Aspen calculates search relevancy based on "boosting" numbers. The higher the boost, the higher the relevancy. Relevancy is based on a combination of settings and built-in code. Listed below are the various types of searches along with the "boosting" numbers for different search criteria.


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Keyword Searching Relevancy:

  • Aspen will search all information in the MARC record except for text within fields below 010 and above 900.
  • When using a Keyword search, if the input exactly matches the title of a record, then that record will have a boost of 10000.
  • If the search term matches the beginning of the title, it will have a boost of 8000. As the title match is less exact, the relevancy will decrease accordingly.
  • If the search in keyword exactly matches an author field, then it will have a boost of 2000.
  • If the search matches the beginning of the author, it will have a boost of 1000. If the search matches other parts of the author, it does take that into account for relevancy, but much smaller (from 50-200, depending on what parts of the author it matches).
  • Aspen will also check to see if the input in the keyword search matches the ISBN, ISSN, item barcode, or call number and return those records.
  • For the call number, Aspen will boost an exact match on call number with a boost of 400. If the call number only matches the beginning, it will have a boost of 300.
  • If the keyword input matches the series information, Aspen will boost the record if its series exactly matches with a boost of 1500. If it matches on part of a series name, it will boost some, but less than an exact match (30-1500).
  • Finally, Aspen will check to see if your keyword search term is found in the table of contents, subject, topic, geographic region, genre, era, keywords, description, target audience, and literary form (nonfiction/fiction).


Keyword Proper Searching Relevancy:

Turn a Keyword search into a Keyword Proper search with quotation marks. For example, Aspen will follow the Keyword search criteria if you do not have quotation marks around Great Gatsby. When searching for "Great Gatsby" (with quotation marks), the relevancy will follow these guidelines:

  • If the quoted input exactly matches a title, it will have a boost of 2400.
  • If the quoted input matches the beginning of a title, it will have a boost of 1600.
  • If the quoted input exactly matches an author, it will have a boost of 2200.
  • If the quoted input matches the beginning of the author, it will have a boost of 1000.
  • If the quoted input matches the series of a title, it will have a boost of 500.
  • A Keyword Proper search will also look for the input in the table of contents, topics, geographic region, genre, keywords, ISBN, ISSN, UPC, OCLC number, call number, alternate IDs, and item barcode.


Title Searching Relevancy:

  • If the search term exactly matches a title, it will have a boost of 10000.

  • If the search term matches the beginning of the title, it will have a boost of 8000.

  • If the search matches parts of the title, it will have a boost from 50-800, depending on the level of match.

  • If the search matches part of a series, it will have a boost from 50-800, depending on the level of match.


Title Proper Searching Relevancy:


Title Proper refers to a title search surrounded by quotation marks.

  • If the quoted search term exactly matches a title, it will have a boost of 2400.

  • If the quoted search term matches the beginning of the title, it will have a boost of 2400.

  • If the search matches part of a series, it will have a boost of 100.


Start of Title Searching Relevancy:

  • If the search term matches the beginning of a title, it will have a boost of 1600.


Series Searching Relevancy:

  • If the search term exactly matches the series, it will have a boost of 2400.
  • If the search term matches on some of the series information, it will have a boost of 50-1000, depending on the level of the match.


Series Proper Searching Relevancy:


Series Proper refers to a series search surrounded by quotation marks.

  • If the quoted search term exactly matches the series, it will have a boost of 2400.
  • If the quoted search term matches on some of the series information, it will have a boost of 500-1000, depending on the level of the match.


Author Searching Relevancy:


When searching by Author, if the input exactly matches a record's author, it will have a boost of 2200, regardless of whether it is surrounded by quotation marks. If the search matches the beginning of the author, it will have a boost of 1400.


Subject Searching Relevancy:

  • If the search term exactly matches the subject, it will have a boost of 300.

  • If the search term exactly matches the topic, it will have a boost of 300.

  • If the search term exactly matches the geographic region, it will have a boost of 300.

  • If the search term exactly matches the genre, it will have a boost of 300.

  • If the search term exactly matches the era, it will have a boost of 300.


Subject Proper Searching Relevancy:


Subject Proper refers to a Subject search surrounded by quotation marks.

  • If the quoted search term exactly matches the subject, it will have a boost of 300.

  • If the quoted search term exactly matches the topic, it will have a boost of 300.

  • If the quoted search term exactly matches the geographic region, it will have a boost of 300.

  • If the quoted search term exactly matches the genre, it will have a boost of 300.

  • If the quoted search term matches part of the subject, topic, geographic region, genre, or era, it will have a boost of 100.

Checkouts and the Effect on Relevancy:


Aspen also considers the number of checkouts on items and titles. As patrons use a title more, Aspen will increase the relevancy of that title. The system does this because, most likely, if a title is very popular and checked out often, it's a title other patrons are more likely to expect in their search results.