfied the Company's perceived needs. The majority of the desirable features were incorporated when the database was first released within a relatively short timescale, eighteen man‐months after project initiation. The modular approach adopted permits further enhancement with minimal resources.