SEQUENTIAL SUBSET CATALOG SEARCH ENGINE

A method and apparatus are described to perform cascading search methodologies on one or more data sets from one or more databases. A graphical user interface for setting up the searching is also described. In one embodiment, the invention can include designating a first strategy comprising a search string applied to operate upon data records in a first database, designating a second search strategy comprising the search string applied to operate upon data records in a second database, and forming a search hierarchy comprised of the first search strategy followed by the second search strategy. In another embodiment, the invention can include a graphical user interface comprising a first area to select a database, a second area to select a search type, and a third area to select an attribute from the selected database upon which to execute the selected search type.