AUTOMATIC SEARCH SUGGESTIONS FROM SERVER-SIDE USER HISTORY

• US 20100082649A1
• Filed: 09/22/2008
• Published: 04/01/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2008
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: GUTT, ZACHARY MARK, SCHECHTER, MICHAEL AUSTIN
• Application Number:
  US12/235,413
• Publication Number:
  US 20100082649A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 707/758
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/951 Indexing; Web crawling techniques

Abstract

Suggested search queries are provided to a user as search assistance while a user is entering a search query but before the user submits a completed search query for a search to be performed. The suggested search queries are selected and ordered based on the user'"'"'s personal search history stored server-side as well as other information available to the search engine. When a query portion is received while a user is entering a search query, previously submitted search queries are selected from the user'"'"'s search history as suggested search queries. The suggested search queries are selected and/or ranked based on the user'"'"'s search history and/or other information available to the search engine.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for a server-side search engine to provide suggested search queries from a server-side user search history for a user, the method comprising:

receiving user input representing a portion of a search query, the user input being received prior to receiving a user command to perform a search using a completed search query;

selecting and ordering, from the server-side user search history, one or more search queries previously submitted to the search engine by the user, wherein the one or more search queries are selected and ordered as one or more suggested search queries based at least in part on relevance of the one or more search queries to the portion of the search query and based at least in part on other information available to the search engine; and

communicating the one or more suggested search queries for presentation to the user.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the other information available to the server-side search engine comprises information collected from web pages and other documents and stored in a search engine index used for providing search results in response to search queries.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the other information available to the server-side search engine comprises information in query logs.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the other information available to the server-side search engine comprises user search history for other users.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 4, wherein the other users include users identified as being within a social network with the user.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

identifying one or more additional suggested search queries independent of the server-side user search history for the user; and

communicating the one or more additional suggested search queries for presentation to the user.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the one or more additional suggested search queries are identified based at least in part on a comparison of the query portion to at least one of:

a search engine index, and query logs.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the one or more suggested search queries and the one or more additional suggested search queries are provided in separate lists.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the one or more suggested search queries and the one or more additional suggested search queries are ranked against each other and comingled together in a common list provided to the user.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the one or more suggested search queries each include an embedded link, allowing for user selection of the one or more suggested search queries.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the method further comprises:

receiving input indicative of a user selection of a suggested search query from the one or more suggested search queries;

performing a search using the selected suggested search query to generate search results; and

communicating the search results for presentation to the user.

12. One or more computer-storage media storing computer-useable instructions for causing a server-side search engine to perform a method for providing suggested search queries based on server-side user search history information, the method comprising:

as a user incrementally enters characters to form a portion of a search query, upon each increment;

receiving the portion of the search query;

accessing the server-side user search history information for the user, the server-side user search history information including previous search queries submitted by the user to the server-side search engine;

accessing other information available to the server-side search engine from at least one of;

(1) a search engine index containing information obtained by crawling a plurality of documents to be searched using the server-side search engine, and (2) query logs maintained by the server-side search engine;

selecting and ordering, from the server-side user search history information, a plurality of previous search queries as a plurality of suggested search queries based at least in part on a relevance of the plurality of search queries to the portion of the search query and based at least in part on at least a portion of the other information available to the server-side search engine; and

communicating the plurality of suggested search queries for presentation to the user.

13. The one or more computer-storage media of claim 12, wherein the method further comprises:

identifying a plurality of additional suggested search queries independent of the server-side user search history for the user; and

communicating the plurality of additional suggested search queries for presentation to the user.

14. The one or more computer-storage media of claim 13, wherein the plurality of suggested search queries and the plurality of additional suggested search queries are provided in separate lists.

15. The one or more computer-storage media of claim 13, wherein the plurality of suggested search queries and the plurality of additional suggested search queries are ranked against each other and comingled together in a common list provided to the user.

16. The one or more computer-storage media of claim 12, wherein the method further comprises:

receiving input indicative of a user selection of a suggested search query from the plurality of suggested search queries;

performing a search using the selected suggested search query to generate search results; and

communicating the search results for presentation to the user.

17. One or more computer-storage media storing computer-useable instructions for causing a server-side search engine to perform a method for providing suggested search queries based on server-side user search history information for a user, the method comprising:

receiving user input representing a search query portion, the user input being received prior to receiving a user command to perform a search using a completed search query;

accessing the server-side search history information for the user, the server-side search history information including a plurality of previously submitted search queries from the user;

identifying one or more previously submitted search queries from the server-side search history information as one or more suggested search queries based on the search query portion;

accessing other information available to the server-side search engine;

ranking the one or more suggested search queries based at least in part on the other information available to the server-side search engine; and

communicating at least a portion of the one or more suggested search queries for presentation to the user.

18. The one or more computer-storage media of claim 17, wherein the other information available to the server-side search engine comprises one or more of the following:

information collected from web pages and other documents and stored in a search engine index used for providing search results in response to search queries;

information in query logs; and

user search history for other users.

19. The one or more computer-storage media of claim 17, wherein the at least a portion of the one or more suggested search queries are selected for communication to the user based on rankings associated with each of the one or more suggested search queries.

20. The one or more computer-storage media of claim 17, wherein the at least a portion of the one or more suggested search queries are ordered based on rankings associated with each of the one or more suggested search queries.