System and method for hierarchical information retrieval from a coded collection of relational data

A network system for information retrieval from a collection of hypermedia data over a distributed network comprising:

• a. a memory, at least one computer server hosting an information retrieval site and operatively connected to the distributed network;
• b. a data storage system residing upon computer readable media operatively connected to the at least one computer server, the data storage system comprising the collection of hypermedia data, the collection comprising a plurality of hyperlinks to items of hypermedia content, wherein a plurality of the hyperlinks are each associated with at least one hypermedia content code value is populated with at least one automatically generated value based on one or more topics associated with the hypermedia content;
• c. at least one input/output device through which a searcher accesses the information retrieval site, inputs retrieval data and receives selected output;
• and
• d. an application running on the at least one computer server, the server application configured to:
• i. receive progressive user input and iteratively build a user search code value according to the user input,
• wherein the building comprises:
• presenting search options to a user organized into a plurality of search axes, each axis having an assigned portion of the user search code value, each axis having nodes of intersection with other axes;
• each axis further comprising at least one hierarchy, a hierarchy comprised of levels of hierarchical groupings, the hierarchical groupings representing sets of hypermedia content, the sets being less than the entirety of the hypermedia content represented by records in the data storage system, each level of hierarchical groupings having an assigned portion of the user search code value and each hierarchical grouping having a value to be assigned to the portion;
• present nodes of intersection of the axes to users at each level of a hierarchy, allowing for selection of additional search options by users from a selected axis;
• receive input from a user selecting a hierarchical grouping and use the selection to assign the hierarchical grouping's value to the hierarchical level's assigned portion of the user search code value;
• receive input from a user selecting an axis and use the selection to generate the axis' assigned portion of the user search code value;
• ii. at least partially match the user search code value to at least a portion of at least one hypermedia content code value for a plurality of hyperlinks to identify each associated hyperlink to a particular information retrieval data set;
• and
• iii. display the particular information retrieval data set to the user.