Abstract: Techniques are provided for a metasearch infrastructure. The metasearch infrastructure supports one or more of the following: hotel matching, backend support of user queries, frontend support for user queries, a cache layer that groups or organizes cached data in storage based on hotel location, scoring and ranking on the client side, experiments and rankers, duplicate booking prevention, blacklisting hotels, and indexing that utilizes a document-independent data structure to store index values.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for a metasearch infrastructure. The metasearch infrastructure supports one or more of the following: hotel matching, backend support of user queries, frontend support for user queries, a cache layer that groups or organizes cached data in storage based on hotel location, scoring and ranking on the client side, experiments and rankers, duplicate booking prevention, blacklisting hotels, and indexing that utilizes a document-independent data structure to store index values.

Abstract: Techniques for creating and searching a database that stores information about a plurality of individual habitable units (IHUs) are provided. An example of an IHU is a hotel room. Image data that depicts where a plurality of IHUs reside relative to each other is placed on a base image, such as a satellite/map image. The base image is associated with a mapping that maps points on the base image to spatial (e.g., geographical) coordinates. The coordinates of the IHU may be used to generate a computer-rendered view from a window of an IHU. Also, label input is received that labels each IHU reflected in the image data with certain information. Each label indicates a value of an attribute of an IHU, such as its size, price, distance from elevators, etc. A query that targets information about each IHU may be processed and results returned that are ranked based on criteria associated with the query.

Abstract: Techniques for allowing prospective hotel guests to check-in online are provided. An online check-in service sends, to a computing device of a prospective guest, an electronic notification that indicates that the prospective user can check-in online instead of having to wait in line at the hotel. A series of pages are presented to the prospective guest, such as a page to allow the prospective guest to specify room preferences and other requests, a page to allow the prospective guest to accept an upgrade offer, a page to confirm payment, and/or a page that shows a room assignment. In this way, a guest does not have to wait in a hotel lobby to be assigned a room. Also, a hotel may be notified when a confirmed guest is approaching the hotel to allow hotel staff to make any arrangements necessary to expedite the process of getting the guest to his/her room.

Abstract: Techniques for creating and searching a database that stores information about a plurality of individual habitable units (IHUs) are provided. An example of an IHU is a hotel room. Image data that depicts where a plurality of IHUs reside relative to each other is placed on a base image, such as a satellite/map image. The base image is associated with a mapping that maps points on the base image to spatial (e.g., geographical) coordinates. The coordinates of the IHU may be used to generate a computer-rendered view from a window of an IHU. Also, label input is received that labels each IHU reflected in the image data with certain information. Each label indicates a value of an attribute of an IHU, such as its size, price, distance from elevators, etc. A query that targets information about each IHU may be processed and results returned that are ranked based on criteria associated with the query.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for a metasearch infrastructure. The metasearch infrastructure supports one or more of the following: hotel matching, backend support of user queries, frontend support for user queries, a cache layer that groups or organizes cached data in storage based on hotel location, scoring and ranking on the client side, experiments and rankers, duplicate booking prevention, blacklisting hotels, and indexing that utilizes a document-independent data structure to store index values.

Abstract: Techniques are provided for a metasearch infrastructure. The metasearch infrastructure supports one or more of the following: hotel matching, backend support of user queries, frontend support for user queries, a cache layer that groups or organizes cached data in storage based on hotel location, scoring and ranking on the client side, experiments and rankers, duplicate booking prevention, blacklisting hotels, and indexing that utilizes a document-independent data structure to store index values.