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1 2 ) Unlted States Patent 1 0 ) P a t e n t N 0 . 2 U S 8 , 5 2 1 , 7 3 0 B1P a g e 4 5 ) D a t e o f P a t e n t : A u g . 2 7 , 2 0 1 3

( 5 4 ) SCORING DOCUMENTS N ALINKED 5 , 4 4 6 , 8 9 1 A 8 / 1 9 9 5 K a p l a n e t a 1 .DATABASE 5 , 4 5 0 , 5 3 5 A 9 / 1 9 9 5 N o r t h5 , 5 4 4 , 3 5 2 A 8 / 1 9 9 6 E g g e r5 , 5 9 4 , 8 9 7 A 1 / 1 9 9 7 Goffman( 7 5 ) I n v e n t o r : Lawrence P a g e , S t a n f o r d , CA U S ) 5 , 7 4 8 , 9 5 4 A 5 / l 9 9 8 M a u l d i n5 , 7 5 2 , 2 4 1 A 5 / 1 9 9 8 Cohen( 7 3 ) A s s i g n e e : The Board o f T r u s t e e s o f t h e Leland 5 , 7 5 4 , 9 3 9 A 5 / 1 9 9 8 H e r Z e t a 1 .Stanford Junior U n i v e r s i t y , P a l o A l t o , 5 , 8 3 2 , 4 9 4 A I I / 1 9 9 8 E g g e r e t a 1 .CA Us) 5 , 8 3 8 , 9 0 6 A 1 1 / 1 9 9 8 D o y l e e t a 1 .5 , 8 4 8 , 4 0 7 A 1 2 / 1 9 9 8 I s h i k a W a e t a l .

* ) N o t i c e : S u b j e c t t o a n y d i s c l a i m e r , t h e t e r m o f h i s 2 1 8 5 2 2 0 ; ; 3 1 p a t e n t i s e x t e n d e d o r a d j u s t e d u n d e r 3 5 5 3 9 2 0 3 8 5 9 A 7 / 1 9 9 9 L iU . S . C . 1 5 4 ( b ) b y 0 d a y s . 5 , 9 8 7 , 4 5 7 A 1 1 / 1 9 9 9 B a l l a r d

6 , 0 1 2 , 0 5 3 A 1 / 2 0 0 0 P a n t e t a l .. 6,014,678 A 1/2000 Inoue e t a l .( 2 1 ) A p p l ' NO 13/483359 6 , 0 7 0 , 1 5 8 A 5 / 2 0 0 0 K i r s c h e t a 1 .

6,112,202 A 8/2000 Kleinberg( 2 2 ) F l l e d i May 0,2012 6 , 1 3 4 , 5 3 2 A 1 0 / 2 0 0 0 L a z a r u s e t a 1 ._ _ 6,163,778 A 12/2000 Fo g g e t a l .R e l a t e d U . S . A p p l l c a t l o n Data ( C o n t i n u e d )

( 6 3 ) C o n t i n u a t i o n o f a p p l i c a t i o n N o . 1 2 / 6 9 8 , 8 0 3 , ? l e d onF e b . 2 , 2 0 1 0 , HOW P a t . NO. 8 , 1 9 5 , 6 5 1 , which i s a OTHERPUBLICATIONSC o n t i n u a t i o n o f a p p l i c a t i o n N O ' 1 1 / 2 0 9 6 8 7 ? l e d o n Y u w o n o e t a l . , S e a r c h a n d R a n k i n g A l g o r i t h m s f o r L o c a t i n gAug: 2 4 ; 2 0 0 5 I _ 1 O W _ a b a n d o n e d Whlch 1 S a R e s o u r c e s o n t h e W o r l d W i d e W e b , I E E E 1 9 9 6 , p p . 1 6 4 - 1 7 1 .cont1nuat1on of a p p l 1 c a t 1 o n No. 09/895,174, ?led on _J u l . 2 , 2 0 0 1 , HOW P a t . NO. 7 , 0 5 8 , 6 2 8 , which i s a (Con?rmed)c o n t i n u a t i o n o f a p p l i c a t i o n N o . 0 9 / 0 0 4 , 8 2 7 , ? l e d onJ a n . 9 , HOW NO. Primary Examineri yen e

( 6 0 ) P r o v i s i o n a l a p p l i c a t i o n N o . 6 0 / 0 3 5 , 2 0 5 , ? l e d on J a n . ( 7 4 ) A t t o r n e y A g e n t ) 0 " Firm a r r i t y a r r i t y , LLP1 0 , 1 9 9 7 . ( 5 7 ) ABSTRACT

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( 5 8 ) Field 0 of documents c i t i n g i t . I n a d d i t i o n , t h e rank of document sNone c a l c u l a t e d from a c o n s t a n t r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e pr o b a b i l i t y t h a t aS e e a l i c a t i o n ? l e f o r C o m l e t e S e a r c h h i s t o b r o W s e r t h r o u g h t h e d a t a b a s e W i l l randomly jump t o t h epp p r y ' d o c u m e n t . The method s a r t i c u l a r l u s e f u l i n e n h a n c i n t h ey g( 5 6 ) R e f e r e n c e s C i t e d p e r f o r m a n c e o f s e a r c h e n g i n e r e s u l t s f o r h y p e r m e d i a d a t a

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6 , 2 3 3 , 5 7 1 B1 5 / 2 0 0 1 E g g e r e t a l .6 , 2 6 9 , 3 6 8 B1 7 / 2 0 0 1 Diamond6 , 2 8 5 , 9 9 9 B1 9 / 2 0 0 1 P a g e6 , 3 8 9 , 4 3 6 B1 5 / 2 0 0 2 C h a k r a b a r t i e t a l .6 , 5 9 1 , 2 6 1 B1 7 / 2 0 0 3 A r t h u r s6 , 6 6 5 , 8 3 8 B1 1 2 / 2 0 0 3 Brown t a l .6 , 7 9 9 , 1 7 6 B1 9 / 2 0 0 4 P a g e7 , 0 5 8 , 6 2 8 B1 6 / 2 0 0 6 P a g e7 , 2 6 9 , 5 8 7 B1 9 / 2 0 0 7 P a g e7 , 9 0 8 , 2 7 7 B1 3 / 2 0 1 1 P a g e8 , 1 2 6 , 8 8 4 B1 2 / 2 0 1 2 P a g e8 , 1 2 7 , 2 2 0 B1 2 / 2 0 1 2 Dean8 , 1 3 1 , 7 1 5 B1 3 / 2 0 1 2 P a g e8 , 1 3 1 , 7 1 7 B1 3 / 2 0 1 2 P a g e8 , 1 9 5 , 6 5 1 B1 6 / 2 0 1 2 P a g e2001/0002466 A1 5 / 2 0 0 1 K r a s l e

OTHERPUBLICATIONSL . K a t Z , A new s t a t u s i n d e x d e r i v e d from s o c i o m e t r i c a n a l y s i s ,1 9 5 3 , P s y c h o m e t r i c k a , v o l . 1 8 , p p . 3 9 - 4 3 .C . H . H u b b e l l , A n i n p u t - o u t p u t a p p r o a c h t o c l i q u e i d e n t i ? c a t i o ns o c i o m e t r y , 1 9 6 5 , p p . 3 7 7 - 3 9 9 .M i Z r u c h i e t a l . , T e c h n i q u e s f o r d i s a g g r e g a t i n g c e n t r a l i t y s c o r e s i ns o c i a l n e t w o r k s , 1 9 9 6 , S o c i o l o g i c a l M e t h o d o l o g y , p p . 2 6 - 4 8 .E . G a r ? e l d , C i t a t i o n a n a l y s i s a s a t o o l i n j o u r n a l e v a l u a t i o n , 1 9 7 2 ,S c i e n c e , v o l . 1 7 8 , p p . 4 7 1 - 4 7 9 .P i n s k i e t a l . , C i t a t i o n i n ? u e n c e f o r j o u r n a l a g g r e g a t e s o f s c i e n t i ? cp u b l i c a t i o n s : T h e o r y , w i t h a p p l i c a t i o n t o t h e l i t e r a t u r e o f p h y s i c s ,1 9 7 6 , I n f . P r o c . a n d Management, v o l . 1 2 , p p . 2 9 7 - 3 1 2 .N . G e l l e r , On t h e c i t a t i o n i n ? u e n c e m e t h o d o l o g y o f P i n s k i andN a r i n , 1 9 7 8 , I n f . P r o c . a n d M a n a g e m e n t , v o l . 1 4 , p p . 9 3 - 9 5 .P . D o r e i a n , M e a s u r i n g t h e r e l a t i v e s t a n d i n g o f d i s c i p l i n a r y j o u rn a l s , 1 9 8 8 , I n f . P r o c . a n d M a n a g e m e n t , v o l . 2 4 , p p . 4 5 - 5 6 .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m U . S . A p p l . N o . 1 1 / 6 7 1 , 3 6 3 d a t e d J a n . 2 6 , 2 0 0 9 , 2 3p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m U . S . A p p l . N o . 1 1 / 8 3 5 , 3 1 6 d a t e d J a n . 2 6 , 2 0 0 9 , 1 0p a g e s .P . D o r e i a n , A measure of s t a n d i n g f o r c i t a t i o n networks w i t h i n aw i d e r e n v i r o n m e n t , 1 9 9 4 , I n f . P r o c . a n d M a n a g e m e n t , v o l . 3 0 , p p .21-3B o t a f o g o e t a l . , S t r u c t u r a l a n a l y s i s o f y p e r t e x t : I d e n t i f y i n g h i e r a rc h i e s a n d u s e f u l m e t r i c s , 1 9 9 2 , ACM r a n s . I n c . S y s t e m s , v o l . 1 0 ,p p . 1 4 2 - 1 8 0 .Mark E . F r i s s e , S e a r c h i n g f o r i n f o r m a t i o n i n a h y p e r t e x t m e d i c a lh a n d b o o k , 1 9 8 8 , C o m m u n i c a t i o n s o f t h e AC M , o l . 3 1 , N o . 7 , p p .8 8 0 - 8 8 6 .M assimo M a r c h i o r i , The q u e s t f o r c o r r e c t i n f o r m a t i o n on t h e Web:H y p e r s e a r c h e n g i n e s , 1 9 9 7 , C o m p u t e r N e t w o r k s a n d ISDN S y st e m s , v o l . 2 9 , N o . 8 - 1 3 , p p . 1 2 2 5 - 1 2 3 5 .O l i v e r A . McBryan, GENVL n d WWWW: o o l s f o r t a m i n g t h ew e b , 1 9 9 4 , P r o c e e d i n g s o f t h e ? r s t I n t e r n a t i o n a l World Wide WebC o n f e r e n c e , p p . 1 - 1 3 .C a r r i e r e e t a l . , Web Q u e r y : S e a r c h i n g a n d v i s u a l i z i n g t h e webt h r o u g h c o n n e c t i v i t y , 1 9 9 7 , P r o c . 6 t h I n t e r n a t i o n a l WorldWide WebC o n f e r e n c e , p p . 1 - 1 4 .A r o c e n a e t a l . , A p p l i c a t i o n s o f a web u e r y l a n g u a g e , 1 9 9 7 , Comp u t e r N e t w o r k s a n d ISDN y s t e m s , v o l . 2 9 , N o . 8 - 1 3 , p p . 1 3 0 5 - 1 3 1 6 .J o n M . K l e i n b e r g , A u t h o r i t a t i v e s o u r c e s i n a h y p e r l i n k e d e n v i r o nm e n t , 1 9 9 8 , P r o c . o f t h e 9 t h Annual ACM-SIAM Symposium onD i s c r e t e A l g o r i t h m s , p p . 6 6 8 - 6 7 7 .H e n Z i n g e r e t a l . , M e a s u r i n g i n d e x q u a l i t y u s i n g random w a l k s o nt h e w e b , 1 9 9 9 , P r o c . o f t h e 8 t h I n t e r n a t i o n a l World Wide Web Conf e r e n c e , p p . 2 1 3 - 2 2 5 .C r a i g B o y l e , T o l i n k o r n o t t o l i n k : An e m p i r i c a l c o m p a r i s o n o fH y p e r t e x t l i n k i n g s t r a t e g i e s , ACM, 1 9 9 2 , p p . 2 2 1 - 2 3 1 .S . J e r o m y C a r r i e r e e t a l . , Web u e r y : S e a r c h i n g a n d V i s u a l i Z i n g t h eWeb h r o u g h C o n n e c t i v i t y , C o m p u t e r N e t w o r k s a n d ISDN y s t e m s2 9 ( 1 9 9 7 ) , p p . 1 2 5 7 - 1 2 6 7 .J . K l e i n b e r g , A u t h o r i t a t i v e S o u r c e s i n a H y p e r l i n k e d E n v i r o n m e n t ,IB M R e s e a r c h R e p o r t , RI 1 0 0 7 6 ( 9 1 8 9 2 ) , M a y 9 , 1 9 9 7 ; 3 7 p a g e s .

R e c k e r e t a l . ; P r e d i c t i n g Document A c c e s s i n L a r g e M u l t i m e d i aR e p o s i t o r i e s : ACM r a n s a c t i o n s o n Computer-Human n t e r a c t i o n ;v o l . 3 , N o . 4 ; D e c . 1 9 9 6 ; p p . 3 5 2 - 3 7 5 .P e t e r P i r o l l i e t a l . ; S i l k from a Sows E a r : E x t r a c t i n g Usable S t r u ct u r e s from h e Web; Xerox P a l o A l t o R e s e a r c h C e n t e r ; C o n f e r e n c eo n Human F a c t o r s i n C o m p u t i n g S y s t e m s ( C H I 9 6 ) ; A p r . 1 9 9 6( C a n a d a ) ; 8 p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US . p p l . N o . 0 9 / 0 0 4 , 8 2 7 d a t e d M a r . 9 , 2 0 0 0 , 1 1p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US. A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 8 9 9 , 0 6 8 d a t e d M a r . 2 5 , 2 0 0 3 ,1 4 p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US. A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 0 0 4 , 8 2 7 d a t e d J u n . 1 2 , 2 0 0 0 ,1 2 p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US. A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 8 9 5 , 1 7 4 d a t e d J u n . 1 5 , 2 0 0 5 ,1 1 p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US. A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 0 0 4 , 8 2 7 d a t e d A u g . 2 6 , 1 9 9 9 ,7 p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US. A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 8 9 5 , 1 74 d a t e d S e p . 2 9 , 2 0 0 4 ,1 3 p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US . A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 8 9 9 , 0 6 8 d a t e d O c t . 2 , 2 0 0 3 , 1 3p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US . p p l . N o . 0 9 / 0 0 4 , 8 2 7 d a t e d D e c . 5 , 2 0 0 0 , 1 0p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US . A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 7 3 4 , 88 3 d a t e d O c t . 3 , 2 0 0 5 , 2 0p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m U . S . Ap p l . N o . 0 9 / 7 3 4 , 8 8 3 d a t e d J a n . 2 7 , 2 0 0 5 , 1 7p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US. A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 7 3 4 , 8 8 3 d a t e d F e b . 2 6 , 2 0 0 4 ,1 5 p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m U . S . Ap p l . N o . 0 9 / 7 3 4 , 8 8 3 d a t e d J a n . 2 4 , 2 0 0 8 , 2 8p a g e s .Wang t a l . , P r e f e t c h i n g i n W o r l d W i d e W e b , I E E E 1 9 9 6 , p p . 2 8 - 3 2 .Mike P e r k o w i t Z , P r e v i o u s W o r k , M a r . 2 , 1 9 9 9 , a v a i l a b l e a t h t t p : / /w w w 8 . o r g / w 8 - p a p e r s / 2 b c u s t o m i Z i n g / t o w a r d s / n o d e 3 . h t m l , p p . 1 - 2 .Danny S u l l i v a n , I n t e r n e t E x p l o r e r 5 M a k e s S e a r c h E a s i e r , A p r . 5 ,1 9 9 9 , a v a i l a b l e a t The S e a r c h E n g i n e R e p o r t a t h t t p : / /s e a r c h e n g i n e w a t c h . c o m / s h o w P a g e . h t m l ? p a g e : s e w i p r i n t e r i d :2 1 6 7 1 2 1 , p p . 1 - 6 .Danny u l l i v a n , A l e x a U p g r a d e s f o r I n t e r n e t E x p l o r e r , J u n . 2 , 1 9 9 9 ,a v a i l a b l e a t The S e a r c h E n g i n e R e p o r t a t h t t p : / / s e a r c h e n g i n e w a t c h .c o m / s h o w P a g e . h t m l ? p a g e : s e w i p r i n t e r & i d : 2 1 6 7 1 9 1 , p p . 1 - 3 .M a s a h i r o M o r i t a , I n f o r m a t i o n F i l t e r i n g Based on U s e r B e h a v i o rA n a l y s i s a n d B e s t M a t c h R e t r i e v a l ; S p r i n g e r - V e r l a g P u b l i s h e r s ;1 9 9 4 ; p p . 2 7 2 - 2 8 1 .R o b e r t A r m s t r o n g ; W e b W a t c h e r : A e a r n i n g A p p r e n t i c e f o r t h eW o r l d Wide W e b ; C a r n e g i e M e l l o n U n i v e r s i t y , S c h o o l o f C o m p u t e rS c i e n c e ; F e b . 1 , 1 9 9 5 ; p p . 1 - 7 .S . B r i n e t a l . , The Anatomy o f a L a r g e - S c a l e H y p e r t e x t u a l WebS e a r c h E n g i n e ; P r o c e e d i n g s o f t h e S e v e n t h A n n u a l I n t e r n a t i o n a lWorld Wide Web C o n f e r e n c e ; 1 9 9 8 ; p p . 1 0 7 - 1 1 7 .H e n r y L i e b e r m a n ; L e t i z i a : An A g e n t t h a t s s i s t s Web B r o w s i n g ;P r o c e e d i n g s o f t h e F o u r t e e n t h I n t e r n a t i o n a l J o i n t C o n f e r e n c e onA r t i ? c i a l I n t e l l i g e n c e ; 1 9 9 5 ; 6 p a g e s .E l i s a b e t h Andre t a l . ; A i A : Ad a p t i v e Communication A s s i s t a n t f o rE f f e c t i v e I n f o b a h n A c c e s s ; German R e s e a r c h C e n t e r f o r A r t i ? c i a lI n t e l l i g e n c e ( D F K I ) ; M a r . 2 0 , 1 9 9 7 ; 3 0 p a g e s .M c S h e r r y ; A U n i f o r m A p p r o a c h t o A c c e l e r a t e d P a g e R a n k Comput a t i o n ; ACM, 2 0 0 5 ; p p . 5 7 5 - 5 8 2 .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US. p p l . N o . 0 9 / 7 3 4 , 8 8 3 d a t e d M a y , 2 0 0 7 , 2 6p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US . A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 7 3 4 , 8 8 3 d a t e d O c t . 5 , 2 0 0 6 , 2 9p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US. A p p l . N o . 0 9 / 7 3 4 , 8 8 3 d a t e d M a r . 2 0 , 2 0 0 6 ,24 p a g e s .Ramer e t a l . , S i m i l a r i t y , P r o b a b i l i t y a n d D a t a b a s e O r g a n i s a t i o n :E x t e n d e d A b s t r a c t , IEEE 1 9 9 6 , p p . 2 7 2 - 2 7 6 .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US . A p p l . N o . 1 1 / 8 3 5 , 3 1 4 d a t e d J a n . 2 6 , 2 0 0 9 , 8p a g e s .B o t a f o g o e t a l . , I d e n t i f y i n g A g g r e g a t e s i n H y p e r t e x t S t r u c t u r e s , Human-Computer I n t e r a c t i o n L a b o r a t o r y e p a r t m e n t o f C o mp u t e r S c i e n c e , U n i v e r s i t y o f M a r y l a n d , D e c . 1 9 9 1 , p p . 6 3 - 7 4 .

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B o t a f o g o , C l u s t e r A n a l y s i s f o r H y p e r t e x t S y s t e m s , C C n f o r m at i o n T e c h n o l o g y R e s e a r c h L a b o r a t o r i e s , NEC o r p o r a t i o n , 1 9 9 3 , p p .1 1 6 - 1 2 5 .S t i e g e r , M a k i n g U s e o f H y pe r t e x t L i n k s when R e t r i e v i n g I n f o r m at i o n , S w i s s F e d e r a l I n s t i t u t e o f T e c h n o l o g y ( E T H ) Z u r i c h , D e p a r tment o f Computer S c i e n c e , N o v . 3 0 - D e c . 4 , 1 9 9 2 , p p . 1 0 2 - 1 1 1 .B a a s e , C o m p u t e r A l g o r i t h m s i I n t r o d u c t i o n t o D e s i g n a n d A n a l ys i s , S a n D i e g o S t a t e U n i v e r s i t y , J u l . 1 9 8 8 , 3 6 p a g e s .L u c a r e l l a , A Model f o r H y p e r t e x t - B a s e d I n f o r m a t i o n R e t r i e v a l , D i p a r t i m e n t o d i S c i e n Z ' e d e l l I n f o r m a Z i o n e , U n i v e r s i t a d e g l i S t u d i d iM i l a n o , C a m b r i d g e U n i v e r s i t y P r e s s New o r k , 1 9 9 2 , p p . 8 1 - 9 4 .F o x , E x t e n d i n g t h e B o o l e a n a n d V e c t o r S p a c e M o d e l s o f I n f o r m at i o n R e t r i e v a l w i t h P-Norm Q u e r i e s a n d M u l t i p l e C o n c e p t T y p e s , UMI i s s e r t a t i o n I n f o r m a t i o n S e r v i c e , U n i v e r s i t y M i c r o ? l m s I n t e rn a t i o n a l , I n f o r m a t i o n t o U s e r s , C o r n e l l U n i v e r s i t y , 1 9 8 3 , 3 8 5 p a g e s .S c h a t Z e t a l . , NCSA Mosaic and t h e World Wide Web: G l o b a lH y p e r m e d i a P r o t o c o l s f o r t h e I n t e r n e t , S c i e n c e , New S e r i e s , v o l .2 6 5 , N o . 5 1 7 4 , A u g . 1 2 , 1 9 9 4 , p p . 8 9 5 - 9 0 1 .C o n k l i n , H y p e r t e x t : An n t r o d u c t i o n a n d S u r v e y , M i c r o e l e c t r o n i c sa n d C o m p u t e r T e c h n o l o g y C o r p . , S e p . 1 9 8 7 , p p . 1 7 - 4 1 .P i t k o w e t a l . , W e b V i Z : A o o l f o r c c e s s Log A n a l y s i s , G r a p h i c s , V i s u a l i z a t i o n a n d U s a b i l i t y C e n t e r , C o l l e g e o f C o m p u t i n g ,G e o r g i a I n s t i t u t e o f T e c h n o l o y , F i r s t I n t e r n a t i o n a l World-Wide WebC o n f e r e n c e , A d v a n c e P r o c e e d i n g s , May 2 5 - 2 7 , 1 9 9 4 , G e n e v a , 1 1p a g e s .G a r n e r e t a l . , T h r e e D r e x e l I n f o r m a t i o n S c i e n c e R e s e a r c h S t u diesiA C o m p u t e r O r i e n t e d , G r a p h T h e o r e t i c A n a l y s i s o f C i t a t i o nI n d e x S t r u c t u r e s , D r e x e l P r e s s 1 9 6 7 , 5 4 p a g e s .S a l t o n , A s s o c i a t i v e Document e t r i e v a l T e c h n i q u e s U s i n g B i b l i og r a p h i c I n f o r m a t i o n , H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t y , J u l . 1 9 6 2 , p p . 4 4 0 - 4 5 7 .

C l e v e l a n d , An n - D i m e n s i o n a l R e t r i e v a l M o d e l , J o u r n a l o f t h eA m e r i c a n S o c i e t y f o r I n f o r m a t i o n S c i e n c e , v o l . 2 7 , N o . 5 , S e p . - O c t .1 9 7 6 , 7 p a g e s .T a p p e r , The Use o f C i t a t i o n V e c t o r s f o r L e g a l I n f o r m a t io nR e t r i e v a l , J o u r n a l o f L a w a n d I n f o r m a t i o n S c i e n c e , v o l . 1 , N o . 2 ,1 9 8 2 , 3 4 p a g e s .S a l t o n e t a l . , A p p r o a c h e s t o T e x t R e t r i e v a l f o r S t r u c t u r e d Docum e n t s , TR 0 - 1 0 8 3 , J a n . 1 1 , 1 9 9 0 , D e p a r t m e n t o f C o m p u t e r S c ie n c e , C o r n e l l U n i v e r s i t y , 2 0 p a g e s .Can t a l . , A Dynamic C l u s t e r M a i n t e n a n c e S y s t e m f o r I n f o r m a t i o nR e t r i e v a l , 1 9 8 7 , p p . 1 2 3 - 1 3 1 .G a r ? e l d , E s s a y o f a n I n f o r m a t i o n S c i e n t i s t : o f Nobel C l a s s , Womeni n S c i e n c e , C i t a t i o n C l a s s i c s , a n d o t h e r E s s a y s , C o n t r a c t R e s e a r c hS e r v i c e s a t I S I - C i t a t i o n A n a l y s i s f o r G o v e r n m e n t a l , I n d u s t r i a l , a n dAcademic C l i e n t s , v o l . 1 5 , N o . 2 3 , p p . 7 5 - 8 3 , J u n . 8 , 1 9 9 2 .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m U . S . A p p l. N o . 1 2 / 6 8 9 , 8 4 6 d a t e d J a n . 2 1 , 2 0 1 , 1 3p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US . A p p l . N o . 1 2 / 6 9 5 , 7 1 3 d a t e d F e b . 4 , 2 0 1 , 1 2p a g e s .C o - p e n d i n g U . S . A p p l . N o . 1 3 / 6 1 6 , 9 6 5 e n t i t l e d S c o r i n g D o c u m e n t si n a L i n k e d D a t a b a s e , by L a w r e n c e P a g e , ? l e d S e p . 1 4 , 2 0 1 2 , 2 1p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US . A p p l . N o . 1 1 / 2 0 9 , 6 8 7 d a t e d O c t . 6 , 2 0 0 8 , 6p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m U . S . Ap p l . N o . 1 1 / 2 0 9 , 6 8 7 d a t e d J a n . 2 2 , 2 0 0 9 , 2 4p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m US . A p p l . N o . 1 1 / 2 0 8 , 5 9 7 d a t e d O c t . 6 , 2 0 0 8 , 6p a g e s .O f ? c e A c t i o n f r o m U . S . A p p l. N o . 1 1 / 2 0 8 , 5 9 7 d a t e d J a n . 2 3 , 2 0 0 9 , 1 5p a g e s .

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s t a r t e d t o f r e q u e n t l y s e a r c h h u g e d a t a b a s e s . F o r e x a m p l e ,i n t e r n e t s e a r c h e n g i n e s a r e f r e q u e n t l y u s e d t o s e a r c h t h ee n t i r e W o r l d W i d e W e b . C u r r e n t l y , a p o p u l a r s e a r c h e n g i n emight e x e c u t e o v e r 30 m i l l i o n s e a r c h e s p e r day o f t h e i n d e xa b l e p a r t of t h e Web, Which h a s a s i Z e i n e x c e s s of 500G i g a b y t e s . I n f o r m a t i o n r e t r i e v a l s y s t e m s a r e t r a d i t i o n a l l yj u d g e d b y t h e i r p r e c i s i o n a n d r e c a l l . What s o f t e n n e g l e c t e d ,h o W e v e r , i s t h e q u a l i t y o f h e r e s u l t s p r o d u c e d b y t h e s e s e a r c he n g i n e s . L a r g e d a t a b a s e s o f documents s u c h a s t h e Web cont a i n many l o W q u a l i t y d o c u m e n t s . As a r e s u l t , s e a r c h e s t y p ic a l l y r e t u r n hundreds of i r r e l e v a n t o r unWanted docum entsWhich camou ?age h e feW r e l e v a n t o n e s . I n o r d e r t o i m p r o v et h e s e l e c t i v i t y o f t h e r e s u l t s , common t e c h n i q u e s a l l o W t h eu s e r t o c o n s t r a i n t h e scope of h e s e a r c h t o a speci?ed s u b s e to f t h e d a t a b a s e , o r t o p r o v i d e a d d i t i o n a l s e a r c h t e r m s . Theset e c h n i q u e s a r e most e f f e c t i v e i n c a s e s Where t h e d a t a b a s e i shomogeneous and a l r e a d y c l a s s i ? e d i n t o s u b s e t s , o r i n c a s e sWhere h e u s e r i s s e a r c h i n g f o r W e l l knoWn n d s p e c i ? c i n f o rm a t i o n . I n o t h e r c a s e s , h o W e v e r , t h e s e t e c h n i q u e s a r e o f t e nn o t e f f e c t i v e b e c a u s e e a c h c o n s t r a i n t i n t r o d u c e d b y t h e u s e ri n c r e a s e s t h e c h a n c e s t h a t t h e d e s i r e d i n f o r m a t i o n W i l l bei n a d v e r t e n t l y e l i m i n a t e d f r o m t h e s e a r c h r e s u l t s .

S e a r c h e n g i n e s p r e s e n t l y u s e v a r i o u s t e c h n i q u e s t h a ta t t e m p t t o p r e s e n t more r e l e v a n t d o c u m e n t s . T y p i c a l l y , documents a r e ranked according t o v a r i a t i o n s of s t a n d a r d v e c t o rs p a c e m o d e l . T h e s e v a r i a t i o n s c o u l d i n c l u d e ( a ) hoW r e c e n t l yt h e document Was u pd a t e d , a n d / o r ( b ) hoW c l o s e t h e s e a r c ht e r m s a r e t o t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e d o c u m e n t . Although t h i ss t r a t e g y p r o v i d e s s e a r c h r e s u l t s t h a t a r e b e t t e r t h a n W i t h nor a n k i n g a t a l l , t h e r e s u l t s s t i l l h a v e r e l a t i v e l y l o W q u a l i t y .

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H y p e r l i n k S e a r c h E n g i n e , d e v e l o p e d b y IDD I n f o r m a t i o nS e r v i c e s , ( h t t p : / / ra n k d e x . g a r i .c o m / ) u s e s b a c k l i n k i n f o r m at i o n ( i . e . , i n f o r m a t i o n from p a g e s t h a t c o n t a i n l i n k s t o t h ec u r r e n t p a g e ) t o a s s i s t i n i d e n t i f y i n g re l e v a n t Web d o c u m e n t s .R a t h e r t h a n u s i n g t h e c o n t e n t of a document t o d e t e r m i n er e l e v a n c e , t h e t e c h n i q u e u s e s t h e a n c h o r t e x t o f l i n k s t o t h edocument t o c h a r a c t e r i Z e t h e r e l e v a n c e of a document. Thei d e a o f a s s o c i a t i n g a n c h o r t e x t W i t h t h e page h e t e x t p o i n t s t oWas ? r s t i m p l e m e n t e d i n t h e World Wide Web Worm O l i v e rA . McBryan, GENVL n d WWWW: o o l s f o r Taming t h eWeb, F i r s t I n t e r n a t i o n a l C o n f e r e n c e on h e World Wide Web,CERN, G e n e v a , May 2 5 - 2 7 , 1 9 9 4 ) . T h e H y p e r li n k S e a r c hE n g i n e h a s a p p l i e d t h i s i d e a t o a s s i s t i n d e t e r m i n i n g d o c ument r e l e v a n c e i n a s e a r c h . I n p a r t i c u l a r , s e a r c h query t e r m sa r e compared o a c o l l e c t i o n of anchor t e x t d e s c r i p t i o n s t h a tp o i n t t o t h e p a g e , r a t h e r t h a n t o a keyWord i n d e x o f t h e pagec o n t e n t . A ank s t h e n a s s i g n e d t o a document based on t h ed e g r e e t o Which t h e s e a r c h t e r m s match t h e a n c h o r d e s c r i pt i o n s i n i t s b a c k l i n k d o c u m e n t s .

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I n t h e c a s e of d a t a b a s e s Whose c o n t e n t i s of r e l a t i v e l yuniform q u a l i t y and i m p o r t a n c e i t i s v a l i d t o assume t h a t ah i g h l y c i t e d document s h o u l d b e o f g r e a t e r i n t e r e s t t h a n adocument W i t h o n l y one o r tWo c i t a t i o n s . Many d a t a b a s e s ,h o W e v e r , h a v e e x t r e m e v a r i a t i o n s i n t h e q u a l i t y a n d i m p o rt a n c e o f d o c u m e n t s . I n t h e s e c a s e s , c i t a t i o n r a n k i n g i s o v e r l ys i m p l i s t i c . F o r e x a m p l e , c i t a t i o n r a n k i n g W i l l g i v e t h e s a m erank o a document h a t i s c i t e d once o n an obscure page a s t oa s i m i l a r document t h a t i s c i t e d once o n a Well-knoWn andh i g h l y r e s p e c t e d p a g e .

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and methods f o r r a n k i n g documents i n a l i n k e d d a t a b a s e . Onea s p e c t p r o v i d e s a n o b j e c t i v e r a n k i n g b a s e d o n t h e r e l a t i o n s h i pbetWeen d o c u m e n t s . A n o t h e r a s p e c t o f t h e i n v e n t i o n i sd i r e c t e d t o a t e c h n i q u e f o r r a n k i n g documents W i t h i n a d a t ab a s e Whose o n t e n t h a s a l a r g e v a r i a t i o n i n q u a l i t y a n d i m p o rt a n c e . Another a s p e c t o f t h e p r e s e n t i n v e n t i o n i s t o p r o v i d e adocument r a n k i n g method h a t i s s c a l a b l e a n d c a n b e a p p l i e dt o e x t r e m e l y l a r g e d a t a b a s e s s u c h a s t h e W o r l d Wide W e b .A d d i t i o n a l a s p e c t s o f t h e i n v e n t i o n W i l l become a p p a r e n t i nv i e W o f t h e f o l l o W i n g d e s c r i p t i o n a n d a s s o c i a t e d ? g ur e s .T h e p r e s e n t i n v e n t i o n a c h i e v e s t h e a b o v e o b j e c t s b y t a k i n ga d v a n t a g e o f h e l i n k e d s t r u c t u r e of d a t a b a s e t o a s s i g n a r a n kt o e a c h document n t h e d a t a b a s e , Where h e document a n k i sa measure of t h e importance of a document. Rather t h a nd e t e r m i n i n g r e l e v a n c e from t h e i n t r i n s i c c o n t e n t of a docum e n t , o r from t h e anchor t e x t o f b a c k l i n k s t o t h e document,t h e p r e s e n t method e t e r m i n e s i m p o r t a n c e f r o m t h e e x t r i n s i cr e l a t i o n s h i p s b e t W e e n d o c u m e n t s . I n t u i t i v e l y , a documents h o u l d b e i m p o r t a n t ( r e g a r d l e s s o f t s c o n t e n t ) i f i t i s h i g h l y

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c i t e d by o t h e r d o c u m e n t s . Not a l l c i t a t i o n s , h o w e v e r , a r e o fe q u a l s i g n i ? c a n c e . A i t a t i o n f r o m a n i m p o r t a n t d o c u m e n t i smore i m p o r t a n t t h a n a c i t a t i o n from a r e l a t i v e l y u n i m p o r t a n td o c u m e n t . T h u s , t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f a p a g e , and e n c e t h e r a n ka s s i g n e d t o i t , s h o u l d d e p e n d n o t j u s t on h e number o f c i t at i o n s i t h a s , b u t on h e i m p o r t a n c e o f t h e c i t i n g documents a sW e l l . T h i s i m p l i e s a r e c u r s i v e d e ? n i t i o n o f r a n k : t h e r a n k ofdocument s a f u n c t i o n of h e r a n k s of h e documents Whichc i t e i t . The r a n k s o f documents m a y be c a l c u l a t e d by ani t e r a t i v e procedure on a l i n k e d d a t a b a s e .

B e c a u s e c i t a t i o n s , o r l i n k s , a r e Ways o f d i r e c t i n g a t t e n t i o n ,t h e i m p o r t a n t d o c u m e n t s c o r r e s p o n d t o t h o s e d o c u m e n t s t oWhich h e most a t t e n t i o n i s d i r e c t e d . T h u s , a h i g h r a n k i n d ic a t e s t h a t a document s c o n s i d e r e d v a l u a b l e by many p e o p l eo r by i m p o r t a n t p e o p l e . Most l i k e l y , t h e s e a r e t h e p a g e s t oWhich som eone performing a s e a r c h Would l i k e t o d i r e c t h i so r h e r a t t e n t i o n . Looked a t a n o t h e r Way, t h e importance ofp a g e i s d i r e c t l y r e l a t e d t o t h e s t e a d y - s t a t e p r o b a b i l i t y t h a t arandom Web s u r f e r e n d s up t t h e page f t e r f o l l o W i n g a l a r g enumber o f l i n k s . Because t h e r e i s a l a r g e r p r o b a b i l i t y t h a t as u r f e r W i l l end up t an m p o r t a n t page h a n a t an n i m p o r t a n tp a g e , t h i s method f r a n k i n g p a g e s a s s i g n s h i g h e r r a n k s t o t h emore i m p o r t a n t p a g e s .

I n o n e a s p e c t o f t h e i n v e n t i o n , a com puter i mplementedmethod s p r o v i d e d f o r c a l c u l a t i n g a n i m p o r t a n c e r a n k f o r Nl i n k e d n o d e s o f a l i n k e d d a t a b a s e . The method c o m p r i s e s t h es t e p s o f :( a ) s e l e c t i n g a n i n i t i a l N - d i m e n s i o n a l v e c t o r p 0 ;( b ) c o m p u t i n g a n a p p r o x i m a t i o n p t o a s t e a d y - s t a t e p r o ba b i l i t y p o o i n a c c o r d a n c e W i t h t h e e q u a t i o n p n : A p O , W h e r e Ai s a n N>

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I n o r d e r t o i l l u s t r a t e t h e p r e s e n t method o f r a n k i n g , cons i d e r t h e s i m p l e Web o f t h r e e documents shoWn n F I G . 2 . F o rs i m p l i c i t y o f l l u s t r a t i o n , We assume n t h i s example h a t 1 : 0 .DocumentA a s a s i n g l e b a c k l i n k t o document C , and h i s i st h e o n l y f o r w a r d l i n k o f document C , s o

Document B h a s a s i n g l e b a c k l i n k t o document A , b u t t h i si s one of tWo forWard l i n k s of document A, s o

Document C a s tWo b a c k l i n k s . One b a c k l i n k i s t o document B , and h i s i s t h e o n l y f o r W a r d l i n k o f document B . Theo t h e r b a c k l i n k i s t o document A i a t h e o t h e r o f t h e tWof o r W a r d l i n k s from A . Thus

I n t h i s s i m p l e i l l u s t r a t i v e c a s e We an s e e by n s p e c t i o n t h a tr ( A ) : 0 . 4 , r ( B ) : 0 . 2 , a n d r ( C ) : 0 . 4 . A l t h o u g h a t y p i c a l v a l u ef o r 0 t i s ~ 0 . 1 , i f f o r s i m p l i c i t y e s e t ( X : 0 . 5 (Which c o r r es p o n d s t o a 50% c h a n c e t h a t a s u r f e r W i l l randomly ju mp t oone o f t h e t h r e e p a g e s r a t h e r t h a n f o l l o W i n g a f o r W a r d l i n k ) ,t h e n t h e m a t h e m a t i c a l r e l a t i o n s h i p s b e t W e e n t h e r a n k sbecome more c o m p l i c a t e d . I n p a r t i c u l a r , We h e n h a v e

The s o l u t i o n i n t h i s c a s e i s r ( A ) : 1 4 / 3 9 , r ( B ) : 1 0 / 3 9 , andr ( C ) : 1 5 / 3 .I n p r a c t i c e , t h e r e a r e m i l l i o n s o f documents and i t i s n o tp o s s i b l e t o ?nd h e s o l u t i o n t o a m i l l i o n e q u a t i o n s by i n s p e ct i o n . A c c o r d i n g l y , i n t h e p r e f e r r e d e m b o d i m e n t a s i m p l ei t e r a t i v e p r o c e d u r e i s u s e d . As h e i n i t i a l s t a t e We may s i m p l ys e t a l l t h e r a n k s e q u a l t o UN. The f o r m u l a s a r e t h e n used t oc a l c u l a t e a neW s e t of a n k s based on h e e x i s t i n g r a n k s . I n t h ec a s e o f m i l l i o n s o f d o c u m e n t s , s u ? i c i e n t c o n v e r g e n c e t y p ic a l l y t a k e s on t h e o r d e r o f 1 0 0 i t e r a t i o n s . I t i s n o t a l W a y sn e c e s s a r y o r even d e s i r a b l e , h o W e v e r , t o c a l c u l a t e t h e rank ofe v e r y p a g e W i t h h i g h p r e c i s i o n . Even a p p r o x i m a t e r a n k v a lu e s , u s i n g tWo o r more i t e r a t i o n s , can p r o v i d e v e r y v a l u a b l e ,o r even s u p e r i o r , i n f o r m a t i o n .

The i t e r a t i o n process can be understood a s a s t e a d y - s t a t ep r o b a b i l i t y d i s t r i b u t i o n c a l c u l a t e d from a model of randoms u r f e r . T h i s m o d e l i s m a t h e m a t i c a l l y e q u i v a l e n t t o t h e e x p l an a t i o n d e s c r i b e d a b o v e , b u t p r o v i d e s a more d i r e c t and conc i s e c h a r a c t e r i z a t i o n o f h e p ro c e d u r e . The o d e l i n c l u d e s ( a )an i n i t i a l N-dimensional p r o b a b i l i t y d i s t r i b u t i o n v e c t o r p OW h e r e e a c h c o m p o n e n t p O i ] g i v e s t h e i n i t i a l p r o b a b i l i t y t h a ta random s u r f e r W i l l s t a r t a t a node , and ( b ) an N>

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d i f f e r e n t p l a c e i n t h e Web a f t e r f o l l o w i n g a f e W l i n k s . Thev a l u e o f t i s t y p i c a l l y a r o u n d 1 5 % . I n c l u d i n g t h i s damping si m p o r t a n t When many t e r a t i o n s a r e used o c a l c u l a t e t h e r a n ks o t h a t t h e r e i s no a r t i ? c i a l c o n c e n t r a t i o n of rank im portanceW i t h i n l o o p s o f t h e W e b . A l t e r n a t i v e l y , one m a y e t (F0 ando n l y i t e r a t e a feW t i m e s i n t h e c a l c u l a t i o n .

C o n s i s t e n t W i t h t h e p r e s e n t i n v e n t i o n , t h e r e a r e s e v e r a lWays t h a t t h i s method can be a d a p t e d o r a l t e r e d f o r v a r i o u sp u r p o s e s . As a l r e a d y m e n t i o n e d a b o v e , r a t h e r t h a n i n c l u d i n gt h e random l i n k i n g p r o b a b i l i t y 0 t e q u a l l y among l l n o d e s , i tc a n b e d i v i d e d i n v a r i o u s Ways among l l t h e s i t e s by c h a n gi n g t h e 1 1 m a t r i x t o a n o t h e r m a t r i x . F o r e x a m p l e , i t c o u l d b ed i s t r i b u t e d s o t h a t a random jum p t a k e s t h e s u r f e r t o one offeW n o d e s t h a t h a v e a h i g h i m p o r t a n c e , and W i l l n o t t a k e t h es u r f e r t o any of h e o t h e r n o d e s . T h i s can be v e r y e f f e c t i v e i np r e v e n t i n g d e c e p t i v e l y t a g g e d d o c u m e n t s f r o m r e c e i v i n ga r t i ? c i a l l y i n ? a t e d r e l e v a n c e . A l t e r n a t i v e l y , t h e random i n ki n g p r o b a b i l i t y c o u l d b e d i s t r i b u t e d s o t h a t random jumps d on o t h a p p e n f r o m h i g h i m p o rt a n c e n o d e s , a n d o n l y h a p p e nfrom t h e r n o d e s . T h i s d i s t r i b u t i o n Wou ld model s u r f e r Whoi s more i k e l y t o make random jumps f r o m u n i m p o r t a n t s i t e sa n d f o l l o W f o r W a r d l i n k s from m p o r t a n t s i t e s . A m o d i ? c a t i o nt o a v o i d d r a W i n g u n W a r r a n t e d a t t e n t i o n t o p a g e s W i t h a r t i ?c i a l l y i n ? a t e d r e l e v a n c e i s t o i g n o r e l o c a l l i n k s b e t W e e n d o c um e n t s a n d o n l y c o n s i d e r l i n k s b e t W e e n s e p a r a t e d o m a i n s .Because t h e l i n k s from o t h e r s i t e s t o t h e document a r e n o td i r e c t l y u n d e r t h e c o n t r o l o f a t y p i c a l Web s i t e d e s i g n e r , i t i st h e n d i ? i c u l t f o r t h e d e s i g n e r o a r t i ? c i a l l y i n ? a t e t h e r a n k i n g .A i m p l e r a p p r o a c h i s t o W e i g h t l i n k s f r o m p a g e s c o n t a i n e do n t h e same Web e r v e r l e s s than l i n k s f r o m other s e r v e r s .A l s o , i n a d d i t i o n t o s e r v e r s , i n t e r n e t d o m a i n s and n y g e n e r a lmeasure o f t h e d i s t a n c e betWeen l i n k s c o u l d b e used o d e t e rmine s u c h a W e i g h t i n g .

A d d i t i o n a l m o d i ? c a t i o n s c a n f u r t h e r i m p r o v e t h e p e r f o rmance of h i s method. Rank can be i n c r e a s e d f o r documentsWho e b a c k l i n k s a r e maintained by d i f f e r e n t i n s t i t ut i o n s anda u t h o r s i n v a r i o u s g e o g r a p h i c l o c a t i o n s . Or i t c a n bei n c r e a s e d i f l i n k s come f r o m u n u s u a l l y i m p o r t a n t Web l o c at i o n s such a s t h e r o o t page of domain.

L i n k s c a n a l s o b e W e i g h t e d b y t h e i r r e l a t i v e i m p o r t a n c eW i t h i n a d o c u m e n t . F o r e x a m p l e , h i g h l y v i s i b l e l i n k s t h a t a r en e a r t h e t o p of document can be g i v e n more W e i g h t . A l s o ,l i n k s t h a t a r e i n l a r g e f o n t s o r emphasiZed n o t h e r Ways canbeg i v e n more W e i g h t . I n t h i s W a y , t h e model b e t t e r a p p r o x imates h uman usage and a u t h o r s i n t e n t i o n s . I n many c a s e s i ti s a p p r o p r i a t e t o a s s i g n h i gh e r v a l u e t o l i n k s c o m i n g f r o mp a g e s t h a t h a v e b e e n modi?ed r e c e n t l y s i n c e s u c h i n f o r m at i o n i s l e s s l i k e l y t o b e o b s o l e t e .

V a r i o u s i m p l e m e n t a t i o n s o f t h e i n v e n t i o n h a v e t h e a d v a nt a g e t h a t t h e c o n v e r g e n c e i s v e r y f a s t ( a f e W h o u r s u s i n gc u r r e n t p r o c e s s o r s ) a n d i t i s m u c h e s s e x p e n s i v e t h a n b u i l di n g a f u l l - t e x t i n d e x . T h i s s p e e d a l l o W s t h e r a n k i n g t o b ec u s t o m i Z e d o r p e r s o n a l i Z e d f o r s p e c i ? c u s e r s . F o r e x a m p l e , au s e r s h ome page a n d / o r bookmarks can be g i v e n a l a r g ei n i t i a l i m p o r t a n c e , a n d / r a h i g h p r o b a b i l i t y o f random u m pr e t u r n i n g t o i t . T h i s h i g h r a t i n g e s s e n t i a l l y i n d i c a t e s t o t h es y s t e m t h a t t h e p e r s o n s homepage a n d / o r b o o k m a r k s d o e si n d e e d c o n t a i n s u b j e c t s o f i m p o r t a n c e t h a t s h o u l d b e h i g h l yr a n k e d . T h i s p r o c e d u r e e s s e n t i a l l y t r a i n s t h e s y s t e m t o r e co g n i Z e p a g e s r e l a t e d t o t h e p e r s o n s i n t e r e s t s .

The p r e s e n t method f d e t e r m i n i n g t h e r a n k o f a documentcan a l s o be used t o enhance t h e d i s p l a y of d o c u m e n t s . I np a r t i c u l a r , each l i n k i n a document can be a n n o t a t e d With ani c o n , t e x t , o r o t h e r i n d i c a t o r o f t h e r a n k o f t h e document h a te a c h l i n k p o i n t s t o . Anyone v i e W i n g t h e document c a n t h e ne a s i l y s e e t h e r e l a t i v e i m p o r t a n c e o f v a r i o u s l i n k s i n t h ed o c u m e n t .

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can a l s o be u s e f u l f o r e s t i m a t i n g t h e amount of t t e n t i o n anydocument r e c e i v e s on h e Web s i n c e i t models hu man behavi o r When s u r ? n g t h e W e b . E s t i m a t i n g t h e i m p o r t a n c e o f e a c hb a c k l i n k t o a page can be u s e f u l f o r many purposes i n c l u d i n gs i t e d e s i g n , b u s i n e s s a r r a n g e m e n t s W i t h t h e b a c k l i n k e r s , a n dm a r k e t i n g . T h e e f f e c t o f p o t e n t i a l c h a n g e s t o t h e h y p e r t e x ts t r u c t u r e c a n be v a l u a t e d b y d d i n g them o t h e l i n k s t r u c t u r ea n d r e c o m p u t i n g t h e r a n k i n g .

R e a l u s a g e d a t a , When v a i l a b l e , can be used a s a s t a r t i n gp o i n t f o r t h e model a n d a s t h e d i s t r i b ut i o n f o r t h e a l p h a f a c t o r .T h i s can a l l o W t h i s r a n k i n g model t o ? l l h o l e s i n t h e usaged a t a , and p r o v i d e a more a c c u r a t e o r c o m p r e h e n s i v e p i c t u r e .T h u s , a l t h o u g h t h i s m e t h o d o f r a n k i n g d o e s n o t n e c e s s a r i l ymatch h e a c t u a l t r a ? i c , i t n e v e r t h e l e s s m e a s u r e s t h e d e g r e e o fe x p o s u r e a document h a s t h r o u g h o u t t h e W e b .

A n o t h e r a p p l i c a t i o n a n d embodiment o f t h e p r e s e n t i n v e nt i o n i s d i r e c t e d t o e n h a n c i n g t h e q u a l i t y o f r e s u l t s f r o m Webs e a r c h e n g i n e s . I n t h i s a p p l i c a t i o n o f t h e p r e s e n t i n v e n t i o n , ar a n k i n g method c c o r d i n g t o t h e i n v e n t i o n i s i n t e g r a t e d i n t o aWeb s e a r c h e n g i n e t o p r o d u c e r e s u l t s f a r s u p e r i o r t o e x i s t i n gm e t h o d s i n q u a l i t y a n d p e r f o r m a n c e . A s e a r c h e n g i n ee m p l o y i n g a r a n k i n g method o f t h e pr e s e n t i n v e n t i o n p r ov i d e s a u t o m a t i o n W h i l e p r o d u c i n g r e s u l t s c o m p a r a b l e t o ahuman m a i n t a i n e d c a t e g o r i z e d s y s t e m . I n t h i s a p p r o a c h , aWeb r a W l e r e x p l o r e s t h e Web and r e a t e s a n i n d e x o f h e Webc o n t e n t , a s W e l l a s a d i r e c t e d graph of nodes c o r r e s p o n d i n g t ot h e s t r u c t u r e o f h y p e r l i n k s . The o d e s o f h e g r a p h i . e . , p a g e so f t h e Web) a r e t h e n r a n k e d a c c o r d i n g t o i m p o r t a n c e a sd e s c r i b e d a b o v e i n c o n n e c t i o n W i t h v a r i o u s e x e m p l a r ye m b o d i m e n t s o f t h e p r e s e n t i n v e n t i o n .

The s e a r c h e n g i n e i s u s e d t o l o c a t e documents t h a t matcht h e s p e c i ? e d s e a r c h c r i t e r i a , e i t h e r b y s e a r c h i n g f u l l t e x t , o r b ys e a r c h i n g t i t l e s o n l y . I n a d d i t i o n , t h e s e a r c h c a n i n c l u d e t h eanchor t e x t a s s o c i a t e d With b a c k l i n k s t o t h e p a g e . T h i sa p p r o a c h h a s s e v e r a l a d v a n t a g e s i n h i s c o n t e x t . F i r s t , a n c h o r so f t e n p r o v i d e more a c c u r a t e d e s c r i p t i o n s o f Web p a g e s t h a nt h e p a g e s t h e m s e l v e s . S e c o n d , a n c h o r s may x i s t f o r i m a g e s ,p r o g r a m s , and o t h e r o b j e c t s t h a t c a n n o t be i n d e x e d by at e x t - b a s e d s e a r c h e n g i n e . T h i s a l s o makes t p o s s i b l e t o r e t u r nWeb a g e s Which a v e n o t a c t u a l l y b e e n c r a W l e d . I n a d d i t i o n ,t h e engine c an compare t h e s e a r c h t e r m s With a l i s t of t sb a c k l i n k document i t l e s . T h u s , e v e n though t h e t e x t o f t h edocument t s e l f m a y o t match h e s e a r c h t e r m s , i f t h e document i s c i t e d by documents Whose i t l e s o r b a c k l i n k anchort e x t match h e s e a r c h t e r m s , t h e document W i l l be c o n s i d e r e da match. I n a d d i t i o n t o o r i n s t e a d of h e anchor e x t , t h e t e x t i nt h e immediate i c i n i t y o f h e b a c k l i n k a n c h o r t e x t c a n a l s o becompared o t h e s e a r c h t e r m s i n o r d e r t o i m p r o v e t h e s e a r c h .

Once s e t of documents s i d e n t i ? e d t h a t match h e s e a r c ht e r m s , t h e l i s t o f d o c u m e n t s i s t h e n s o r t e d W i t h h i g h r a n k i n gd o c u m e n t s ? r s t a n d l o W r a n k i n g d o c u m e n t s l a s t . The r a n k i n gi n t h i s c a s e i s a f u n c t i o n Which combines a l l of t h e abovef a c t o r s s u c h a s t h e o b j e c t i v e r a n k i n g a n d t e x t u a l m a t c h i n g . I fd e s i r e d , t h e r e s u l t s c a n b e grouped by a t e g o r y o r s i t e a s W e l l .

I t W i l l be c l e a r t o one s k i l l e d i n t h e a r t t h a t t h e aboveembodiments m ay e a l t e r e d i n many Ways W i t h o u t d e p a r t i n gfrom h e s c o p e o f h e i n v e n t i o n . A c c o r d i n g l y , t h e s c o p e o f h ei n v e n t i o n s h o u l d b e d e t e r m i n e d b y t h e f o l l o W i n g c l a i m s a n dt h e i r l e g a l e q u i v a l e n t s .

What s c l a i m e d i s :1 . A ethod performed by a c o m p u t e r , t h e method c o mp r i s i n g :s e l e c t i n g , by h e c o m p u t e r , a ? r s t document f r o m a p l u r a l

i t y o f d o c u m e n t s s t o r e d i n a d a t a b a s e ;

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g e n e r a t i n g , by t h e c o m p u t e r , a r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t documentu s i n g :0 1 r ( B 1 ) NB)

R: W + ( l a ) ( I B I I + . . . + l B n lhere

R e f e r s t o t h e r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t ,n r e f e r s t o a value g r e a t e r than o r e q u a l t o o n e ,B1, . . . B efer to one r more second documents, o f the

p l u r a l i t y o f d o c u m e n t s , t h a t i n c l u d e a l i n k t h a t p o i n t s t ot h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t ,

r(Bl), . . . r(Bn) refer to r anks for the one or more secondd o c u m e n t s ,

l B l l , l B n l refer t o a quantity o f links that the one ormore second documents i n c l u d e ,

0 t r e f e r s t o a c o n s t a n t t h a t i s g r e a t e r than Z e r o and l e s s thano n e , andN e f e r s t o a t o t a l q u a n t i t y o f t h e p l u r a l i t y o f d o c u m e n t s ;and

s t o r i n g , b y t h e c o m p u t e r , t h e r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t .2 . The method of claim 1 , Where 0 t r e f e r s t o a v a l u e i n a? n i t e range of a l u e s betWeen Z e r o and o n e .

3 . The method of l a i m 1 , Where a r e f e r s t o a p r o b a b i l i t yt h a t a u s e r , When a c c e s s i n g a p a r t i c u l a r document of h e oneo r more second documents, W i l l randomly a c c e s s a n o t h e rp a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t , o f t h e p l u r a l i t y o f d o c u m e n t s , r a t h e rt h a n f o l l o W i n g t h e l i n k t o t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t ,

t h e p a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t b e i n g d i f f e r e n t f r o m t h e o t h e rp a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t .4 . The method o f c l a i m 1 , f u r t h e r c o m p r i s i n g :p e r f o r m i n g a p l u r a l i t y o f i t e r a t i o n s o f s e l e c t i n g t h e ? r s t

d o c u m e n t , g e n e r a t i n g t h e r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t ,a n d s t o r i n g t h e r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t .5 . The method o f c l a i m 1 , f u r t h e r c o m p r i s i n g :

r e p e a t i n g s e l e c t i n g a d o c u m e n t , g e n e r a t i n g a r a n k , a n ds t o r i n g t h e r a n k f o r e a c h d o c u m e n t o f t h e p l u r a l i t y o fdocuments s t o r e d i n t h e d a t a b a s e .

6 . The method f c l a i m 1 , Where h e ? r s t document s froma ? r s t domain, and

Where t h e one o r more second documents i n c l u d e onlydocuments f r o m one or m o r e second domains,

t h e one o r more second domains being d i f f e r e n t from t h e? r s t d o m a i n .7 . The method o f c l a i m 1 , Where t h e ? r s t document i s

hosted on a ? r s t Web e r v e r ,Where a p a r t i c u l a r document, of t h e one o r more second

documents, s h o s t e d on h e ? r s t Web s e r v e r and n c l u d e sa ? r s t l i n k t o t h e ? r s t document,

Where a n o t h e r p a r t i c u l a r document, of t h e one o r moresecond docu ments, s hosted on second Web s e r v e r andi n c l u d e s a second l i n k t o t h e ? r s t document, t h e secondWeb s e r v e r b e i n g d i f f e r e n t from t h e ? r s t Web s e r v e r ,W h e r e t h e method f u r t h e r c o m p r i s e s :

a s s i g n i n g a ? r s t W e i g h t t o t h e ? r s t l i n k based on t h e ? r s tdocument a n d t h e p a r t i c u l a r document b e i n g h o s t e d ont h e ? r s t Web s e r v e r ; and

a s s i g n i n g a second W e i g h t t o t h e second l i n k based on h e? r s t document b e i n g h o s t e d on t h e ? r s t Web s e r v e r andt h e o t h e r p a r t i c u l a r document b e i n g h o s t e d on t h e s e cond Web s e r v e r ,t h e s e c o n d W e i g h t b e i n g g r e a t e r t h a n t h e ? r s t W e i g h t ;

Where g e n e r a t i n g t h e r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t document i n c l u d e s :g e n e r a t i n g t h e r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t document a s e d on h e ? r s t

W e i g h t a n d t h e s e c o n d W e i g h t .

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1 08 . The method f c l a i m 1 , Where h e ? r s t document s from

a ? r s t domain,Where a p a r t i c u l a r document, of t h e one o r more second

d o c u m e n t s , i s from h e ? r s t domain and i n c l u d e s a ? r s tl i n k t o t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t ,

Where a n o t h e r p a r t i c u l a r document, of t h e one o r mores e c o n d d o c u m e n t s , i s from a s e c o n d domain andi n c l u d e s a second l i n k t o t h e ? r s t document, t h e secondd o m a i n b e i n g d i f f e r e n t f r o m t h e ? r s t d o m a i n ,

W h e r e t h e method f u r t h e r c o m p r i s e s :a s s i g n i n g a ? r s t W e i g h t t o t h e ? r s t l i n k based on t h e ? r s td o c u m e n t a n d t h e p a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t b e i n g f r o m t h e? r s t d o m a i n ; a n da s s i g n i n g a second W e i g h t t o t h e second l i n k based on t h e

? r s t document e i n g f r o m t h e ? r s t domain and h e o t h e rp a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t b e i n g f r o m t h e s e c o n d d o m a i n ,t h e s e c o n d W e i g h t b e i n g g r e a t e r t h a n t h e ? r s t W e i g h t ;


W e i g h t a n d t h e s e c o n d W e i g h t .9 . The method o f c l a i m 1 , Where t h e ? r s t document i sa s s o c i a t e d With a ? r s t i n s t i t u t i o n o r a u t h o r ,

Where a p a r t i c u l a r document, of t h e one o r more secondd o c u m e n t s , i s a s s o c i a t e d W i t h t h e ? r s t i n s t i t u t i o n o ra u t h o r and i n c l u d e s a ? r s t l i n k t o t h e ? r s t document,

Where a n o t h e r p a r t i c u l a r document, of t h e one o r mores e c o n d d o c u m e n t s , i s a s s o c i a t e d W i t h a second n s t i t ut i o n o r a u t h o r and i n c l u d e s a second l i n k t o t h e ? r s td o c u m e n t , t h e s e c o n d i n s t i t u t i o n o r a u t h o r b e i n g d i f f e re n t from t h e ? r s t i n s t i t u t i o n o r a u t h o r ,

W h e r e t h e method f u r t h e r c o m p r i s e s :a s s i g n i n g a ? r s t W e i g h t t o t h e ? r s t l i n k b a s e d on t h e ? r s t

d o c u m e n t a n d t h e p a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t b e i n g a s s o c i a t e dW i t h t h e ? r s t i n s t i t u t i o n o r a u t h o r ; and

a s s i g n i n g a second W e i g h t t o t h e second l i n k based on t h e? r s t document e i n g a s s o c i a t e d W i t h t h e ? r s t i n s t i t u t i o no r a u t h o r and h e o t h e r p a r t i c u l a r document b e i n g a s s oc i a t e d W i t h t h e second i n s t i t u t i o n o r a u t h o r ,t h e s e c o n d W e i g h t b e i n g g r e a t e r t h a n t h e ? r s t W e i g h t ;


W e i g h t a n d t h e s e c o n d W e i g h t .1 0 . The method f c l a i m 1 , Where p a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t , o f

t h e one o r more second documents, i n c l u d e s a ? r s t l i n k t o t h e? r s t document and a second l i n k t o a t h i r d document,

t h e t h i r d d o c u m e n t b e i n g d i f f e r e n t f r o m t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t ,t h e ? r s t l i n k b e i n g a s s o c i a t e d W i t h a ? r s t measure f impor

t a n c e W i t h i n t h e p a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t ,t h e second l i n k b e i n g a s s o c i a t e d With second measure of

i m p o r t a n c e W i t h i n t h e ? r s t p a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t ,t h e ? r s t m e a s u r e o f i m p o r t a n c e b e i n g g r e a t e r t h a n t h e

s e c o n d measure o f i m p o r t a n c e ,W h e r e t h e method f u r t h e r c o m p r i s e s :a s s i g n i n g a ? r s t W e i g h t t o t h e ? r s t l i n k based on t h e ? r s t

m e a s u r e o f i m p o r t a n c e ; a n d a s s i g n i n g a s e c o n d W e i g h tt o t h e second i n k based on h e second measure of mport a n c e ,t h e ? r s t W e i g h t b e i n g g r e a t e r t h a n t h e s e c o n d W e i g h t ;

Where g e n e r a t i n g t h e r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t document i n c l u d e s :g e n e r a t i n g t h e r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t document a s e d on h e ? r s tW e i g h t .1 1 . The method f c l a i m 1 , Where p a r t i c u l a r d o c u m e n t , o f

t h e one o r more second documents, i n c l u d e s a ? r s t l i n k t o t h e? r s t d o c u m e n t ,Where a n o t h e r p a r t i c u l a r document, of t h e one o r more

second d o c u m e n t s , i n c l u d e s a second l i n k t o t h e ? r s td o c u m e n t ,

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t h e p a r t i c u l a r document e i n g a s s o c i a t e d W i t h a ? r s t d a t eon Which h e p a r t i c u l a r document Was a s t modi?ed,

t h e o t h e r p a r t i c u l a r document b e i n g a s s o c i a t e d W i t h as e c o n d d a t e on Which t h e o t h e r p a r t i c u l a r documentWas a s t modi?ed,t h e ? r s t d a t e b e i n g more r e c e n t t h a n t h e s e c o n d d a t e ,

W h e r e t h e method f u r t h e r c o m p r i s e s :a s s i g n i n g a ? r s t W e i g h t t o t h e ? r s t l i n k based on t h e ? r s td a t e ; a n da s s i g n i n g a second W e i g h t t o t h e second l i n k based on h e

s e c o n d d a t e ,t h e ? r s t W e i g h t b e i n g g r e a t e r t h a n t h e s e c o n d W e i g h t ;


W e i g h t a n d t h e s e c o n d W e i g h t .1 2 . The method o f c l a i m 1 , f u r t h e r c o m p r i s i n g :i d e n t i f y i n g t h a t t h e ? r s t document i s a s s o c i a t e d W i t h ahome age or a b o o k m a r k o f a u s e r ; and

s e t t i n g a v a l u e f o r 0 t based on i d e n t i f y i n g t h a t t h e ? r s tdocument s a s s o c i a t e d With home age or b o o k m a r kof the u s e r .1 3 . The method o f c l a i m 1 , f u r t h e r c o m p r i s i n g :

o b t a i n i n g r e a l u s a g e d a t a r e l a t i n g t o a c c e s s e s o f t h e p l u r a li t y o f d o c u m e n t s ; a n ds e t t i n g a v a l u e f o r a u s i n g t h e r e a l u s a g e d a t a .1 4 . The method o f c l a i m 1 , f u r t h e r c o m p r i s i n g :r e c e i v i n g a s e a r c h q u e r y ;l o c a t i n g a s e t o f d o c u m e n t s , from t h e p l u r a l i t y o f d o c u

m e n t s , based on t h e s e a r c h q u e r y , t h e s e t of documentsi n c l u d i n g t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t ; a n d

s o r t i n g d o c u m e n t s , i n t h e s e t o f d o c u m e n t s , i n t o a r a n k e dl i s t ,t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t b e i n g p l a c e d , W i t h i n t h e r a n k e d l i s t ,

based on h e rank f o r t h e ? r s t document.1 5 . The method o f c l a i m 1 4 , f u r t h e r c o m p r i s i n g :d e t e r m i n i n g c a t e g o r i e s a s s o c i a t e d W i t h t h e d o c u m e n t s i n

t h e s e t o f d o c u m e n t s ; and

1 2a r r a n g i n g t h e d o c u m e n t s , i n t h e r a n k e d l i s t , b a s e d on t h e

d e t e r m i n e d c a t e g o r i e s a s s o c i a t e d W i t h t h e d o c u m e n t s ,a t h i r d document and a f o u r t h document, of h e docu

m e n t s , b e i n g a s s o c i a t e d W i t h a same c a t e g o r y o f t h e5 d e t e r m i n e d c a t e g o r i e s ,

t h e t h i r d document a n d t h e f o u r t h document b e i n gg r o u p e d t o g e t h e r W i t h i n t h e r a n k e d l i s t b a s e d on t h et h i r d document and t h e f o u r t h document b e i n g a s s oc i a t e d With t h e same c a t e g o r y .

1 6 . The method o f c l a i m 1 4 , f u r t h e r c o m p r i s i n g :d e t e r m i n i n g s i t e s a s s o c i a t e d W i t h t h e documents i n t h e s e t

o f d o c u m e n t s ; a n da r r a n g i n g t h e d o c u m e n t s , i n t h e r a n k e d l i s t , b a s e d on t h e

d e t e r m i n e d s i t e s a s s o c i a t e d W i t h t h e d o c u m e n t s ,a t h i r d document and a f o u r t h document, of h e docu

m e n t s , b e i n g a s s o c i a t e d W i t h a same i t e of h e d e t e rm i n e d s i t e s ,

t h e t h i r d document a n d t h e f o u r t h document b e i n gg r o u p e d t o g e t h e r W i t h i n t h e r a n k e d l i s t b a s e d on t h et h i r d document and t h e f o u r t h document b e i n g a s s oc i a t e d With t h e same s i t e .

1 7 . The method o f c l a i m 1 , f u r t h e r c o m p r i s i n g :r e c e i v i n g a s e a r c h q u e r y ;l o c a t i n g a s e t o f d o c u m e n t s , from t h e p l u r a l i t y o f d o c u

m e n t s , based on h e s e a r c h q u e r y ,t h e s e t o f d o c u m e n t s i n c l u d i n g t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t ;

d e t e r m i n i n g r e l e v a n c e r a n k s f o r d o c u m e n t s , i n t h e s e t o fdocuments, based on a match of t h e s e a r c h query t oc o n t e n t s o f t h e d o c u m e n t s ;

d e t e r m i n i n g a t o t a l rank o r t h e ? r s t document based on h er a n k a n d t h e r e l e v a n c e r a n k f o r t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t ; a n d

s o r t i n g t h e d o c u m e n t s , i n t h e s e t o f d o c u m e n t s , i n t o ar a n k e d l i s t ,t h e ? r s t d o c u m e n t b e i n g p l a c e d , W i t h i n t h e r a n k e d l i s t ,

based on t h e t o t a l rank f o r t h e ? r s t document.

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