An expert system Web interface to online catalogs called E-Referencer is being developed. An initial prototype has been implemented.
The interface has a repertoire of initial search strategies and reformulation strategies that it selects and implements to
help users retrieve relevant records. It uses the Z39.50 protocol to access library systems on the Internet. This paper describes
the design of E-Referencer, and the development of search strategies to be used by the interface. A preliminary evaluation
of the strategies is also presented.