Semantics Goes to Search, Search Goes to Semantics
March 15, 2012
The flip flop, “we do everything” and then “we need to do something new” world of search is fascinating. I wrote earlier today (March 15, 2012) about the “scoop” that Google is into semantics. The information was only a decade old, but, hey, “real” journalists do what “real” journalists do.
I read the word rich title and scanned the story “Temis Chooses Isys to Power Its Next Generation Luxid Semantic Content Enrichment Platform.” A couple of words jumped at me: “next generation,” “semantic”, and “platform.” Luxid was originally a specialist in scientific and technical content processing, almost an early version of Linguamatics. Then the company expanded its reach into more generalist content types, including a fly by of business intelligence. Now the company, according to the news release, is a “platform” which is a combination of semantic technology and search.
There are many vendors in search and content processing. Only a few exert significant gravitational pull on the market. Are Luxid and Isys poised to alter the orbits of Autonomy, Endeca, and Lucid Imagination?
The “chosen” vendor is Isys Search, which has been providing search and retrieval, facets, one click access to “clusters” or “segmented” hits to a query, and connectors for years. My recollection is that the firm’s entrance into search was in 1988, which was almost a quarter century ago. You can get information about the Isys system in my write up about the company in one of the first three editions of Enterprise Search Report (2004 to 2007), now out of print. Wikipedia has a shortish write up as well.
The news story, asserts Eric Bregand, Temis top chien, says:
We are delighted to have Isys Document filters embedded in our flagship Luxid platform, where it will strengthen our ability to turn enterprise content into actionable knowledge, and enable advanced content analytics and information discovery. ISYS gives us the quality of technology we wanted, backed up by excellent support and a clear commitment to the product over the medium-long term.
Is the deal for a 1988 search and retrieval system or for software widgets that permit Luxid’s system connect to content? My hunch is that Luxid licensed the Isys connectors, but it is difficult to tell when semantic outfits embrace search.
I want to point out that the Wall Street Journal’s story “Google Gives Search a Refresh” reported the opposite move by the Google. Note this link may go dead without warning due to the savvy methods used by the News Corp. to protect its content. If I understand the Wall Street Journal story, the Google search system is getting an injection of semantic technology, well, any day now.
Both of these announcements are presented as “news.” I find it difficult to get excited about technology with roots in the late 1980s for Isys and Luxid and for a decade old effort at Google. But “real” journalists chomp on news. I am happy to be an addled goose with a reasonably complete file on who does what with whom in the search and content processing space.
I did not cover either Isys Search or Luxid in my 2011 monograph The New Landscape of Search. Both companies are interesting but not the Jupiter-like forces of the companies which exert considerable influence on enterprise search.
Flip flop tie ups are standard operating procedure as revenues become tough to generate, sustain, and then grow. I anticipate more of the semantics to search and search to semantics activities in the months ahead.
Stephen E Arnold, March 16, 2012
Sponsored by Pandia.com
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