Mining Web Site Link Structures for Adaptive Web Site

Author:

Jianhan Zhu

Email:

j.zhu-at-open.ac.uk

Advisor:

Dr Jun Hong and Professor John G. Hughes

Award Date:

October 2003

Institution:

University of Ulster

Institution Location:

United kingdom

Web Location:

http://kmi.open.ac.uk/people/jianhan/thesis.pdf

Abstract:

This thesis is concerned with mining the log file of a Web site for knowledge about the Web site and its users, and using the knowledge to assist users to navigate and search the Web site effectively and efficiently. First, we investigate approaches to adapting the organization and presentation of a Web site by learning from the Web site link structure and user behavior of the Web site. Approaches are developed for presenting a Web site using a link hierarchy and a conceptual link hierarchy respectively based on how users have used the Web site link structure. Link hierarchies and conceptual link hierarchies can be used to help users navigate the Web site. Second, we develop approaches for building a first-order Markov chain model of user navigation on the Web site link structure, link hierarchy, and conceptual link hierarchy respectively. Under a collaborative assumption, the model can be used for link prediction that assists users to navigate the Web site. Third, approache's are developed for ranking Web pages based on how users have used the Web site link structure. The page rankings can be used to help users search the Web site.

The approaches developed in the thesis have been implemented in a prototype called Online Navigation Explorer (ONE). First, link hierarchies and conceptual link hierarchies are visualized in ONE. Second, link prediction using Markov chain models is integrated with link hierarchies and conceptual link hierarchies in ONE. Third, search results are visualized in ONE. Experimental results show that ONE can help users navigate a Web site and search for their desired information on the Web site effectively and efficiently.

The work presented in the thesis is a step towards the development of an adaptive Web site, which can assist users to navigate the Web site and search for their desired information on the Web site.