InterMedia fuzzy search vs. Soundex

[chrisrlong]

Has anyone used the Fuzzy search method in the ConText (InterMedia Text) stuff?

How did it compare to Soundex?

It looks like the Intermedia version of Soundex is just a specialized Fuzzy search - thought that was interesting.

Anyway, looking for any info or opinions here.

Thanks in advance,

- Chris

[Zaggy]

I used Intermedia within WebDB and it worked great. The old soundex is a static algroithm that works alright, but Intermedia is dynamic in comparison.

Intermedia is dynamic, becuase it allows you to assign weigths to words and relationships. It also denote the difference betweeen china the country and the plate, depending on the context of the search string. But to get the full benefit out of Intermedia it needs to be setup properly for your needs. Where soundex does not need preconfiguration to work to its max potential.

I recommend Intermedia, becuase it is a great configurable search engine in the database. If you need a search engine that is a lot more scalable, I would look somewhere else.

This is my experience with it and hope it helps.

[chrisrlong]

Thanks for the feedback.

I'm actually working on another project that is using it more for its usual strengths - searching within text - and it works great.

For another project, however, they are interested in the possibility of building a better mousetrap, or SOUNDEX, as it were . They are wondering if the Fuzzy Search algorithm will give them better results than soundex, which, as we all know, if fairly limited and highly innacurate. So this is just for searching for specific names within normal lastname, firstname fields.

Any thoughts on that?

- Chris

[Zaggy]

I have never had to do a spelling check of names, but I found a reference to spell checking through Intermedia on Oracle's site. It is just a reference not a how-to, but here is the link:
http://technet.oracle.com/products/i...iew.htm#search

here is another:
http://technet.oracle.com/products/intermedia/

You most likely have seen these sites. I hope this helps you and your customers.