In an embodiment, a FIRSTIO execution plan is selected that has a lowest estimated execution time for finding a number of records that satisfy the query and are simultaneously viewable. An ALLIO execution plan is selected that has a lowest estimated execution time for finding all records that satisfy the query. The FIRSTIO execution plan is executed for a first time period to create a FIRSTIO result set. The ALLIO execution plan is executed for a second time period to create an ALLIO result set. The FIRSTIO result set is displayed if the FIRSTIO result set comprises more records than the ALLIO result set. The ALLIO result set is displayed if the ALLIO result set comprises more records than the FIRSTIO result set. In an embodiment, the first and second time periods expire in response to the expiration of a maximum time specified by the query.