Abstract: A system and method which provides a structured search that can be optimized according to one or more parameters of the user. The one or more parameters may optionally be set before the search or during the search, for example to refine the results, or a combination thereof. According to some embodiments, the method preferably includes a structured search of non-traditional web page documents, including but not limited to repositories of documents, such as those in traditional word processing formats, which are preferably in a repository that is not directly accessed through an HTTP server. According to other embodiments, the method preferably includes searching in a plurality of locations, optionally and preferably using a plurality of different search engines. More preferably the plurality of locations includes but is not limited to locations that are local to the user, locations available through a computer network such as the Internet and/or an intranet for example, and/or document repositories.