What is IR (information retrieval)?

IR or information retrieval is a field of research concerned with searching unstructured (or quasi-structured) data such as text documents and the retrieval of results pertinent to a user's query. Modern web search engines are the most widely known implementations of IR systems; however, IR systems are also used for searching libraries, online store catalogs, etc.

What is Grid computing?

Grid computing refers to technologies that enable the integration of distributed computing resources. The Open Grid Services Architecture (OGSA) is a popular grid computing architecture that defines a common, consistent framework allowing dynamic creation, coordination, management, and security of computing resources, called "grid services." Networks of grid services can be created to form Virtual Organizations (VOs), a central concept of OGSA-based grid computing. Projects such as GIR seek to implement common applications of grid services through the definition of open standards.

What is GIR?

GIR applies the tools of grid computing to IR to provide a common infrastructure for distributed IR. It also brings the capabilities of IR to grid computing. The basic idea of GIR is to define an IR system in terms of three functional components, implemented as grid services: the Collection Manager service (CM), the Indexing/Searching service (IS), and the Query Processing service (QP). These services are autonomous, and being grid services, they are distributed. Since they can be created dynamically and in any combination of Virtual Organizations, they can be used to create new IR systems or link existing ones together in an interoperable network of IR services.

Continue to GIR features.