Definition of Metamorph Terms

Query:

A Metamorph Query is the question or statement of search items to be matched in the text within specified beginning and ending delimiters. A Query is comprised of one or more search items which can be of different types, and a "within delimiter" specification which is either understood or expressed. In Texis the Metamorph Query refers to what is contained within single quotes 'query' following LIKE in the WHERE clause.

Hit:

A Hit is the text Metamorph retrieves in response to a query, whose meaning matches the Query to the degree specified.

Search Item:

A Search Item is an English word or a special expression inside a Metamorph Query. A word is automatically processed using certain linguistic rules. Special searches are signaled with a special character leading the item, and are governed respectively by the rules of the pattern matcher invoked.

Set:

A Set is the group of possible strings a pattern matcher will look for, as specified by the Search Item. A Set can be a list of words and word forms, a range of characters or quantities, or some other class of possible matches based on which pattern matcher Metamorph uses to process that item.

Intersection:

A portion of text where at least one member of two Sets each is matched.

Delimiters:

Delimiters are repeating patterns in the text which define the bounds within which search items are found in proximity to each other. These patterns are specified as regular expressions. A within operator is used to specify delimiters in a Metamorph Query.

Intersection Quantity:

The number of unions of sets existing within the specified Delimiters. The maximum number of Intersections possible for any given Query is the maximum number of designated Sets minus one.

Hits can have varying degrees of relevance based on the number of set intersections occurring within the delimited block of text, definition of proximity bounds, and weighting of search items for inclusion or exclusion.

Intersection quantity, Delimiter bounds, and Logic weighting can be adjusted by the user as part of Metamorph Query specification.