Patent ID: 7440964

Claim:
A method of operating a search engine for presenting search results in response to queries, said method comprising: (i) maintaining a first index comprising a plurality of index entries, each of said index entries comprising a key field and data from which a quality of match value of the index entry to a query can be determined using a known function; (ii) modifying selected index entries of said first index by an administrator so that the quality of match of the index entry to predefined queries provides a quality of match value selected by the administrator; (iii) receiving a query; (iv) querying said index entries of said first index using the received query to obtain a set of matching index entries from said first index, and forming a first set of search results from said set of matching index entries, each of said first set of search results comprising the key field of a matching index entry and the quality of match value for the index entry for the received query; (v) querying using the received query, index entries of a second index whose index entries cannot be modified by said administrator, to obtain a set of second search results each including a key field and a quality of match value for the received query to an entry in the second index; (vi) combining and ordering said first and second set of search results to generate a combined list of search results, in which any search result from said set of second search results for which its key field is identical to the key field of a search result in said first set of search results is discarded, in favor of said search result in said first set of search results, and in which said search results from said first and second set of search results are ordered in accordance with their respective associated quality of match values; so that selected search results from index entries of said first index are presented in a combined list in an order controlled by said administrator in response to defined queries.