[Web4lib] Faceted navigation as metasearch

[K.G. Schneider]

> Another approach to this is to get the aggregated facet data from the
> database vendors as part of the search. If the vendor offered good
> access to the data, with a list of both results _and_ relevant facets
> (and suggested alternate searches), our metasearch apps could simply
> display that without having to do the processing.

(Stamping hooves and whinnying) Yes! 

... How do you determine a relevant facet?

> Tops on my wishlist for 2007 is better/more implementation of
> OpenSearch in library systems. OpenSearch supports returning facet
> info and suggested alternate searches, turning this into a problem of
> how to display and use the data.
> Casey Bisson

Hmmm, Casey, some thought tops on your wishlist was doing something bizarre
with LC records. <joke> We do need to all look harder at OpenSearch.

I'm not a Stepford wife when it comes to open source (I'm allergic to
KoolAid, I break out in laughter), but some of the most important stuff to
happen in LibraryLand seems to be BiblioOSS or biblio-friendly OSS. Pines,
Umlaut, OpenSearch... I think in each case the tipping point is not the
first institution to implement it, but the second. 

Karen G. Schneider
kgs at bluehighways.com