In text retrieval, full text search refers to techniques for searching a single computer-stored document or a collection in a full text database. Full text search is distinguished from searches based on metadata or on parts of the original texts represented in databases (such as titles, abstracts, selected sections, or bibliographical references).
In a full text search, the search engine examines all of the words in every stored document as it tries to match search criteria (e.g., words supplied by a user). Full text searching techniques became common in online bibliographic databases in the 1990s. Many web sites and application programs (such as word processing software) provide full-text search capabilities. Some web search engines such as AltaVista employ full text search techniques while others index only a portion of the web pages examined by its indexing system.
Read more about Full Text Search: Indexing, The Precision Vs. Recall Tradeoff, False-positive Problem, Performance Improvements, Software
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“You cannot, in human experience, rush into the light. You have to go through the twilight into the broadening day before the noon comes and the full sun is upon the landscape.”
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