Full Service Providers Successfully Navigate and Mine the Digital Universe Resources
December 26, 2012
The various ways to utilize Big Data without suffering unnecessary storage headaches has made headlines over the past few years. Some software applications evolved early to create a cure. Steve Todd’s article “Information Playground: Technologies for the Emerging Digital Universe” rehashes the facts about M2M usage increases and the importance of processing that incoming data.
The digital universe is not emerging, as it reared its head a decade ago. Instead it is technology that is emerging, as new developers experiment with ways to manipulate and benefit from the massive amounts of incoming data:
“More and more streaming data will be ingested into in-memory, distributed data grids. The key is the in-memory, horizontal scale provided by these types of technologies. Business logic accepts streaming machine input from sensors and immediately stores them in either key-value (Gemfire) or SQL (SQLFire) format. More and more streaming machine data will be process in real-time by a technology known as CEP, Complex Event Processing. This is a method of tracking and analyzing (processing) streams of information (data) about things that happen (events), and deriving a conclusion from them.”
Thought provoking, but established developers considered these possibilities a decade ago and made provisions to navigate and mine the resources of the digital universe. We think preparing the enterprise for the continuing deluge of information will benefit from working with a full service firm such as Intrafind, whose consulting services can guide organizations through the strategy that will make the most of their data investments.
Jennifer Shockley, December 26, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Be on Top of the Big Data Boom with PolySpot Technologies
December 26, 2012
It may not be as grand or new at the Dot-com boom, but the big data boom is storming ever so loudly ahead and causing many companies to give pause. There are many opportunities to get in on big data, but organizations and businesses are still figuring out where they can fit in. Will they be an information provider, information broker, or something for big data to flow through? Forbes discusses these ideas in “The Biggest Big-Data Opportunities: How to Choose the Right One.”
The author mostly focuses on summarizing and critiquing Constellation Research CEO Ray Wang, who he deems one of the top 5 industry analysts.
However, he also does a solid job explaining the current state of big data in the industry:
And clearly that’s a discovery process many businesses are undergoing today as Big Data is evolving rapidly from some amorphous techy concept to a business-opportunity theme focused on new revenue streams, more-relevant insights, better-informed customer engagements, and the ability to transform a traditional company into a disruptive and growth-oriented leader.
Yes, what was once an amorphous concept is now a money-making machine for many businesses. The key that was not covered in this particular article was the necessity for a technological infrastructure component that enables efficient information access and delivery across the enterprise. A solution that fits this bill looks like one such technology from PolySpot that provides decision-makers with the insights and opportunities they need in today’s big data boom.
Megan Feil, December 26, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
LucidWorks Named to EContent List
December 26, 2012
EContent Magazine yearly ranks the top 100 companies in the digital content industry. Their list provides a good meter of which new companies are on the rise and which industry standards are holding strong. Listed in alphabetical order, the list is worth a read. However, a press release also highlights that LucidWorks has been named to the list three times in the last four years. Read more in, “LucidWorks Named to EContent 100 for Third Time in Four Years.”
The release begins:
“LucidWorks, the trusted name in Search, Discovery and Analytics, has been selected for EContent Magazine’s 2012 EContent 100. The list honors 100 companies that have had the most significant impact on the digital content industry in 2012. LucidWorks has been the recipient of this honor for three of the past four years. A panel of eight content industry experts, comprised of editors, journalists and consultants, awarded this designation to LucidWorks in recognition of the positive impact its search technology has had on the digital world.”
LucidWorks is in fact an industry standard, and deserves their spot on this list. Among the many services that set it apart in the industry, LucidWorks offers top of the line customer support, training opportunities, and continuous investments in open source infrastructure.
Emily Rae Aldridge, December 26, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
ArnoldIT Post Resurfaces—Three Years Later
December 26, 2012
Talk about putting old wine in new bottles. A fascinating post by our beloved leader, Stephen E. Arnold, has resurfaced—at LowPriceWebHost.com, of all places. The title is “Exorbyte Search Product Highly Scalable and Configurable,” and the original interview ran in November 2009. Hey, it was only three years ago; that’s not so long in the tech world, right?
Well. . . as much as I admire Steve and his insights, even his information becomes outdated eventually. For example, in this article he wrote:
“[Exorbyte’s] Matchmaker software can search millions of records and return results in under 10 milliseconds. Besides its speed, Matchmaker is noted for its unlimited error tolerance, meaning it corrects all spelling and other data errors on the fly or by ‘Did You Mean’ suggestions.”
Is that all still true, or is the rate of return even faster now? Who knows?
Why do outfits recycle content like this? For the hits, of course, but apparently with little concern for the timeliness of the information. Fortunately, there is one part of the article we are sure is still true:
“[ArnoldIT’s] Search Wizards Speak is the single most comprehensive collection of interviews with the movers and shakers in search and content processing.”
Yep. Keep up the good work, Steve.
Cynthia Murrell, December 26, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Similar Structures for Complex Networks
December 26, 2012
A recent breakthrough in network science has Daily News & Analysis declaring, “Universe, Human Brain, and Internet Have Similar Structures.” Hmm, do they work in similar ways as well? Dmitri Krioukov, co-author of the paper published by the Cooperative Association for Internet Data Analysis, is quick to point out that “by no means do we claim that the universe is a global brain or a computer.” I’m glad he clarified that.
Predicting the dynamics of complex networks has long been a key obstacle in the field of network science. Researchers suspect that some universal laws could be extrapolated from structural and dynamical similarities, but divining them is a real challenge. The write-up explains how Krioukov’s team, based at the San Diego Supercomputer Center (SDSC) at the University of California, San Diego, made their recent leap:
“Of course the network representing the structure of the universe is astronomically huge – in fact it can be infinite. . . . Yet the researchers found a way to downscale this humongous network while preserving its vital properties, by proving mathematically that these properties do not depend on the network size in a certain range of parameters, such as the curvature and age of our universe.”
“After the downscaling, the research team turned to Trestles, one of SDSC’s data-intensive supercomputers, to perform simulations of the universe’s growing causal network. By parallelizing and optimizing the application, Robert Sinkovits, a computational scientist with SDSC, was able to complete in just over one day a computation that was originally projected to require three to four years.”
Well, that certainly frees up some time. Sinkovits notes that, though the correlation could be coincidence, that is highly unlikely. Scientists hope further research will turn up some fundamental laws about the dynamics of complex networks.
Michael Norman, director of the SDSC, lauds the breakthrough as a triumph of their unique combination of math, physics, and computer science. Ah, collaboration—more than the sum of its parts.
Cynthia Murrell, December 26, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Companies Striving for Success Choose Proven Enterprise Search Software Providers
December 25, 2012
The days of limited mobile app options came to an end a few years ago with the increased popularity of BYOD (bring your own device) work options. A growing demand for products to simplify work processes brought about phenomenal improvements on tablets and mobile devices. In turn, the enterprise app market skyrocketed, not in price but in product offerings. Companies looking to invest in the most beneficial applications for their business will want to weigh their options carefully.
Enterprise Apps Today’s article “Choosing the Right Enterprise Apps for your Business” touches on the importance of all around support when filtering through application options:
“Today, a hefty proportion of cutting-edge applications can be found on cloud platforms in the form of SaaS (software-as-a-service). While a quick glance at the website of an enterprise software offering will tell a great deal about the maturity of a project, it is hardly the entire story. For the huge investment of time and money that a business expects to make in an enterprise software deployment, it’s important to first ensure that a supporting ecosystem is in place.”
The article offers good advice and guidance on choosing the best applications, but companies striving for success will choose a proven enterprise search software provider. Intrafind offers guidance on strategy, applications and use of enterprise search software that can help businesses make the most of their investment. Financial firms and pharmaceutical industry leaders are just a few examples of the types of enterprise that rely on Intrafind’s capabilities.
Jennifer Shockley, December 25, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Unified Information Access Delivers Growth and Development Opportunities for Businesses
December 25, 2012
Studies or surveys that look into how we utilize time spent at work are inherently valuable since they relate to time, which we all know is money. Venture Beat published an article on the topic of productivity and what does and does not kill it. “When Big Data is a Big Waste of Time…And Powerpoint is Worse for Productivity than a Martini at Lunch” reports on information gleaned from a survey done by business analytic app maker Roambi.
The subjects of the survey were broad: business data, analytics and office life. However, these topics ultimately point to productivity and business growth.
The article states:
And, more than 50 percent of business data is locked away in inaccessible or unfriendly formats, resisting executives’ efforts to review, learn, and react to the most important information in their companies…For instance, 21 percent of those executives said that they could only review and derive value from 10-15 percent of their business data. Another 29.6 percent said they could see and act on between 25 and 50 percent of their business data. For 10 percent, key business data was simply inaccessible.
It is important to note that Roambi surveyed their own customers and their survey said that data was inaccessible. Is there a correlation between using Roambi and not being able to access key data? That is precisely what they have led readers to conclude. To address inaccessible data, companies need to look no farther than PolySpot and their unified information access infrastructure component.
Megan Feil, December 25, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
2013 Will See Search go to Business Critical
December 25, 2012
This last year, 2012, saw a lot of developments in the world of enterprise search. Martin White, an expert on the topic, wrote the 2012 recap article, “Search in 2013 Will Become a Business Critical Application,” for CMS Wire. His recap of 2012 developments goes like this:
“Looking back, 2012 has been quite a year for search. From a business perspective Lexmark acquired Isys-Search, Lucid Imagination changed its name, Attivio gained a US$ 37 million investment, Coveo followed with an US$ 18 million investment, Apache Lucene and Solr moved to Release 4, ElasticSearch set up a commercial arm and Microsoft announced a seriously well-featured SharePoint 2013 search application.”
Perhaps more importantly, White goes on to discuss what 2013 might look like. To sum it up, 2013 will see Big Data take center stage and enterprise search will go from a necessity, to an absolutely necessity. Business will no longer be able to be conducted on any scale without a sophisticated search infrastructure. White recommends that organizations take the following steps, amongst others:
“Find out what skills the organization already possesses in information and data discovery and analysis.
Start to build networks with other organizations using your particular search technology stack. If your vendor is reluctant to help, ask them why!
Plan to be at either Enterprise Search Europe or the Enterprise Search Summit in May.”
I would add another to the list. Check out LucidWorks and see what their solutions can do for your organization. Intuitive out-of-the-box, it offers the latest enterprise search technology without bogging down your existing staff.
Emily Rae Aldridge, December 25, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Relevance Plagues SEO Pros
December 25, 2012
The future of search through SEO sunglasses has been revealed, we learn in “Online Business Expert Predicts Next Search Engine Change Will Be Equivalency Score” at PRWeb. The press release recounts a recent interview with Steve Fitzpatrick from DigitalDomination.com in which the online business consultant explains what he believes will be the next big challenge for players in the search engine optimization game. The press release states:
“Mr. Fitzpatrick revealed [that] since 2010, Google Trends shows that search engine optimisation interest has flat-lined, reaching saturation point.”
That’s great news, at least for those of us concerned with relevancy. Finally! However, for those who make a living or build their businesses by gaming search engine results, this turn of events could spell trouble. The write-up quotes Fitzpatrick:
“Now most commercial business interests are heavily contested in the organic search results, with very little separating the top competitors for the number one spot. . . . This means that if the top four commercial search results are equivalent in nature, Google will show them in a different random order each time the results appear. So no one business will have a monopoly at position number one. A change like this will provide challenges to business and SEO professionals who are ill equipped to deal with them.”
Fitzpatrick’s advice, naturally, is to turn to his company for help navigating these choppy waters. To which I submit this caveat—businesses who have focused on supplying honestly helpful information, rather than on gaming the search engine, never entered those waters in the first place. Google is constantly revising their algorithm to better serve good information to its users. Isn’t it time to realize that the entire SEO field is destined for obsolescence?
Cynthia Murrell, December 25, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Math Unlikely to Replace People in Political Predictions
December 25, 2012
One of the victors in the recent election season, though he was not running for any office, was a prominent wielder of big data. Nate Silver‘s remarkably accurate, mathematically-driven election predictions have some asking whether the role of political pundits is waning. Tech Crunch’s Matt Baker asserts that the human element will always be a factor in “Human After All: Why Nate Silver’s Math Revolution Won’t Kill the Pundits.”
It is true that math-based predictions like those of Silver and others, such as Votamatic.org and the Princeton Election Consortium, significantly outperformed gut-based forecasts from political commentators. In fact, Researcher Philip Tetlock found pundit predictions to be “little better than random.” What’s more, he found that the prognosticators with the worst records are the ones most widely cited in the media! One could be forgiven, then, for supposing the more accurate algorithms are bound to replace these purveyors of truthiness.
Baker, however, insists that algorithms, themselves the products of human minds, can never exist outside of human bias. He writes:
“Nate Silver’s mysterious secret sauce is still an unknown, and while he shared many features of his model, it was ultimately inaccessible to peer review. Without transparency, there’s even more danger the creator of statistical models could fall prey to the same faults that Tetlock found in pundits.
“Models are tools. They far exceed our own ability to condense and process the multitude of data available in areas like politics and finance. They can inform us, and even forecast for us, but they are only as strong as the rigor employed by their authors. Nov. 6, 2012, was not the triumph of data over pundits; it was a watershed event in the evolution of our predictions. We’re witnessing a revolution in the tools and accuracy of experts, but our forecasts will always be human.”
So, we can expect math to help our predictions get better, but they will never be free from human influence. See the article for more details and examples that support Baker’s premise. I happen to agree with him, despite my very opinion that the world would be a better place with fewer political pundits in it. Oh well.
Cynthia Murrell, December 25, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
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