TECHNICAL WRITING: A KEY TO COMPUTERIZED INFORMATION RETRIEVAL
Abstract
The future success of mechanized retrieval of information from published material lies, in a large part, in the hands of the technical writer. The context is only as usable as its format when current retrieval methods are used. Examples are given of confusion arising through nondefinitive titles, particularly where permuted indexes, such as Key-Word-In-Context (KWIC) and Key- Word-Out-of-Context (KWOC), are used. The appearance of an article in several different publications is another source of difficulty for the information retrieval system. How the creation of separate entries for the same item can damage the integrity of an information system is shown. A plea is made to the technical writers for understanding the needs of the second generation of reader. Steps which can be taken without censoring the language by replacing all synonyms and near-synonyms with a single term are indicated. The use of meaningful titles, standardization of citations, and several other areas are explored from the viewpoint of the information specialist.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1967
- Accession Number
- AD0653726
Entities
People
- S. O. Jones
Organizations
- Douglas