As the number of people accessing an increasing number of commercial databases grows, so too do the problems inherent in that access. Not the least of these problems is what we might call the “language barrier.” Each database, and/or each access service, has its own language; Babel quickly results. Lochovsky and Tsichritzis propose, in this very readable article, a language structure for accessing such “external” databases.

Their design for a query language begins with an analysis of the functions to be performed when accessing an external database. The analysis proceeds--quite effectively--from an analogy with space travel. While their design stops short of the syntax required for such a query language, it does outline the requirements for: (1) “pointing” to the desired object in the information space; (2) “positioning” one’s self in the data space; (3) noting information about the current state of the query; and (4) specifying the manner in which requests are made.

While realizing that “naive” users must be guided through their interactions with such systems, the authors recognize (as too little of the human factors literature seems to) that complex queries will require complex solutions. All in all, this is a good article.