Mechanism for integrated information search and retrieval from diverse sources using multiple navigation methods

A method of searching an information space including a plurality of types of information, comprising the steps, performed by a data processing system, of:

• displaying an initial window, wherein one navigator of a plurality of navigators, designated as a current navigator, is displayed in a current navigator window;
• inputting a search term via the current navigator;
• and
• performing a search of at least two types of information in the information space in accordance with the search parameter, wherein a respective search engine is used to search each respective information type.

An apparatus for searching an information space having a plurality of information types therein, comprising:

• a database including respective entries for each piece of information in the information space, where a database entry includes a database key and a pointer to the location of the respective piece of information in the information space;
• a navigator selector mechanism that allows a user to chose one of a plurality of navigators as a current navigator;
• a search input mechanism that obtains a search parameter from the current navigator;
• and
• a search mechanism that performs a search over at least two types of information in the information space in accordance with the search parameter.

A method of inputting a search parameter for an information space, comprising the steps, performed by a data processing system, of:

• displaying a list of verbs;
• displaying a list of nouns;
• inputting an indication from a user that the user has selected a first word from a first one of the displayed lists, the other list being the second list;
• altering the display of the second list to indicate which words of the second list correspond to the user-selected word;
• inputting an indication from a user that the user has selected a second word from the second list, where the second user-selected word is a word that corresponds to the first user-selected word.