Pragmatech Semantic Search, Upgraded
May 4, 2011
More semantic activity. SearchBlog’s write-up “Semantic Search Engine Gets Ad, News Application Layers” reports on new facets of semantic search at Pragmatech. The two-year-old company is a subsidiary of the United Development Company based in Doha, Qatar.
Ctrl news is the free news-filtering service which distills articles according to user preferences using context instead of keywords. The new feature is also able to generate a summary based on semantic analysis.
Also new is an advertising test site, which will identify the most profitable sites on which to place clients’ pitches. The article explains:
[R&D team leader Walid] Saba says the advertiser will give the company an ad, along with a variety of URLs. The technology will identify the best publisher sites to run specific ads based on the content. The technology will match the Web site with the ad content based on the contextual relevance of the advertisement, even if the ad and Web page are in two different languages.
With talent from across the globe, the team has confidence in their technology despite the crowded semantic field. We’ll see how they do as time progresses. As important is what seems to be a quickening innovation cycle outside of the US of A.
Cynthia Murrell, May 4, 2011
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Bundles Reshape Information Retrieval
May 4, 2011
Vendors of enterprise search systems are looking for ways to pump up interest in their sometimes ageing technologies. Now the trend is surfacing in content processing. I read with interest “GfK Partners with NetBase.” The story announced infoTechSpotlight. GfK’s market researchers and NetBase’s social media analysts will work together to build what will most likely become imperative marketing tools.
The article elaborates:
Through this strategic alliance, GfK will use the NetBase platform, social intelligence warehouse, analytic tools and scorecards to provide clients with insights that integrate social media ‘listening’ with other market research methodologies. GfK’s analysis of consumer conversations and sentiment occurring across the spectrum of social networks and other digital platforms will enhance GfK client engagements, providing a deeper understanding of the dynamics and drivers of brand affinity including brand health, customer experience, and corporate reputation to guide current and future marketing initiatives.
The third entity involved here is ConsumerBase, whose social intelligence warehouse underpins NetBase’s platform. Their vast cache of consumer behavioral data is gleaned from across the Web. I don’t want to drag the mobile phone tracking flap into this write up, nor do I want to dwell on the interest some attorneys have in looking at public Facebook content in order to find a legal angle for a client.
What’s important is the wrapping of several different technologies in a package that looks and smells fresh to marketers who want an advantage. Consumer commentary about products, brands, and corporations provide valuable insights. From damage control to leveraging trends, soon no company will want to be without tools such as these. Search and content processing are the ingredients for these new bundles.
Cynthia Murrell, May 4, 2011
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The Definition of Open Moves Toward Closed
May 4, 2011
With a broken leg and ankle, I am not chasing around the mobile velodrome. I am kicking back and thinking about the use of language in the high-technology world. The question I pondered this morning (May 3, 2011) was, “What is the definition of open?” The thought was sparked when I read “Google Plays Ball with Carriers to Kill Tethering Apps, Violates Spirit of the ‘Open Access’ It Bid $4.6B to Protect.” The story does a good and gentle job of explaining that Google is working to some degree with telecommunications companies to limit certain mobile access functions. The particular function is irrelevant. The two big points, in my opinion, are:
- Open means closed. Okay, that’s normal Orwellian activity.
- Google, if the story is spot on, is beginning to look like a traditional Fortune 100 company, not a spunky start up.
I did like this passage in the Play Ball article:
Allow me to leave you with a quote from Android boss Andy Rubin that he made nearly two years ago while vehemently denying that there was any Market rejection of a Skype app: “We also look forward to the day when consumers can access any application,including VoIP apps, from any device, on any network.” I couldn’t agree more, Andy.
So what’s next? I like the idea of renting equipment, not owning it. I also find intriguing the vertical integration of the original AT&T and just about everything. How different is Google since the management shift? Well, if you cannot control costs, you have to take steps to protect revenue. Changing the meaning of a word like “open” is small potatoes. Next up? Rapprochement with China, perhaps?
Stephen E Arnold, May 4, 2011
Freebie unlike some mobile carriers’ services.
Protected: RIM Blackberry Client for SharePoint Coming Soon
May 4, 2011
Military Could Benefit From Universal Translator App
May 3, 2011
According to the Wired.com article “Psst, Military” There’s Already A Universal Translator in the App Store” the US military hopes to get money from Congress to conduct research on the development of a universal translation device for soldiers in the field. “BOLT, the Boundless Operational Language Translation, will be so sophisticated it can understand foreign slang. Robust Automatic Translation of Speech — yes, RATS — will know the difference between speech that needs translating and background noise to discard.”
However, the SpeechTrans App is available on the iPhone and iPad will “record a spoken phrase you want translated, choose your foreign language, and the app will speak it back to you, all while displaying both versions of your text on the screen.” Some might say that it lacks the overall sophistication and advancement of similar army systems but it is an extremely thorough translation program that is ready and available for soldiers to use right now when they need it most.
As an added bonus it costs a mere $19.99. Maybe the army should look in the app store before its next million dollar research project. The Apple App Store claims to have an app for any and everything, and looks like it does. I think online searchers may benefit as well.
April Holmes, May 3, 2011
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Open Source Continues Forward
May 3, 2011
In the programming world open source continues to showcase its dominance. According to the InfoWorld article “Open Source Programming Tools On the Rise,” open source programs are a definite industry favorite. We learned from the article:
“The reason is clear: Open source licenses are designed to allow users to revise, fix, and extend their code.”
Programmers can change the program to fit their specific needs. Usage of open source tools such as Hadoop and Firebug continue to rise in the programming world as users find new and innovative ways to use the technology. Open source programs even older ones continue to have longevity because users can “Tweak and recompile, and your old programming tool can be new again.” The open source program Lucene/Solr is a popular high performance index and search platform that has proved to be quite impressive. It will be interesting to see if open source can be “dethroned.”
Stephen E Arnold, May 3, 2011
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Google and Cost Control: Work for Its Accountants Ahead
May 3, 2011
In the midst of the Twitter-changes-news information flood, I wanted to document an item I found important and directly related to search. The article that caught my attention was “Google Australia Claims 2010 Financial Loss.” The title is a good one, conveying the key factoid. The numbers reported by ItWire were interesting in themselves:
- Revenue of $151 million Kangaroo bucks
- Loss of $3 million KB
- Tax payments of $7 million KB.
Accountants can turn water into wine and lead into gold. But the point that hit me was:
Google’s biggest local cost was its 434 employees – which soaked up some $111.6 million in the period, meaning their average salary was a whopping $257,000. However, the company also spent a great deal on advertising and promotional expenses — $10.53 million in 2010. Other major expenses included travel and entertainment – which was $7.13 million. he company’s basic profit and loss statement only listed tax costs of $1.1 million, although the company was actually slated to pay some $7.4 million in taxes in 2010. However it balanced that figure out with deferred tax payments and adjustments. At the end of the year, Google Australia was holding some $21.3 million in cash and cash, as well as $34.2 million of what it said were ‘trade and other receivables’. It had some $16.1 million worth of property, plant and equipment.
Yep, costs. Employee costs are hefty, but the Google is spending for advertising and promotion. Isn’t Google one of the world’s most recognized brands? Isn’t Google the owner of the most potent online advertising system in the world?
So, the key to the future of Google is not just good accounting. Good old fashioned cost controls are going to be the key to the company’s success in Australia and elsewhere. Outfits like Facebook want to slam on the Google advertising revenue brakes if possible. If ad revenue softens, costs loom even larger than they do at this time. Even accountants run out of angles when the revenue flags.
Stephen E Arnold, May 3, 2011
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The Arnold Columns: May 2011
May 3, 2011
It is that time again. Four columns this month and for cash money. Every time I get a check I think of PT Barnum. The topics I tackled this month required research, thought, and some wordsmanship. This blog, on the other hand, is a record of the items that strike me as interesting. I have help converting my snips into write ups. If you want to know who works on this Beyond Search blog, check out the new Author tab available from the Beyond Search splash page.
So what did real publishers instruct me to cover or, in some cases, allow me to explore? Here’s the line up. Keep in mind that you will have to either get a hard copy of the publishers’ outputs or find my work on the publishers’ Web site. In one case, that could take you a day or two. Search is really easy when folks responsible for search don’t use their own search system. Such is life.
- ETM (Enterprise Technology Management, published by ISIGlobal.com), “Google’s Management Change and the Enterprise”. The idea is that Google is making significant management changes and, either intentionally or unintentionally, sending signals that indicate the enterprise unit is not part of Larry Page’s inner circle. I hope I am wrong, but if enterprise were the key to firm’s future, I think the management shake up would have added an olive and a dash of bitters to the enterprise group. What I saw was several squirts of cold water.
- Information Today, which is technically a newspaper, “When Key Words Fail, Will Predictive Search Deliver?”. The write up uses Recorded Future, funded by the CIA and Google, as a case example. The main idea is that semantic technology have to step up because the volume of data facing a worker and the worker’s diminished appetite for research require software to be smarter.
- KMWorld, “SharePoint Governance: Is Semantic Technology the Answer?”. My team has been immersed in things semantic. What our work revealed is that the baloney word governance really means indexing and editorial policies. The article provides some links to useful resources and then reminds the reader that putting the information horse back in the barn when the barn is on fire can be tough.
- Online Magazine, “Rob ROI: Open Source and Technology Costs.” I apologize for the literary license, my assumption that the readers will know about Sir Walter, the Waverly novels, and Rob Roy. The thrust of the write up is that open source software reduces some costs but not every cost. As a result, poor budgeting for open source software can yield the same ROI killing overruns that plague commercial software. Don’t agree with me? Sigh.
- Smart Business Network, a series of city business magazines and a Web site, “Coupon Monsoon: Downpours of Digital Deals.” The focus of the write up is the deluge of deals, coupons, and discounts. The problem with most of these services is building an audience and delivering offers that make sense to customers and merchants. I answer the question, “Should your business use coupons?”
Every two or three years I gather up these for-fee outputs and slap them in the ArnoldIT.com archive. However, you cannot rely on me to be much of an information professional. I can barely write these outputs. Organizing and archiving—beyond my skill set. Subscribe to these publications. The information in my for-fee columns is different from the Web log’s.
Stephen E Arnold, May 3, 2011
Not free. I am paid for columns so this write up is a shameless commercial promotion.
Exalead Embraces SWYM or “See What You Mean”
May 3, 2011
In late April 2011, I spoke with Francois Bourdoncle, one of the founders of Exalead. Exalead was acquired by Dassault Systèmes in 2010. The French firm is one of the world’s premier engineering and technology products and services companies. I wanted to get more information about the acquisition and probe the next wave of product releases from Exalead, a leader in search and content processing. Exalead introduced its search based applications approach. Since that shift, the firm has experienced a surge in sales. Organizations such as the World Bank and PriceWaterhouseCoopers (IBM) have licensed the Exalead Cloudview platform.
I wanted to know more about Exalead’s semantic methods. In our conversation, Mr. Bourdoncle told me:
We have a number of customers that use Exalead for semantic processing. Cloudview has a number of text processing modules that we classify as providing semantic processing. These are: entity matching, ontology matching, fuzzy matching, related terms extraction, categorization/clustering and event detection among others. Used in combination, these processors can extract arbitrary sentiment, meaning not just positive or negative, but also along other dimensions as well. For example, if we were analyzing sentiment about restaurants, perhaps we’d want to know if the ambiance was casual or upscale or the cuisine was homey or refined.
When I probed about future products and services, Mr. Bourdoncle stated:
I cannot pre-announce future product plans, I will say that Dassault Systèmes has a deep technology portfolio. For example, it is creating a prototype simulation of the human body. This is a non-trivial computer science challenge. One way Dassault describes its technology vision is “See-What-You-Mean”. Or SWYM.
For the full text of the April 2011 interview with Mr. Bourdoncle, navigate to the ArnoldIT.com Search Wizards Speak subsite. For more information about Exalead, visit www.exalead.com.
Stephen E Arnold, May 3, 2011
No money but I was promised a KYFry the next time I was in Paris.
Protected: Tips for SQL Server 2008 Backend for SharePoint 2010
May 3, 2011
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