Compuware Cloud Speed Tests Declare Windows Azure the Winner
October 17, 2011
Although Compuware tries to make the tests expansive by spreading nodes throughout the world, the results are still highly affected by location. For example, both Azure and Amazon posted poor scores in their Singapore data centers (16.10 seconds for Azure and 20.96 seconds for Amazon, the worst time in the survey) but the discrepancies between North America and Asia are due in large part to limitations in the Compuware testing network. Within Asia, the performance is generally abysmal by North American standards.
Oracle Scores with Text Query Functions
October 17, 2011
Save Your Knowledge, an IT knowledge and experience blog, provides a useful how-to with, “Oracle Text: A Simple Way to Implement Scoring Text Search Engine on Oracle DB.” We quite like the allusions to the work of Edward Hopper too.
The author’s English is interesting, but the concept is clear:
In this post I will describe text query functionality. My customer wants search functionality on several database columns, and results must be ordered by their relevance. Using a “like” clause let’s you find results that contains a word but doesn’t say you how much relevant it is. For this purpose you can use Oracle Text extension.
Most licensees of Oracle’s flag ship database will have or be able to get access to the Text functions. Although getting long in the tooth, the system will index what’s in an Oracle table. Performance can be an interesting challenge. Scaling and speeding up the creaking technology of Oracle Text requires expertise and resources; that is, money and time. For more information about Oracle text, click here.
The author goes on to describe how to make this work in various contexts and also provides examples, screenshots, etc. The technique could be a helpful function for users of the Oracle application and is worth a look.
Emily Rae Aldridge, October 17, 2011
Sponsored by Pandia.com
Startup Kwaga Adopts Sinequa
October 17, 2011
The French outlet Presse-Citron brings covers Sinequa’s newest client in a weekly column, “The French Start-Up of the Week: Kwaga.” Kwaga develops tools to provide semantic management for email and contacts. Kwaga is using Sinequa to incorporate language semantics.
As the article explains:
To speak of the history of Kwaga, start by talking about Sinequa. Sinequa is a company that offers a solution for business search engines using semantics. And if the name Sinequa does not evoke anything, use a search engine like LeMonde.fr or LeFigaro.fr and you will find the words ‘Search results provided by Sinequa.
Kwaga’s venture into applications is still young, having only begun this year. Sinequa for a number of years focused on the enterprise. The firm has asserted that it is a leader in search. We will monitor both Sinequa and Kwaga.
Emily Rae Aldridge, October 17, 2011
Arnold Columns October 2011
October 17, 2011
In my recent peregrinations through Europe, one person asked me when the columns I describe in the blog become available. My answer is, “I have no clue.” The publishers pay me to do articles and essays that meet their audiences’ alleged needs.
Some publishers put the information I submit online; for example, Information Today at www.infotoday.com. You will have to run queries to locate my contributions. I don’t look at my for-fee work after I submit it.
Every four or five years, I ask a gosling to gather up drafts and slap them on the ArnoldIT.com Web site as a reference mostly for me. Other publishers use the information in online publications which may be require a subscription. I think the IMI Publishing products work in this way, but I am not sure. The idea is that I spend more time creating the for-fee write ups. I understand that at least one person in a country with lots of vowels in its Americanized name want the articles in the blog, but that’s not possible. I can include some humor in my blog, but my for-fee articles are serious and I often point out some of the shortcomings in quite well known search and content processing companies’ business tactics.
A bit of humor: In Europe two weeks ago someone asked me why I was traveling incognito. Ah, 67 year olds must not have a Project Runway sense of style. I submitted this picture to my various publishers and no one thought I was even mildly entertaining.
Stephen E Arnold in disguise in a far off land. I think I look quite sporty.
Here is a summary of the for-fee content submitted in October 2011. I think most of the information will be available before January 31, 2011. Publishers have their own systems and methods. Who am I to urge a different world view when someone is paying me money? The goose is addled, not stupid.
Enterprise Technology Management, “The Google Spring: Not a Company, a Movement.” The article summarizes the notion of the “spring’ activist activity and Google’s 2011-2012 global road show. Google seems to be kicking up its marketing and its assertions about the “value” of the firm’s enterprise services.
Information Today, “Windows Metro: User Experience over Findability.” Microsoft is following Apple in the user experience race. In this write up, I explore who will be affected by a radical interface change and what the shift implies for the consumerization of information technology.
KMWorld, “A New Sales Recipe for the Enterprise: Governance, Semantics, and a Dash of Open Source Sauce.” In this essay, I look at how firms are wrapping themselves in “open source goodness.” Beneath the marketing frippery beats the commercial heart of a capitalist. Exciting.
Online Magazine, “Open Source Search: Clarity or Confusion.” The essay raises the question, “How confusing is open source search?” To help the reader get his or her arms around the notion of “confusion,” I created a table listing two dozen providers of open source search solutions. Implicit in the essay is, “How many of these will your CFO recognize?”
I did some work for clients which will run under the clients’ name. You will be able to identify my contributions if you are a reader of this blog. I try to maintain a non-news style which, once in a while, is distinctive. One of the people buying my content told me, “You have a unique voice.”
Ms. Sperling, my English teacher in high school would not agree. She thought I was a smart aleck, indifferent to the strictures of the Victorian Age and somewhat indifferent to the views of the higher ups in the institution. Not surprisingly, I spent some time in the hall outside of the class room due to my occasional flights of literary fancy involving ginkgo trees, Mary Godwin, and Percy Bysshe Shelley.
Stephen E Arnold, October 17, 2011
Freebie. After all publishers are paying me to write articles for their audiences.
SharePoint APIs: The Key to User Satisfaction
October 17, 2011
Users do not know what an API is. The idea of a software gadget which allows a programmer to connect or build additional functionality to SharePoint may be too technical for most marketing, business development, and accounting professionals. The phrase “application programming interface” rightly elicits a blank stare or a question like “What did you say?”
At SurfRay, I know from my visits to the firm, engineers pay close attention to APIs for three reasons. First, these “software mini-devices” make it possible to add a feature that a user may require. For example, a SharePoint user may want to tap into information residing on a system outside of SharePoint.
Second, as APIs for special operations become available, the SharePoint platform becomes more extensible. The rush to mobile and social are examples. APIs allow SharePoint to work in ways quite similar to consumer services like Facebook and Twitter. Again, APIs make this possible.
Third, some of the more interesting search and content processing components for SharePoint rely on APIs.
You will want to take a look at “New APIs in SharePoint 2010 Service Pack 1”. The article—actually a table with dozens of links—provides an excellent listing of the new APIs for SharePoint Foundation 2010. Microsoft could have provided more detailed information in the table; for example, the number of documents and code samples available, but the information is findable with a bit of clicking.
With the “consumerization” of search in SharePoint, we think you will want to take a look at search enhancements or replacements that are developed by Microsoft Certified firms. A good example is SurfRay, based in Copenhagen, Denmark. The company’s engineers are adept at making use of SharePoint APIs. The search and component processing functions of Ontolica work and without headaches.
Worth a look at www.surfray.com.
Stephen E Arnold, October 17, 2011
SurfRay
Inteltrax: Top Stories, October 10 to October 14
October 17, 2011
Inteltrax, the data fusion and business intelligence information service, captured three key stories germane to search this week, specifically, how analytic technology depends so heavily on funding and what those dollars signify.
Our feature story this week, “Palantir Back From the Grave,” http://inteltrax.com/?p=2775 details how one BI company suffered some near-fatal blows, but has bounced back with new software and confidence, thanks to some new funding.
Another funding-centric tale was our story, “Opera and Xignite Make Waves by Raising Millions” http://inteltrax.com/?p=2573 that showed two smaller companies on the rise thanks to some big time investments.
We turned the tables with “Actuate Analytics Contest Gets Attention” http://inteltrax.com/?p=2541 to show how one company is supporting the next generation of analytic thinkers by offering their financial support.
Money makes the big data globe spin, it’s no secret. But funding carries a lot of meaning in this industry, usually it’s a sign of impending success. We’ll see if that theory holds true, as we follow these and other stories in the ever-expanding world of data analytics.
Follow the Inteltrax news stream by visiting
Patrick Roland, Editor, Inteltrax.
Baidu Gains International Ground
October 16, 2011
Baidu, the leader in Chinese search, is launching itself into the international market. Quietly but surely, the Asian giant is gaining international ground. “Baidu Launches International Marketing Efforts,” explains more.
The article provides details:
Last month the company branched out to Egypt and Thailand, in addition to their presence in China and Japan. Now it appears they are reaching further abroad, looking to get advertisers to buy paid search and “Brand Zone” advertising.
Brand Zone is their partner product, aimed at allowing brands the opportunity to advertise in China with Baidu. Online advertising is clearly an emerging market in China. With both internet access and personal income growing exponentially, China is expected to be an investors playground in the coming years. Baidu and its newest venture could be worth a look for investors interesting in tapping China’s potential.
Emily Rae Aldridge, October 16, 2011
Google Remains Patent Poor After an Unhelpful Purchase
October 16, 2011
What’s Hot: SharePoint Semantics, Oct 3 – Oct 7
October 15, 2011
This week, SharePoint Semantics delivered four compelling stories filled with information vital to search. Each post offers a unique gem that will improve the SharePoint experience of any user, IT specialist or otherwise. The topics ranged from best practices to product comparisons to controversial studies.
In the post Manual Process for Activating the Services to Search Keywords in SharePoint 2010, readers learned how to manually activate Search Services so that they can freely search for keywords on a site.
New Entry in Microsoft TechNet on SharePoint Server 2010 Search revealed best practices for enterprise search in the form of seven easy steps. Plan the Deployment, Start with a Well-Configured Infrastructure, Manage Access, Defragment the Search Database, Monitor SQL Server Latency, Test the Crawling and Querying Subsystems after Changes or Updates, and Review the Antivirus policy.
In Management Costs of Microsoft SharePoint Analyzed, those who might have been scared off by threats of high management costs associated with SharePoint had their fears quelled when they realized that third-party tools like Smartlogic’s Semaphore can significantly reduce time and costs.
Readers learned in Microsoft SharePoint Versus Dropbox: No Comparison, that file-sharing Dropbox style has serious security issues. The core of collaboration software should be based on findability and content access.
In the world of taxonomy management SharePoint is not infallible, the aforementioned stories reiterate this sentiment. It is important that users recognize the web application platform’s limitations and utilize other products like Smartlogic’s Semaphore to fill in the gaps.
Jasmine Ashton, October 15, 2011
Keyword Research – An Interesting Approach
October 15, 2011
Search Engine Watch offers a non-traditional examination of search engine ranking in, “Keyword Research: Dealing With Uncertainty.” The author lays out a plan for researching which keywords will return the highest ROI for search engine ranking.
The method is explained:
When selecting the keywords you would like to rank for, you must take several factors into account. Preferably you’re able to calculate its potential ROI by finding out what effort is required for a return in profit. There are, however, various uncertainties that you can choose to minimize.
Quite frankly the article is quite lengthy and the illustrations are somewhat incomprehensible. Perhaps we are not smart enough to understand the point here. But for those who live and die by SEO, the innovative approach might be worth a second look.
Emily Rae Aldridge, October 15, 2011
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