Mobile Application Search: A QoS-Aware and Tag-Based Approach

The availability of enormous numbers of mobile applications (apps) is driving demand for the means to search for, recommend, and manage apps. Existing search engines provide basic search functionalities that enable users to find apps by issuing query keywords; however, the ranking of search results does not always satisfy the expectations of users. This study proposes a novel approach to address this issue, called Tag-based and QoS-aware Mobile Application Search and Management (TQMASM). The proposed system provides two functionalities: (1) QoS-aware app search and tag-based app recommendation; and (2) tag-based app management. QoS-aware app search is an objective means of sorting search results by considering QoS (Quality of Service) factors, popularity, and reputation. Tag-based recommendation is used to find apps according to tags annotated by all users. Tag-based management utilizes an hierarchical tree and tag annotation to facilitate the management and usage of apps. A prototype realization of TQMASM was developed to evaluate the feasibility of the proposed approach. Experiment results demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed system in providing a satisfactory ranking of retrieved apps.