Subject: WWW::Search 1.018 released
From: John Heidemann <[email-masked]>
Date: 2 Jun 1998 18:38:59 GMT
Newsgroups: comp.lang.perl.announce,comp.lang.perl.modules

(Wouldn't you know it... two days after 1.017 is out, AltaVista redoes
their format.  This release is NOT on CPAN since CPAN is currently
down.   -John)

WWW::Search and AutoSearch
==========================

WHAT IS NEW WITH WWW::Search 1.018?  (31-May-98)
-----------------------------------
overview:  back-end updates

- bug fix: Excite and WebCrawler (by Martin Thurn),
	AltaVista (by John Heidemann)
	updated 30-May-98

- known bugs:  WWW::Search doesn't work on MacPerl because of
	end-of-line differences.  A fix for this problem is in
	progress.  (Problem identified and fix suggested by 
	Chris Nandor.)

Note:  WWW::Search may have problems with older libwww's (5.08).  If
"make test" dies with an error in RobotUA, upgrade libwww.  (Tested
with libwww-5.30.)

WHAT IS WWW::Search?
--------------------

WWW::Search is a collection of Perl modules which provide an API to
WWW search engines.  Currently WWW::Search includes back-ends for
variations of AltaVista, Dejanews, Excite, HotBot, Infoseek, Lycos,
Magellan, PLweb, SFgate, Verity, WebCrawler, and Yahoo.  We include
two applications built from this library: AutoSearch (an program to
automate tracking of search results over time), and WebSearch, a small
demonstration program to drive the library.  Back-ends for other
search engines and more sophisticated clients are currently under
development.

Because WWW::Search depends on parsing the HTML output of web search
engines it will fail of the search engine operators change their
format (an unfortunately frequent occurrence).  WWW::Search includes a
test suite for most back-ends which verifies that it's functioning
correctly.  As of the day of the release the current back-end
status is:

AltaVista		working		(in test suite)
Dejanews		not working?	not in test suite
Excite			working		(in test suite)
Gopher			not working?	not in test suite
HotBot			working		(in test suite)
Infoseek		working		(in test suite)
Lycos			working		(in test suite)
Magellan		not working	(in test suite)
PLweb			not working?	not in test suite
SFgate			not working?	not in test suite
Verity			not working?	not in test suite
Simple			not working?	not in test suite
WebCrawler		working		(in test suite)
Verity			not working	not in test suite
Yahoo			not working	(in test suite)

(others are currently under development, see contributors below for details)

WHAT IS AutoSearch?
-------------------

WWW::Search's primary client is AutoSearch.  AutoSearch performs a
web-based search and puts the results set in a web page.  It
periodically updates this web page, indicating how the search changes
over time.  Sample output from WWW::Search can be found at
<http://www.isi.edu/lsam/autosearch/>.  Output format is configurable.

See the man page for AutoSearch details, or Demonstration section
below for the quick-start instructions.

REQUIREMENTS
------------

WWW::Search requires Perl5 and libwww-perl.
For information on Perl5, see <http://www.perl.com>.
For libwww-perl, see <http://www.sn.no/libwww-perl/>.
Both are also available from the Comprehensive Perl Archive
Network (CPAN). Visit <http://www.perl.com/CPAN/> to find a CPAN
site near you.

At this time WWW::Search is tested under Perl version 5.004_04.

AVAILABILITY
------------

The latest version of WWW::Search should always be available from
<http://www.isi.edu/lsam/tools/WWW_SEARCH/>.  Alpha releases are only
available here (not at CPAN).

WWW::Search is also available as part of CPAN.  Visit
<http://www.perl.com/CPAN/> to find a CPAN site near you.

Feedback about WWW::Search is encouraged.  If you're using it for a
neat application, please let us know.  If you'd like to (or have)
implemented a new back-end for WWW::Search, let us know so we don't
duplicate work.