Archiving News In A University Using Open Source Software

Newspapers cover a large amount of information everyday on topics of varied interests. To a university, newspapers are essential components of communication as they cover various happenings in a university. These items of information are neither stored properly nor put in retrieval systems for future use. The news and views appeared in newspapers can effectively be organized in a digital library making use of open source software. The CUSAT digital library (http://dspace.cusat.ac.in/dspace/) has organized some news items that appeared in local newspapers about the university under a special community named “CUSAT-News”. This article describes the methods of collecting, selecting, organizing, providing access and preserving news items required by a university using DSpace open source software.

Adoption of Koha Open Source Software in Libraries: a Web Based Study

Since last few years open source integrated library systems gaining attention of library and information science professionals. This paper tries to identify the extent of adoption of Koha, an open source ILS in libraries around the world through a Web based study. The study found that Koha adoption in libraries is still at infancy

Design, Development and Realization of Quadratic Volterra Filters for Selected Applications

The basic concepts of digital signal processing are taught to the students in engineering and science. The focus of the course is on linear, time invariant systems. The question as to what happens when the system is governed by a quadratic or cubic equation remains unanswered in the vast majority of literature on signal processing. Light has been shed on this problem when John V Mathews and Giovanni L Sicuranza published the book Polynomial Signal Processing. This book opened up an unseen vista of polynomial systems for signal and image processing. The book presented the theory and implementations of both adaptive and non-adaptive FIR and IIR quadratic systems which offer improved performance than conventional linear systems. The theory of quadratic systems presents a pristine and virgin area of research that offers computationally intensive work. Once the area of research is selected, the next issue is the choice of the software tool to carry out the work. Conventional languages like C and C++ are easily eliminated as they are not interpreted and lack good quality plotting libraries. MATLAB is proved to be very slow and so do SCILAB and Octave. The search for a language for scientific computing that was as fast as C, but with a good quality plotting library, ended up in Python, a distant relative of LISP. It proved to be ideal for scientific computing. An account of the use of Python, its scientific computing package scipy and the plotting library pylab is given in the appendix Initially, work is focused on designing predictors that exploit the polynomial nonlinearities inherent in speech generation mechanisms. Soon, the work got diverted into medical image processing which offered more potential to exploit by the use of quadratic methods. The major focus in this area is on quadratic edge detection methods for retinal images and fingerprints as well as de-noising raw MRI signals

Measuring the Maturity of Open Source Software for Digital Libraries: a Case Study of DSpace

The assessment of maturity of software is an important area in the general software sector. The field of OSS also applies various models to measure software maturity. However, measuring maturity of OSS being used for several applications in libraries is an area left with no research so far. This study has attempted to fill the research gap. Measuring maturity of software contributes knowledge on its sustainability over the long term. Maturity of software is one of the factors that positively influence adoption. The investigator measured the maturity of DSpace software using Woods and Guliani‟s Open Source Maturity Model-2005. The present study is significant as it addresses the aspects of maturity of OSS for libraries and fills the research gap on the area. In this sense the study opens new avenues to the field of library and information science by providing an additional tool for librarians in the selection and adoption of OSS. Measuring maturity brings in-depth knowledge on an OSS which will contribute towards the perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use as explained in the Technology Acceptance Model theory.

New Features of CoDaPack. An Userfriendly Compositional Data Package

The statistical analysis of compositional data is commonly used in geological studies. As is well-known, compositions should be treated using logratios of parts, which are difficult to use correctly in standard statistical packages. In this paper we describe the new features of our freeware package, named CoDaPack, which implements most of the basic statistical methods suitable for compositional data. An example using real data is presented to illustrate the use of the package

CODAPACK3D. A new version of Compositional Data Package

The statistical analysis of compositional data should be treated using logratios of parts, which are difficult to use correctly in standard statistical packages. For this reason a freeware package, named CoDaPack was created. This software implements most of the basic statistical methods suitable for compositional data. In this paper we describe the new version of the package that now is called CoDaPack3D. It is developed in Visual Basic for applications (associated with Excel©), Visual Basic and Open GL, and it is oriented towards users with a minimum knowledge of computers with the aim at being simple and easy to use. This new version includes new graphical output in 2D and 3D. These outputs could be zoomed and, in 3D, rotated. Also a customization menu is included and outputs could be saved in jpeg format. Also this new version includes an interactive help and all dialog windows have been improved in order to facilitate its use. To use CoDaPack one has to access Excel© and introduce the data in a standard spreadsheet. These should be organized as a matrix where Excel© rows correspond to the observations and columns to the parts. The user executes macros that return numerical or graphical results. There are two kinds of numerical results: new variables and descriptive statistics, and both appear on the same sheet. Graphical output appears in independent windows. In the present version there are 8 menus, with a total of 38 submenus which, after some dialogue, directly call the corresponding macro. The dialogues ask the user to input variables and further parameters needed, as well as where to put these results. The web site http://ima.udg.es/CoDaPack contains this freeware package and only Microsoft Excel© under Microsoft Windows© is required to run the software. Kew words: Compositional data Analysis, Software

Apoyo a la construcción de un software de soporte a decisiones concernientes al comercio entre Colombia y Estados Unidos

La entrada en vigor del Tratado de Libre Comercio (TLC) con Estados Unidos representa para los empresarios colombianos la oportunidad de acceder al mercado más importante del mundo en una posición privilegiada, bajo la cual resulta más sencilla la colocación de productos en este pais para aquellas compañías con vocación exportadora. Sin embargo, la alta competencia y desarrollo de este mercado hace necesario que las empresas cuenten con información apropiada que les permita enfocar sus esfuerzos en productos, segmentos de mercado o Estados específicos donde puedan alcanzar la sostenibilidad y perdurabilidad en el tiempo, así como el desarrollo de nuevas posibilidades comerciales. Para tal fin, realizamos este trabajo de investigación con el cual se busca generar una herramienta informática que contenga información respecto al flujo comercial de Colombia hacia cada uno de los 50 estados de EE.UU., detallando en cada caso las oportunidades comerciales identificadas por partidas arancelarias; y que servirá de apoyo para aquellos empresarios colombianos que buscan beneficiarse de la nueva coyuntura comercial que ofrece el acuerdo bilateral.

Tratamiento de Artritis reumatoide con antagonistas del factor de necrosis tumoral alfa y su asociación con el desarrollo de melanoma cutáneo: revisión sistemática de la literatura y meta-análisis.

Introducción: El tratamiento con antagonistas del factor de necrosis tumoral alfa (anti TNF) ha impactado el pronóstico y la calidad de vida de los pacientes con artritis reumatoide (AR) positivamente, sin embargo, se interroga un incremento en el riesgo de desarrollar melanoma. Objetivo: Conocer la asociación entre el uso de anti TNF y el desarrollo de melanoma maligno en pacientes con AR. Metodología: Se realizó una búsqueda sistemática en MEDLINE, EMBASE, COCHRANE LIBRARY y LILACS para ensayos clínicos, estudios observacionales, revisiones y meta-análisis en pacientes adultos con diagnóstico de AR y manejo con anti TNF (Certolizumab pegol, Adalimumab, Etanercept, Infliximab y Golimumab). Resultados: 37 estudios clínicos cumplieron los criterios de inclusión para el meta-análisis, con una población de 16567 pacientes. El análisis de heterogeneidad no fue significativo (p=1), no se encontró diferencia en el riesgo entre los grupos comparados DR -0.00 (IC 95% -0.001; -0.001). Un análisis adicional de los estudios en los que se reportó al menos 1 caso de melanoma (4222 pacientes) tampoco mostró diferencia en el riesgo DR -0.00 (IC 95% -0.004 ; -0.003). Conclusión: En la evidencia disponible a la fecha no encontramos asociación significativa entre el tratamiento con anti TNF en pacientes con diagnóstico de AR y el desarrollo de melanoma cutáneo.

Dynamic management and restoration of virtual paths in broadband networks based on distributed software agents

La gestió de xarxes és un camp molt ampli i inclou molts aspectes diferents. Aquesta tesi doctoral està centrada en la gestió dels recursos en les xarxes de banda ampla que disposin de mecanismes per fer reserves de recursos, com per exemple Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) o Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS). Es poden establir xarxes lògiques utilitzant els Virtual Paths (VP) d'ATM o els Label Switched Paths (LSP) de MPLS, als que anomenem genèricament camins lògics. Els usuaris de la xarxa utilitzen doncs aquests camins lògics, que poden tenir recursos assignats, per establir les seves comunicacions. A més, els camins lògics són molt flexibles i les seves característiques es poden canviar dinàmicament. Aquest treball, se centra, en particular, en la gestió dinàmica d'aquesta xarxa lògica per tal de maximitzar-ne el rendiment i adaptar-la a les connexions ofertes. En aquest escenari, hi ha diversos mecanismes que poden afectar i modificar les característiques dels camins lògics (ample de banda, ruta, etc.). Aquests mecanismes inclouen els de balanceig de la càrrega (reassignació d'ample de banda i reencaminament) i els de restauració de fallades (ús de camins lògics de backup). Aquests dos mecanismes poden modificar la xarxa lògica i gestionar els recursos (ample de banda) dels enllaços físics. Per tant, existeix la necessitat de coordinar aquests mecanismes per evitar possibles interferències. La gestió de recursos convencional que fa ús de la xarxa lògica, recalcula periòdicament (per exemple cada hora o cada dia) tota la xarxa lògica d'una forma centralitzada. Això introdueix el problema que els reajustaments de la xarxa lògica no es realitzen en el moment en què realment hi ha problemes. D'altra banda també introdueix la necessitat de mantenir una visió centralitzada de tota la xarxa. En aquesta tesi, es proposa una arquitectura distribuïda basada en un sistema multi agent. L'objectiu principal d'aquesta arquitectura és realitzar de forma conjunta i coordinada la gestió de recursos a nivell de xarxa lògica, integrant els mecanismes de reajustament d'ample de banda amb els mecanismes de restauració preplanejada, inclosa la gestió de l'ample de banda reservada per a la restauració. Es proposa que aquesta gestió es porti a terme d'una forma contínua, no periòdica, actuant quan es detecta el problema (quan un camí lògic està congestionat, o sigui, quan està rebutjant peticions de connexió dels usuaris perquè està saturat) i d'una forma completament distribuïda, o sigui, sense mantenir una visió global de la xarxa. Així doncs, l'arquitectura proposada realitza petits rearranjaments a la xarxa lògica adaptant-la d'una forma contínua a la demanda dels usuaris. L'arquitectura proposada també té en consideració altres objectius com l'escalabilitat, la modularitat, la robustesa, la flexibilitat i la simplicitat. El sistema multi agent proposat està estructurat en dues capes d'agents: els agents de monitorització (M) i els de rendiment (P). Aquests agents estan situats en els diferents nodes de la xarxa: hi ha un agent P i diversos agents M a cada node; aquests últims subordinats als P. Per tant l'arquitectura proposada es pot veure com una jerarquia d'agents. Cada agent és responsable de monitoritzar i controlar els recursos als que està assignat. S'han realitzat diferents experiments utilitzant un simulador distribuït a nivell de connexió proposat per nosaltres mateixos. Els resultats mostren que l'arquitectura proposada és capaç de realitzar les tasques assignades de detecció de la congestió, reassignació dinàmica d'ample de banda i reencaminament d'una forma coordinada amb els mecanismes de restauració preplanejada i gestió de l'ample de banda reservat per la restauració. L'arquitectura distribuïda ofereix una escalabilitat i robustesa acceptables gràcies a la seva flexibilitat i modularitat.

Multicore-enabling the MPJ express messaging library

With the transition to multicore processors almost complete, the parallel processing community is seeking efficient ways to port legacy message passing applications on shared memory and multicore processors. MPJ Express is our reference implementation of Message Passing Interface (MPI)-like bindings for the Java language. Starting with the current release, the MPJ Express software can be configured in two modes: the multicore and the cluster mode. In the multicore mode, parallel Java applications execute on shared memory or multicore processors. In the cluster mode, Java applications parallelized using MPJ Express can be executed on distributed memory platforms like compute clusters and clouds. The multicore device has been implemented using Java threads in order to satisfy two main design goals of portability and performance. We also discuss the challenges of integrating the multicore device in the MPJ Express software. This turned out to be a challenging task because the parallel application executes in a single JVM in the multicore mode. On the contrary in the cluster mode, the parallel user application executes in multiple JVMs. Due to these inherent architectural differences between the two modes, the MPJ Express runtime is modified to ensure correct semantics of the parallel program. Towards the end, we compare performance of MPJ Express (multicore mode) with other C and Java message passing libraries---including mpiJava, MPJ/Ibis, MPICH2, MPJ Express (cluster mode)---on shared memory and multicore processors. We found out that MPJ Express performs signicantly better in the multicore mode than in the cluster mode. Not only this but the MPJ Express software also performs better in comparison to other Java messaging libraries including mpiJava and MPJ/Ibis when used in the multicore mode on shared memory or multicore processors. We also demonstrate effectiveness of the MPJ Express multicore device in Gadget-2, which is a massively parallel astrophysics N-body siimulation code.

Practical neural networks in a computer control package

This paper deals with the integration of radial basis function (RBF) networks into the industrial software control package Connoisseur. The paper shows the improved modelling capabilities offered by RBF networks within the Connoisseur environment compared to linear modelling techniques such as recursive least squares. The paper also goes on to mention the way this improved modelling capability, obtained through the RBF networks will be utilised within Connoisseur.

The Environmental Data Abstraction Library (EDAL): a modular approach to processing and visualising large environmental data

The Environmental Data Abstraction Library provides a modular data management library for bringing new and diverse datatypes together for visualisation within numerous software packages, including the ncWMS viewing service, which already has very wide international uptake. The structure of EDAL is presented along with examples of its use to compare satellite, model and in situ data types within the same visualisation framework. We emphasize the value of this capability for cross calibration of datasets and evaluation of model products against observations, including preparation for data assimilation.

PACKMOL: A Package for Building Initial Configurations for Molecular Dynamics Simulations

Adequate initial configurations for molecular dynamics simulations consist of arrangements of molecules distributed in space in such a way to approximately represent the system`s overall structure. In order that the simulations are not disrupted by large van der Waals repulsive interactions, atoms from different molecules Must keep safe pairwise distances. Obtaining Such a molecular arrangement can be considered it packing problem: Each type molecule must satisfy spatial constraints related to the geometry of the system, and the distance between atoms of different molecules Must be greater than some specified tolerance. We have developed a code able to pack millions of atoms. grouped in arbitrarily complex molecules, inside a variety of three-dimensional regions. The regions may be intersections of spheres, ellipses, cylinders, planes, or boxes. The user must provide only the structure of one molecule of each type and the geometrical constraints that each type of molecule must satisfy. Building complex mixtures, interfaces, solvating biomolecules in water, other solvents, or mixtures of solvents, is straight forward. In addition. different atoms belonging to the same molecule may also be restricted to different spatial regions, in Such a way that more ordered molecular arrangements call be built, as micelles. lipid double-layers, etc. The packing time for state-of-the-art molecular dynamics systems varies front a few seconds to a few Minutes in a personal Computer. The input files are simple and Currently compatible with PDB, Tinker, Molden, or Moldy coordinate files. The package is distributed as free software and call be downloaded front http://www.ime.unicamp.br/similar to martinez/packmol/. (C) 2009 Wiley Periodicals. Inc. J Comput Chem 30: 2157-2164, 2009

Metodologia, Sistema de Codificação e Ferramenta de software para Modelagem de Móveis Modulados

On this research we investigated how new technologies can help the process of design and manufacturing of furniture in such small manufacturers in Rio Grande do Norte state. Google SketchUp, a 3D software tool, was developed in such a way that its internal structures are opened and can be accessed using SketchUp s API for Ruby and programs written in Ruby language (plugins). Using the concepts of the so-called Group Technology and the flexibility that enables adding new functionalities to this software, it was created a Methodology for Modeling of Furniture, a Coding System and a plugin for Google s tool in order to implement the Methodology developed. As resulted, the following facilities are available: the user may create and reuse the library s models over-and-over; reports of the materials manufacturing process costs are provided and, finally, detailed drawings, getting a better integration between the furniture design and manufacturing process

An interactive environment for solid modeling based on free software

This paper describes an interactive environment built entirely upon public domain or free software, intended to be used as the preprocessor of a finite element package for the simulation of three-dimensional electromagnetic problems.