New Version of Sail Labs Indexer
December 11, 2014
We’ve learned that Sail Labs has put out the next iteration of its Media Mining Indexer from the company’s post, “Sail Labs Announces Availability of Release Version 2014-2 and Media Mining Indexer 6.3.” The refreshingly straightforward press release offers bulleted lists of new features and major changes to be found throughout the new version. For the indexer, it lists:
- Support for sentiment analysis, i.e. classification of text segments into positive, negative, neutral or mixed sentiment
- Currently supported languages: US and International English, German and Russian
- Support for continuous intermittent result output, without final XML result, which increases performance in cases where collective results are not required.
- Support for licensing using a central license manager/server (LiMa), which is intended for use with cloud based use cases.
- Script-based building of language models using lmtscript.
For those not already familiar with Media Mining Indexer, it processes speech from multiple sources into XML, which can then be uploaded into a range of digital-asset-management systems for subsequent search and retrieval. The software boasts automatic speech recognition, speaker ID, speaker change detection, story detection, and topic classification.
Sail Labs specializes in high-end software for speech and multimedia analysis for vertical markets. Its name derives from “Speech Artificial Intelligence Language Laboratories.” Sail Labs is located in Vienna, Austria, and was founded in 1999.
Cynthia Murrell, December 11, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
MEGA HOPEX Platform Integrated with dtSearch
December 11, 2014
The article titled dtSearch Engine Help MEGA Customers Gain Instant Access to Vital Information on BWW explores the integration of the dtsearch engine into MEGA’s HOPEX platform. The platform is touted for its ability to unify complex enterprise and offer comprehensive information. The demands on MEGA’s repository only grew as businesses need additional documents in order to meet GRC requirements. MEGA called on dtSearch to aid in their ability to manage search across the ever-increasing volume of information. The article explains how the two programs will work together,
“As the volume of these ‘attached’ documents grew, MEGA asked dtSearch to provide its powerful search engine to help customers instantly explore this large quantity of unstructured textual information. The dtSearch Engine will provide users with a ranked list of hits based on their search terms, helping them find information faster. This is an especially important capability as businesses engage in transformation programs to improve performance and profitability, and connect with customers in new ways.”
The president of dtSearch Corp, David Thede, is quoted in the article praising the abilities of HOPEX in synthesizing the complex difficulties presented by the modern standards for enterprise architecture. dtSearch Engine is also recognized for its support of a range of databases and its ability to search instantly across terabytes of data.
Chelsea Kerwin, December 11, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Starting SharePoint and Office 365 on a Budget
December 11, 2014
Many smaller organizations often wonder how to utilize SharePoint and other Office 365 solutions without breaking the bank. Mark Jones on LinkedIn has written a helpful piece on how to get the best bang for the buck. Read his thoughts on “8 Ways To Learn SharePoint And Office 365 On A Budget!”
He begins:
“Over the last 2 years I have spent a lot of time in the SharePoint-Community.Net and the question that comes up a lot is how to get started and learn Microsoft SharePoint (or Office 365). So here we go, this is my up-to-date list of things that will take you from novice to rockstar without spending more than a few dollars in the process.”
Another resource for making the most out of a SharePoint installation is ArnoldIT.com. Stephen E. Arnold is an expert in search and has focused heavily on SharePoint throughout his career. His dedicated SharePoint feed is a great place to start a search for all the latest news, tips, and tricks.
Emily Rae Aldridge, December 11, 2014
More IDC Cleverness: Innovation Is Alive and Well
December 10, 2014
Short honk: Navigate to this link on the Attivio Web site. I verified this on December 9, 2014. Here’s the link:
http://go.attivio.com/l/5752/2012-12-13/l9m2w/5752/96006/idc_attivio_uia_profile_2012_1_.pdf
What do you see? I see this:
IDC published this information based loosely on my team’s research. There was no written permission take this action. My attorney requested that IDC pay for the rights to use my information, including its resale on Amazon without my permission. As I understand my legal eagle, IDC was to stop selling documents with my name and the name of an IDC expert: Dave Schubmehl.
Well, here we go. After months of fiddling, a report with my name is attached to Attivio.
The only hitch in the git along is that the Attivio described in the IDC report does not match up with the Attivio with which I described in my research reports.
Attivio, instead of struggling to generate sufficient revenue to repay its stakeholders, morphs into a different company.
I care because misrepresenting who wrote what, using another’s work for personal aggrandizement and economic benefit, and trampling over the professionalism of a 70 year old strikes me as uncomfortable.
My suggestion? Think about the source of the information. Figure out who is the expert. Ask yourself, “Do I want to be treated in the IDC manner?”
My answer is, “I want experts to be experts. I want high value information to be fairly presented, not massaged. I want basic business practices observed.”
What’s your answer? We know Mr. Schubmehl’s and IDC’s answer.
Stephen E Arnold, December 10, 2014
Google: More Ad Pain Coming
December 10, 2014
I am not sure if the information in “Facebook Video Is Driving YouTube Off Facebook” is spot on. Counts of user behavior without the actual log files are subject to interpretation. But the main point is darned suggestive. Facebook video may be cutting into uploads to YouTube.com. Now the Googlers are trying to make YouTube into a bigger money spinner. If Facebook pushes into video, advertisers are going to want to put their messages in front of Facebook viewers of hot videos. Bad news for Google.
The passage from the article I noted was:
It is evidence of a dramatic shift in power: Until recently Facebook was not even considered a destination for video. Page owners simply shared their YouTube videos on Facebook, and that was that.
My view is that Google struggles to convert social into a service that can compete with Facebook. If Facebook figures out how to play nice with China, the GOOG has a yellow alert flashing. Is the answer in “How Google Works”?
Stephen E Arnold, December 10, 2014
Baymard Institute Announces E-Commerce Search Issues, EasyAsk Standing Nearby with Solution
December 10, 2014
The article on Digital Journal titled Baymard Institute Study Finds Major Problems with Search on Leading E-Commerce Sites considers the study’s findings that “essential e-commerce search capabilities” are missing from many sites, creating an obstacle in their potential for online sales. Poor test results included low tolerance for misspellings, a lack of support for search based on certain produce features, and a lack of support for thematic searches. Reportedly the study broke down search into twelve categories and EasyAsk, the site search “solution” provider jumped into the ring with a white paper on how to improve search and raise sales. The article explains,
“[The] white paper, Improving E-Commerce Search to Meet the Needs of the Modern Shopper, identifies specific solutions for the problems identified in the Baymard Institute Study. [It] also shows examples of how EasyAsk customers such as The North Face, Oya Costumes, InkJet Superstore, and Travers Tools have delivered an engaging search experience as identified in the Baymard Institute report. “The inadequacies of traditional, outdated keyword search engines are prominently displayed in the Baymard Institute Benchmark Study,” said Craig Bassin, CEO of EasyAsk.”
The immediacy of their response and their collaboration in letting organizations freely download part of the study might raise some eyebrows. The article does not go into detail on who exactly sponsored the study, either.
Chelsea Kerwin, December 10, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Cisco Relies on OpenSOC through GitHub When it Comes to Big Data
December 10, 2014
The article on Enterprise Networking Planet titled Cisco Goes Open-Source for Big Data Analytics discusses the change for Cisco with some high-ups in the company. Annie Ballew, Solutions Architect in the Cisco Security Business Group, mentions that OpenSOC is not actually a Security Information and Event Management system but rather should be considered “big data technology for security analytics.” OpenSOC is freely available through Github. The article states,
“While the OpenSOC project itself is open-source, Cisco is already leveraging the technology in its commercial products.”OpenSOC is currently included in our Managed Threat Defense services offering where it is installed, implemented and fully operationalized,” Ballew said. Cisco launched its Manage Threat Defense service in April. That service manages and monitors logs as well as a customer’s security event lifecycle. Ballew added that OpenSOC is also integrated with various other Cisco security components such as Sourcefire FirePower NGIPS, SourceFire AMP, and ThreatGrid.”
The article also remarks on the importance of Elasticsearch to OpenSOC. The Kibana project provides the dashboard for the opensource Elasticsearch project, and Cisco admits that they work with Elasticsearch, but currently that relationship is only through Kibana. Cisco has worked with open-source before, so perhaps it should be no surprise that they turn to OpenSOC to meet their security demands when it comes to big data.
Chelsea Kerwin, December 10, 2014
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Two Companies Offering Unified Search
December 9, 2014
I am confused. What exactly differentiates some of the vendors offering “unified” search? Another question is, “Are these many functions explicitly designed to deliver outputs that reflect real time content analytics on collected text, images, and videos?
I noted this Sinequa diagram on Twitter (http://bit.ly/12IXmnh):
A day ago I was preparing a short report for a client and came across this diagram for the Attivio active intelligence engine which delivers unified access:
The similarities are quite interesting. What came first, keyword search or the repositioning of search as an application that performs is like a giant Microsoft Office solution?
How do these two companies compare to a next generation information access system (NGIAs)? I see three differences:
- An NGIA system makes search a utility, not a core function or a principal plank in the platform
- The outputs of an NGIA system are designed to make or to trigger a tactical or strategic decision; for example, the output of an NGIA system goes into a system controlling a manufacturing robot
- The purpose of the NGIA system is to deliver a solution that pivots on predictive analytics.
I conclude, therefore, that neither Sinequa nor Attivio are NGIA systems at this time. The companies could engineer their search oriented approach toward an NGIA approach. Attivio has new management to help facilitate this important shift. Sinequa, according to a mid tier consulting firm, is one of the Big Dogs in information processing.
It will be interesting to see how search-centric vendors adapt to the next generation information access market. In my forthcoming monograph on this topic, I explore the substantive differences between search-centric “we do it all” systems and the forward looking NGIA system vendors.
Stephen E Arnold, December 9, 2014
Storage, Like Search, a Commodity: Key Vendors Omitted from the Report
December 9, 2014
Nothing spotlights the hungry like a price war. Low prices win. Now what happens to the expensive option? If you are Ferrari and enjoy a cult following of big money car people, you are sort of in business. If you offer expensive online storage, well, that is a good question.
Navigate to “IBM, NetApp Suffer As Storage Buyers Shun Mainstream Suppliers.” The write up points out:
A year ago IBM would have been the third-ranked vendor, but its revenues fell 7.2 per cent to $866m, giving it fourth place. Not so Big Blue is failing to keep up with modern storage technologies and its ageing product set has less and less appeal to customers.
The report from the ever resourceful, expert packed IDC (yep the outfit that sold my information on Amazon without my permission) looks at the world through glasses that give me a headache.
In terms of search, I recall that Coveo was at one time the supplier of search to this outfit. Since IBM bought NetApp, I am not sure what happened to the deal.
Vendors of search hoping for a home run by tagging on to a storage vendors’ wagon train may also be disappointed at the outlook for Big Blue.
Omitted from the mid tier consulting firm’s study were the many low cost storage options that are “good enough.” I, for example, use low cost online storage services and just set up the system to allow each system to copy data from my happy little Drobo. Cheap, multiple copies onsite and off site and none of the crazy pricing that accompanies the folks IDC studies like a Ouija board. I suppose IDC could consult its very own oracle, Dave (surf on Arnold) Schubmehl. Why not?
Stephen E Arnold, December 9, 2014
Google Maps: What Unlimited Resources Deliver
December 9, 2014
There are quite a few mapping and geo outfits. But there is only one Google Maps. Whether you are into maps or not, Google Maps is a big dog in the lat long world.
When I was beavering away in Washington, DC, I had to do a job that involved one of the US government’s mapping outfits. Most government type map outfits are pretty low profile. I was in the lowest of the low profile operations and the issue was next generation maps. The government outfit had traditional mapping assets. You are familiar with some of these; for example, ESRI, European sources, and some of the giant defense contractors.
But the buzz was that Google was making maps more exciting than it normally was for geo geeks. That was shortly after Google bought Keyhole and make some of the functions available via Google’s notion of programmer friendly methods.
Flash forward six or seven years, and the information in “The Huge Unseen Operation Behind the Accuracy of Google Maps” seems like “real” news. Like so many of the breathless paean about the GOOG, the write up gains some zip due to the miserable job “real” journalists and Google cheerleaders deliver.
The map game is shifting toward the Google. Those who find Google’s investment and effort interesting should ask one question, “In what other information centric activities is Google engaged?”
Reading about Google many years after the disruption took place makes clear how little most folks know about that so handy online ad delivery company.
Stephen E Arnold, December 9, 2014
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