Information retrieval is the main way for users to query and obtain information, and it is also the method and means to find information. Information retrieval in a narrow sense only refers to information search. In other words, users can use certain methods and retrieval tools to find the information they need from the information collection according to their own needs.
Information retrieval in a broad sense is a process of processing, sorting, organizing and storing information in a certain way, and then accurately finding out relevant information according to the specific needs of information users. Also known as information storage and retrieval. Generally speaking, information retrieval refers to information retrieval in a broad sense.
origin
Information retrieval originated from the library's reference service and abstract indexing, and first developed in the second half of19th century. By the 1940s, indexing and retrieval had become an independent tool and user service project of libraries. With the advent of the first electronic computer in the world in 1946, computer technology gradually entered the field of information retrieval, and was closely combined with information retrieval theory.
They have been successfully developed and commercialized. From 1960s to 1980s, with the promotion of information processing technology, communication technology, computer and database technology, information retrieval developed rapidly in the fields of education, military and commerce, and was widely used. Dialog international online information retrieval system is the representative of information retrieval field in this period, and it is still one of the most famous systems in the world.