Defining Prospective and Retrospective Search

Most of the search based on the Internet has been reference based. Google, the forerunner of all searches tends to give out results that are relevance oriented. Thats is, you type in a keyword and Google performs the search based on these keywords alone. Instead of using HTML, the delivery protocol for web pages is a desire for a new, feed-centric protocol, that is RSS. To search chronologically-ordered content, a relevance-based search like Google destroys the chronology and is inappropriate. More innovative in the search technology are sites such as PubSub, Technorati and Newsgator.

There are two ways in which a user can search the Internet for information:

Retrospective Search: This is the traditional form of search as performed by search engines such as Google, Yahoo! and other search engines. This method is called ‘searching the past’ where information is gathered by spiders, net crawlers and other forms of data entry. This information is sorted into a historical searchable selection. In such a system of search, queries are constantly changing and can be considered to be static. The results of these queries may change over a period of time but they are considered to be static because the results can be gathered only against the background of information
that is already available on the web.

Prospective Search: This new method of search was introduced by PubSub. It is termed as ‘searching the future’. Information is gathered by a variety of methods against newly updated documents. Every time a prospective search is performed the queries are stored in the database while the results are discarded. When a new document matching the query is made available, the user receives an update. In this system of search, it is the queries that are static while the results are dynamic.

With information on the Internet constantly expanding, searching for information can become a cumbersome, tiring and confusing process which takes up a lot of time as the users sift though pages and pages of information. One could argue that retrospective search is more comprehensive and heterogeneous. While this may be true, prospective search is useful in that it reduces the time taken by users to search or repeat search for a particular bit of information.

Exploring Keyword Search

Merely using keywords to locate data isn't comprehensive enough. More often than not, you receive results that you do not care for. It is advisable therefore, to use key phrases instead of keywords alone. Phrases are less generic and more descriptive. This is the kind of language that a search engine understands.

Prospective Vs Retrospective

Prospective search is not meant to be viewed as a replacement for traditional methods of search. It is useful only when it is used to complement retrospective search. While retrospective search allows users to source information that is already known and documented, prospective search allows the user to be updated whenever a new piece of information pertaining to the query is added to the wealth of the Internet database.

Prospective search throws many doors open for those in the business of content creation and management. It means that newly generated content is immediately forwarded to those who have expressed an interest in the subject matter.

Prospective search is also changing the way the Internet works by making the web more personalized. Users can receive only the information they are interested in rather than having to go through large amounts of data that they may or maynot be interested in at all. Using prospective search their query is stored and the user receives a feed or an update every time something new (pertaining to the query of course) pops up on the Internet.

Instead of going through a lot of irrelevant 'junk' information it is simpler to use prospective search offered by PubSub, Technorati, Feedster, Blogpulse and Bloglines. These services are currently offered free. In order to make this kind of search more innovative, prospective search engines could team up with library databases such as Proquest whereby a user will receive a feed once any new information is available.

Conclusion

Prospective search will make the job of information hunting and gathering less time consuming and more accurate and updated. In fact the idea that users will be able to access the latest and updated information is its greatest strength. Prospective searches will be most useful for business purposes where the availability of new information is key to the progress of an enterprise.

However, it is still important to access information that is already known and this is where retrospective search holds sway. Prospective and retrospective search are complementary to one another. One cannot be used in place of the other. The future of prospective search is largely merged with the continued usage of retrospective search. The user will most probably use a combination of retrospective and prospective search to capture data.