USER INTERFACES TO PERFORM MULTIPLE QUERY SEARCHES

• US 20080319944A1
• Filed: 06/27/2007
• Published: 12/25/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 06/22/2007
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Venolia, Gina Danielle, Morris, Meredith June, Morris, Daniel Scott
• Application Number:
  US11/769,657
• Publication Number:
  US 20080319944A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/3
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04803 Split screen, i.e. subdividing the display area or the window area into separate subareas
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/048 Interaction techniques based on graphical user interfaces [GUI]

Abstract

User interfaces for conducting multi-query searches. These user interfaces also provide specific mechanisms for supporting multi-query searches including: saving/restoring search context; search-specific query history; a “keepers” bin for storing useful results; elimination of redundant results; re-ranking of common search results; integration of searching with navigation; pivoting on search results; collaboration among multiple searchers; user-generated content; support for generation of hypotheses; re-executing queries and executing standing queries; multi-monitor searching and automatic preparation of search summaries.

Claims

1. A graphical user interface for displaying synthesized results of multiple query searches on a display device, comprising:

a window for displaying search queries that are saved;

a window for displaying a current search query;

a window for displaying search results that are saved; and

a window for displaying synthesized search results created from search results related to the current search query.

2. The display device wherein of claim 1 wherein search results related to the current search query that the user has deleted are no longer displayed in the window for displaying synthesized search results.

3. The graphical user interface of claim 2 wherein search results that a user has deleted are never displayed in the window for displaying synthesized search results if returned in response to a new search query.

4. The graphical user interface of claim 1 further comprising a new search control button which can be activated by a user to define the beginning of a multiple query search.

5. The graphical user interface of claim 1 further comprising a window for displaying search results found through post-query navigation of search results of a search query.

6. The graphical user interface of claim 1 further comprising a window for displaying search results that have been determined to be useful.

7. The graphical user interface of claim 6 wherein the search results that have been determined to be useful were manually designated as useful by the user.

8. The graphical user interface of claim 7 wherein the search results that are determined to be useful were manually designated as useful by a user selecting a thumb'"'"'s up indicator for each search result returned for a given search query.

9. The graphical user interface of claim 6 wherein the search results that have been determined to be useful were automatically designated as useful.

10. The graphical user interface of claim 6 further comprising at least one of the following control buttons to:

open the useful search results using a set of tabs;

create a summary of the links to the useful search results in a word processor; and

copy a summary of the links to the useful search results to another application.

11. A graphical user interface for displaying synthesized results of multiple query searches on a display device, comprising:

a window for displaying each of multiple search queries in columns with search results associated with each of the multiple search queries displayed in a rows; and

an indicator displayed in a row with a given search result, correlated to one of the multiple search queries displayed in a column, that indicates whether the search result in that row was found by using the query indicated in that column.

12. The graphical user interface of claim 11 further comprising:

a window for displaying a search engine used in generating a current search query.

13. The graphical user interface of claim 11 further comprising a control to allow a user to find data that is linked to a selected search result.

14. The graphical user interface of claim 11 further comprising user annotations displayed in a row with the search results.

15. The graphical user interface of claim 11 further comprising a new search button for defining the beginning of a multiple query search.

16. A graphical user interface for displaying synthesized results of multiple query searches on a display device, comprising:

windows for displaying search results, each of window of which is associated with a search query that generated the search results in the associated window; and

a control button associated with each search query for resubmitting the associated search query via a search engine.

17. The graphical user interface of claim 16 further comprising a new search control button for defining the beginning of a multiple query search.

18. The graphical user interface of claim 16 wherein search results that are found in a re-executed search query are added in the window of search results associated with that search query.

19. The graphical user interface of claim 16 wherein a resubmitted search query is automatically re-executed at certain time intervals.

20. The graphical user interface of claim 16 wherein the re-executed search query is manually re-executed by the user.