The Defunct User Revolution
February 10, 2011
While browsing the Web, my daily Web aggregator provided me with this story from the Fast Forward Blog: “Retro: What Happened to the User Revolution?” Back in 2008, the Fast Search and Technology had an annual event about Enterprise 2.0. The entire focus was revolutionizing the search and breaking down barriers set forth by other search solutions, etc. Everyone was really excited about the change they were going to create and then it fizzed out.
At this conference, FAST focused its energies on the interaction space between user and information. It wanted to create precise metadata based off a usage, tags, social implications, and have the blending of structured/unstructured data. Three pillars of future search technology were brought up as well:
“The next generation technology for FAST has three pillars, three cornerstones…content [how can we aggregate it]…the user [search moves from being an API for content to something that can be managed directly]…a search core [changing the physics of search].”
Everyone was really excited about the change they were going to create and then it fizzed out. This exact technology hasn’t been invented yet and, frankly, I find the assertions unusual. From my 2011 perch, the FAST topics are unstructured ideas for inspiration—in one ear and forgotten by the next speech.
Ontolica from SurfRay doesn’t bother with flowery speech and momentary inspiration. SurfRay is direct and delivers what it advertises. Its main goal is better the user search experience and customize SharePoint 2010 for individuals.
Check out a better SharePoint search experience by clicking here.
Torben Ellert, February 10, 2011
SurfRay
Nexeo Embraces PostgreSQL
February 10, 2011
Nuxeo, a software manufacturer specializing in Enterprise Content Management, recently expressed criticism for one particular open source object-relational database system and in the process praised another.
Per the aptly titled post “Why Avoid MySQL?”, the case is made against MySQL in a joint effort by Nuxeo’s Founder and head of R&D. This is how the post opens: “Nuxeo can work with many databases (PostgreSQL, MySQL, Oracle, Microsoft SQL Server, and others could be added). But MySQL should be avoided if at all possible, because it has major deficiencies that Nuxeo cannot really work around.” What follows is a bullet list of fourteen points reinforcing that claim. The list cites dropped connections, row size limits as well as poor full text configuration, among other issues. They end saying, “All these problems lead us to recommend not using MySQL in production, and using PostgreSQL instead which is a much nicer database engine.”
A quick jump to the PostgreSQL site will provide ample information on the product for any reader to contrast. A few differences I found include MySQL’s row size, which peaks at 64 KB, whereas PostgreSQL’s extends to 1.6 TB. The former’s triggers fail to activate by cascading key actions. The latter’s on the other hand can be written in C and loaded as a library providing flexibility in pushing capabilities. The information page also includes links to testimonials and a list of awards spanning over a decade.
Our take: Is Oracle’s approach to MySQL giving some folks an added incentive to look at PostgreSQL?
Stephen E Arnold, February 10, 2011
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Quote to Note: Google, Turkeys, and Eagles
February 10, 2011
We cannot resist. “Google Attacks Nokia and Microsoft with Bird Analogy” reports a Googler’s tweet. Here she be:
#feb11 “Two turkeys do not make an Eagle”.
What happens when a triumvirate comes apart? Just an idle question from a goose.
Stephen E Arnold, February 10, 2011
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Online Outfits as Political Power Houses
February 9, 2011
We noted “Google Launches Phone Tweeting Service as Last Egyptian ISP Goes Down.”
The headline that Egypt turned off the Internet has made the global rounds and scared the entire developed world. If you do your research, you’ll find that in the US it will be extremely difficult to shut down the web, especially if Google is your ally. Noor Group, the last surviving Egyptian ISP, was shut down and totally blacked out the web. Maximum PC has the story, “Google Launches Phone Tweeting Service as Last Egyptian ISP Goes Down.”
“Over the weekend, engineers from Google, Twitter and SayNow — a company the internet giant bought just last week — extended a lifeline to the restive Arab country by coming up with the “idea of a speak-to-tweet service—the ability for anyone to tweet using just a voice connection.”
Google and Twitter to the rescue folks! Who would have thought these Internet companies would provide a voice in a time of crisis. While I applaud their efforts, I’m curious where Facebook, Amazon, and Apple are. Why aren’t these online outfits involving themselves in the political affairs of countries half a world away? What happened to search and content processing as an objective activity? Maybe search and content processing are no longer objective? Quite a shift for some, not much of a change for other organizations, however.
Whitney Grace, February 9, 2011
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Dassault Teams with SDL for Translation Management
February 9, 2011
Dassault Systèmes is known for Product Lifecycle Management solutions in 3D. With their global presence, the need for multilingual content creation and management was met as Dassault Systemes Chooses SDL Translation Management Systems to Provide a Unified Translation Platform. The key point in the article was:
“The Global Information Management solution from SDL will support Dassault Systèmes’ worldwide research and development strategy to centralize and streamline localization processes . . . The management of global multilingual product content allows for translation asset reuse and harmonizes processes throughout Dassault Systèmes’ group.”
The world of online search will be affected through the partnership – Dassault acquired Exalead in mid-2010, a world leader in natural-language intuitive search platforms and applications.
Anyone who has worked in or with translation can attest to the fact that it is an art yet to be seamlessly mechanized. However, SDL’s combination of intelligent machine translation and human post-editing bring a pleasant compromise between clarity and efficiency, a clear win for Dassault. Exalead, one of the leading providers of next generation content processing, search, and search enabled applications, is a unit of Dassault.
Emily Rae Aldridge, February 9, 2011
Access Innovations Dazzles on the High Wire
February 9, 2011
The American Association for Cancer Research (AACR) is to partner with Access Innovations’ semantics services to tag and index their vast journal content on the HighWire platform. The project will allow users to better access and correlate articles on several websites.
As reported in “AACR Selects Access Innovations for Semantic Indexing of Content on High Wire,” AACR has confidence in their choice:
” ‘We are thrilled to be working with Access Innovations to develop an AACR taxonomy that can be applied to our content, and with HighWire Press to allow us to present related articles across our journals,’ said Diane Scott-Lichter, publisher of the AACR suite of journals. ‘We expect to expand these efforts to include semantic tagging of other AACR information.’ “
Between Access Innovations’ years of experience managing data and the advanced HighWire taxonomy, AACR looks to be on solid ground.
Cynthia Murrell February 9, 2011
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Textalyser Highlighted on Podcast
February 9, 2011
Text analysis was mentioned by the podcast No Agenda, which is hosted by Adam Curry (professional broadcast journalist) and John C. Dovorak (technical and business columnist). The No Agenda podcast team runs certain text through Textalyzer and uses the output to identify “memes”; that is, words or phrases designed to be magnetic and persist in a conversation.
You can give Textalyser, the tool No Agenda mentioned, by navigating to http://textalyser.net/. There are two Web accessible modes. First, you can take a chunk of text and paste it into the Analysis Box on the Web page. The system will generate a report. Shown below, is a portion of the Textalyser report for one of my 2010 for fee columns.
The report generates a word frequency report, word length summary, and two, three, and four word phrase frequency reports.
The service carries this identification notice: V 1.05 help Traduction Nieruchomo?ci Magazine interactif Umarex Airsoft + Paintball. For more information about the service, you can navigate to this link and leave a message.
Stephen E Arnold, February 9, 2011
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SharePoint Virtual Machine
February 9, 2011
We are in the midst of a virtualization revolution. Today’s systems are sufficiently robust to allow a single server to emulate two or more different environments. Think of these “environments” as making one server behave like two or more standalone machines.
SharePoint 2010 can be virtualized. We noted a particularly interesting presentation called “SharePoint Slideshow: Setting Up a Development Environment.” The presentation is available via MSDN on the Channel 9 subsite. You can access the presentation are this link: http://channel9.msdn.com/Shows/SharePointSideshow/Setting-Up-a-SharePoint-Developer-Virtual-Machine
The focus is a developer system, but the suggestions and method will work with some tweaks for other uses as well. According to the description:
The VM is a Hyper-V based VHD file that has everything you need to start developing SharePoint and Office solutions. If you have never worked with a Virtual Machine, we walk you through step by step on how to get up and running and tell you a few of our tips and tricks along the way.
Here at SurfRay we find the virtual machine approach particularly interesting. As virtualization allows more and more organizations to deploy SharePoint quickly and easily, the need for powerful search and preview solutions that can be rolled out just as easily become all the more obvious. SurfRay’s Ontolica solutions for improving search by deploying metadata into easily-configured refiners, and powerful quick-filters, as well as powerful preview tools for search and document libraries are plug-and-play solutions that fit well as extensions to a Hyper-V based SharePoint implementation.
For specific information about using Ontolica in a virtual machine environment, contact SurfRay at www.surfray.com.
Torben Ellert, February 9, 2011
SurfRay
Search into Politics
February 8, 2011
Here in Harrod’s Creek, we find search technology more interesting that political hoop jumping. Our question, “Has anyone noticed that companies with a foundation in search and content processing seem to be getting involved in politics?” Probably not, judging from the discussions of America Online’s purchase of the Huffington Post blog and information service or of the Google employee embroiled or at least caught in the turmoil in Egypt. You can get information about the AOL deal from “You’ve Got Arianna” and about the Googler-Egypt story from “Egyptian PM Says Missing Google Marketing Executive Wael Ghonim to Be Released Tomorrow.”
We don’t know if these two events are cut from the same bolt of fustian or completely unrelated events. If these are related, have search and content processing companies shifted from serving the needs of customers to a larger stage? And if on a larger stage, is the object generating value for stakeholders or some other goal; for example, implementing a “vision” of how the world should work.
If the events are unrelated, then the question becomes, “What next?” Will other companies knowingly or unknowingly allow employees to pursue political agendas under the colors of the corporation?
We liked the good old days when companies created products and met the needs of customers. The merging of technology and politics may be as complex a mixture as religion and politics. We have nothing against giving individuals and corporations some scope of operation. But when the actions play out on a global stage, we wonder if technology has worked its way into society in a new way.
What are the consequences of breaking a nation’s embargo against certain types of information? What are the consequences of using content as a weapon? What are the consequences of co-mingling corporate and personal goals with an online service? Is this stuff content, marketing, or something else entirely?
We don’t know. Fascinating for certain. And far from the mundane work in Harrod’s Creek.
Stephen E Arnold, February 8, 2011
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Recommind Pushes Out of the Box Enterprise Search
February 8, 2011
Recommind introduces Decisiv Search Quickstart Edition, providing the industry’s most advanced enterprise search software in a single, fixed-cost package. They boast years of experience implementing custom enterprise search solutions in law firms of all sizes. Decisiv Search Quickstart Edition will give Recommind a foothold with smaller firms, or those who previously found custom enterprise search cost-prohibitive. The article stated:
“Recommind’s award-winning enterprise search software is now available in fixed-cost package for rapid deployment. Using Recommind’s patented CORE (Context Optimized Relevancy Engine) platform, it connects users with relevant information from document management and records management systems, portals, email systems and myriad other applications and databases, completely in context.”
Decisiv Search will strike a cord with firms who have been yearning for efficiency and organization, and yet have seen the upgrade as too costly. Will Recommind’s alternative to “a box of parts” or search appliance generate sales? The enterprise search sector is a fast-changing space with many vendors rushing to position themselves as solutions in which search plays a modest role. Google’s “appliance” approach has many fans, but it also has some drawbacks when compared to more robust solutions from companies like Exalead.
Emily Rae Aldridge, February 9, 2011
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