Abstract: A candidate displaying apparatus includes: a content input unit that performs an input process on a content; a named entity extracting unit that extracts, from the content, named entities each identifying a specific object or a specific piece of information; an association degree calculating unit that calculates a degree of association between each of the named entities and a predetermined character string contained in the content; an associated information storage unit that stores therein the named entities, the character string, and the degrees of association in correspondence with one another; and a displaying unit that displays, on a display device, the named entities that are kept in correspondence with the character string as selectable candidates in descending order of the degrees of association thereof.

Abstract: A search support apparatus estimates, based on a document and a specific phrase (keyword) in the document, a theme of the document, a site type of a website that provides the document, and a content type of the document, and selects a search condition corresponding to the theme, the site type, and the content type, to be presented to the user.

Abstract: An information processing apparatus includes a storage to store document data; a document-category identifying unit that identifies a document category indicating a use of a document based on a content of the document data; a display unit that displays the document data; a input receiving unit that receives an input designation to at least part of the document data displayed by the display unit; a form identifying unit that identifies a designation form of the input designation; a range specifying unit that specifies an applicable range of the input designation; and a processing unit that processes the applicable range based on the designation form and the document category.

Abstract: A data retrieval method includes storing information data items, each of information data items including elements, each of elements including element name and character string, storing data items, each of data items including element name of element and label corresponding to one of categories to which character string which is included in element belongs, inputting search request including keyword and first label which is one of labels, searching one of data items which includes label being equal to first label, to obtain third element name which is element name included in one of data items, searching one of information data items which includes first element which includes third element name and second element which includes character string including keyword, outputting first character string which is included in first element.