On the flip side, Velocity returns all its data, including the clustering tree and search results, as an XML feed. This permits you to integrate search into existing applications.

Velocity's search engine breaks tradition because it supports various relationships -- one-to-many, many-to-one, and many-to-many -- between result documents and the original source. With most products, each search result corresponds to a single URL. But Velocity can take a single PDF document that discusses several ideas and break it into separate results.

Conversely, the system will combine several URLs that cover a common thought into a single result -- a virtual document -- without any special document preprocessing. Even more significant is that Version 5 supports security at each of these content-block levels within a virtual document. That is, Vivisimo could create a virtual document about a product your enterprise produces -- containing marketing literature, white paper information, and pricing. But because the pricing part is sensitive, that piece shows only in results presented to authorized managers.

Vivisimo didn't fool with its successful clustering interface in this version, but I discovered a few improvements. Search results can be saved and exported as plain text, HTML, or RIS citations -- used by products such as EndNote, ProCite, or Reference Manager. This helps users revisit searches and collaborate by sharing results. Additionally, results now include a preview button, which allows you to examine a Web page or document before opening it.

Vivisimo Velcoity 5 delivers what other search products generally lack: a pleasant experience, characteristic of consumer search, that's supported by enterprise security and customization options. The system federates searches of structured and unstructured content, which are organized into clusters. Therefore, this retrieval platform is appropriate for any organization needing to understand large -- and disparate -- information repositories. And with the pressure on IT projects to deliver results, Velocity can be deployed rapidly.