AppleSearch is Apple's client/server information retrieval system. It allows users to search large text databases for topics of interest. The AppleSearch WAIS (Wide Area Information Server) gateway expands the scope of AppleSearch beyond Local Area Networks to the Internet.
The WAIS gateway, the primary new feature of AppleSearch 1.5, allows Macintosh users on a AppleTalk network to search WAIS servers on the Internet for information related to specific topics or keywords.
INTERNET CONNECTION
In order to use the AppleSearch/WAIS gateway, you must have a TCP/IP connection from a Macintosh to the Internet. This can be accomplished with the Apple IP Gateway software, Shiva Fastpath, Cisco router or some other DDP/IP (Datagram Delivery Protocol/Internet Protocol) gateway. The Internet connection can be either dial-up or dedicated.
HOW IT WORKS
The AppleSearch server software handles all communication with the AppleSearch client Macintosh computers on your AppleTalk network. The WAIS gateway software communicates with the AppleSearch server via Apple Events and handles all communications with the Internet-based WAIS servers. Both the AppleSearch server and WAIS gateway software reside on the same Macintosh computer (You could also install the Apple IP Gateway software on this same machine to provide a cost effective Internet connection).
Once the IP connection to the Internet is in place, you will use the WAIS gateway software to connect to WAIS.com (the WAIS server directory on the Internet) and download its list of known WAIS servers. From this list you will use the AppleSearch server software to specify which WAIS servers or "libraries" can be accessed by your AppleSearch clients.
An AppleSearch client on the AppleTalk LAN can make requests for information from available WAIS servers. The WAIS servers will appear as AppleSearch libraries. When a request is made, it is passed from the AppleSearch server to the WAIS gateway, reformatted, and sent on to the target WAIS server. The WAIS server returns a ranked relevance list of document titles or "hits" that fit the criteria of the search. The AppleSearch user then selects which document he/she wants to view. That document is downloaded from the WAIS server, through the WAIS gateway, to the AppleSearch server and made available to the AppleSearch client user.
Using AppleSearch, users don't have to have direct Internet access to make use of Internet resources; they can go through the server from either their desktop or portable computer without being directly connected to the Internet themselves. This gateway approach allows the AppleSearch server administrator to choose which WAIS sources are available to the LAN users, allowing their selection on the basis of what is appropriate or applicable to the users.