Advantages of the Advanced Search Facility

In addition to simple situations, ASF tools for gathering and organizing information within and among information communities handle--

Multiple search tools and Web interfaces
Based on the preeminent international standard for information search, ASF lets you support:
- Direct or referral search to conforming search engines deployed by more than 100 implementors as well as gateways to databases and other search engines such as Alta Vista, Fulcrum, and Inquery
- Text, HTML, e-mail and various Internet file formats, plus other formats with commercial versions
- Embedded HTML metadata following PICS, Dublin Core, GILS, or other conventions and policies
- Full search access to many hundreds of free and commercial catalogs and information sources
Complicated information content or search criteria
In addition to free-text search, ASF lets you support:
- Bibliographic or "metadata" elements (e.g., Title, Author, Subject)
- Combined or excluded elements (i.e., Boolean AND, OR, NOT)
- Date, Place (geographic name or latitude/longitude)
- Other languages
- Various content with freeware and commercial filters
Complicated user communities
In addition to your primary community, ASF lets you support:
- Searchers in libraries, working in other languages, or using other search engines and Internet services
- Intermediaries seeking to re-publish electronically or in print
- Content from searchable or Web sources elsewhere
Complicated authorities, responsibilities, and policies
In addition to your own Web pages, ASF lets you support:
- Access or editorial commentary about sources you do not control, as well as those you do
- Enforcement or conformance to internal or external "metadata" or bibliographic policies
- Legal or policy mandates concerning public access
- Information policies to enhance the coherence and cohesion within or among information communities

The ASF builds on the Global Information Locator Service (GILS), a search interface that provides distinct advantages.