Combining Bottom-up and Top-down Generation of Interactive Knowledge Maps for Enterprise Search

Our research project develops an intranet search engine with concept- browsing functionality, where the user is able to navigate the conceptual level in an interactive, automatically generated knowledge map. This knowledge map visualizes tacit, implicit knowledge, extracted from the intranet, as a network of semantic concepts. Inductive and deductive methods are combined; a text ana- lytics engine extracts knowledge structures from data inductively, and the en- terprise ontology provides a backbone structure to the process deductively. In addition to performing conventional keyword search, the user can browse the semantic network of concepts and associations to find documents and data rec- ords. Also, the user can expand and edit the knowledge network directly. As a vision, we propose a knowledge-management system that provides concept- browsing, based on a knowledge warehouse layer on top of a heterogeneous knowledge base with various systems interfaces. Such a concept browser will empower knowledge workers to interact with knowledge structures.

A Case for CDN-as-a-Service in the Cloud: A Mobile Cloud Networking Argument

Content Distribution Networks are mandatory components of modern web architectures, with plenty of vendors offering their services. Despite its maturity, new paradigms and architecture models are still being developed in this area. Cloud Computing, on the other hand, is a more recent concept which has expanded extremely quickly, with new services being regularly added to cloud management software suites such as OpenStack. The main contribution of this paper is the architecture and the development of an open source CDN that can be provisioned in an on-demand, pay-as-you-go model thereby enabling the CDN as a Service paradigm. We describe our experience with integration of CDNaaS framework in a cloud environment, as a service for enterprise users. We emphasize the flexibility and elasticity of such a model, with each CDN instance being delivered on-demand and associated to personalized caching policies as well as an optimized choice of Points of Presence based on exact requirements of an enterprise customer. Our development is based on the framework developed in the Mobile Cloud Networking EU FP7 project, which offers its enterprise users a common framework to instantiate and control services. CDNaaS is one of the core support components in this project as is tasked to deliver different type of multimedia content to several thousands of users geographically distributed. It integrates seamlessly in the MCN service life-cycle and as such enjoys all benefits of a common design environment, allowing for an improved interoperability with the rest of the services within the MCN ecosystem.

Cloud-based Orchestration of Multimedia Services and Applications

The Mobile Cloud Networking project develops among others, several virtualized services and applications, in particular: (1) IP Multimedia Subsystem as a Service that gives the possibility to deploy a virtualized and on-demand instance of the IP Multimedia Subsystem platform, (2) Digital Signage Service as a Service that is based on a re-designed Digital Signage Service architecture, adopting the cloud computing principles, and (3) Information Centric Networking/Content Delivery Network as a Service that is used for distributing, caching and migrating content from other services. Possible designs for these virtualized services and applications have been identified and are being implemented. In particular, the architectures of the mentioned services were specified, adopting cloud computing principles, such as infrastructure sharing, elasticity, on-demand and pay-as-you-go. The benefits of Reactive Programming paradigm are presented in the context of Interactive Cloudified Digital Signage services in a Mobile Cloud Platform, as well as the benefit of interworking between different Mobile Cloud Networking Services as Digital Signage Service and Content Delivery Network Service for better performance of Video on Demand content deliver. Finally, the management of Service Level Agreements and the support of rating, charging and billing has also been considered and defined.

Applying Fuzzy Ontologies to Implement the Social Semantic Web

Because the knowledge in the World Wide Web is continuously expanding, Web Knowledge Aggregation, Representation and Reasoning (abbreviated as KR) is becoming increasingly important. This article demonstrates how fuzzy ontologies can be used in KR to improve the interactions between humans and computers. The gap between the Social and Semantic Web can be reduced, and a Social Semantic Web may become possible. As an illustrative example, we demonstrate how fuzzy logic and KR can enhance technologies for cognitive cities. The underlying notion of these technologies is based on connectivism, which can be improved by incorporating the results of digital humanities research.

Dynamics of governance and control in inter-organizational software development

In recent years, development of information systems (IS) has rapidly changed towards increasing division of labor between firms. Two trends are emerging. First, client companies increasingly outsource software development to external service providers. Second, the formerly oligopolistic enterprise application software industry has started to disintegrate into focal partnership networks – so called platform ecosystems. Despite the increasing prominence of IS outsourcing and platform ecosystems, many of these inter-organizational partnerships fail to achieve expected benefits. Ineffective governance and control frequently plays a pivotal role in producing these failures. While designing effective governance and control mechanisms is always challenging, inter-organizational software development projects are often business-critical and exhibit additional dynamics and uncertainty. As a consequence governance and control have to be adapted over time. The three research projects included in this book provide a better understanding of how and why governance and control can be effectively adapted over time. The implications for successful management of inter-organizational software development projects are highly relevant for theory and practice.

Explaining Emergence and Consequences of Specific Formal Controls in IS Outsourcing – A Process-View

IS outsourcing projects often fail to achieve project goals. To inhibit this failure, managers need to design formal controls that are tailored to the specific contextual demands. However, the dynamic and uncertain nature of IS outsourcing projects makes the design of such specific formal controls at the outset of a project challenging. Hence, the process of translating high-level project goals into specific formal controls becomes crucial for success or failure of IS outsourcing projects. Based on a comparative case study of four IS outsourcing projects, our study enhances current understanding of such translation processes and their consequences by developing a process model that explains the success or failure to achieve high-level project goals as an outcome of two unique translation patterns. This novel process-based explanation for how and why IS outsourcing projects succeed or fail has important implications for control theory and IS project escalation literature.

The Software Prototype as Digital Boundary Object – A Revelatory Longitudinal Innovation Case

With the availability of lower cost but highly skilled software development labor from offshore regions, entrepreneurs from developed countries who do not have software development experience can utilize this workforce to develop innovative software products. In order to succeed in offshored innovation projects, the often extreme knowledge boundaries between the onsite entrepreneur and the offshore software development team have to be overcome. Prior research has proposed that boundary objects are critical for bridging such boundaries – if they are appropriately used. Our longitudinal, revelatory case study of a software innovation project is one of the first to explore the role of the software prototype as a digital boundary object. Our study empirically unpacks five use practices that transform the software prototype into a boundary object such that knowledge boundaries are bridged. Our findings provide new theoretical insights for literature on software innovation and boundary objects, and have implications for practice.

Mechanisms of Ligand–Protein Interaction in Sec-14-like Transporters Investigated by Computer Simulations

We review our recent work on protein-ligand interactions in vitamin transporters of the Sec-14-like protein. Our studies focused on the cellular-retinaldehyde binding protein (CRALBP) and the alpha-tocopherol transfer protein (alpha-TTP). CRALBP is responsible for mobilisation and photo-protection of short-chain cis-retinoids in the dim-light visual cycle or rod photoreceptors. alpha-TTP is a key protein responsible for selection and retention of RRR-alpha-tocopherol, the most active isoform of vitamin E in superior animals. Our simulation studies evidence how subtle chemical variations in the substrate can lead to significant distortion in the structure of the complex, and how these changes can either lead to new protein function, or be used to model engineered protein variants with tailored properties. Finally, we show how integration of computational and experimental results can contribute in synergy to the understanding of fundamental processes at the biomolecular scale.

Knowledge in software-maintenance outsourcing projects: beyond integration of business and technical knowledge

Knowledge processes are critical to outsourced software projects. According to outsourcing research, outsourced software projects succeed if they manage to integrate the client’s business knowledge and the vendor’s technical knowledge. In this paper, we submit that this view may not be wrong, but incomplete in a significant part of outsourced software work, which is software maintenance. Data from six software-maintenance outsourcing transitions indicate that more important than business or technical knowledge can be application knowledge, which vendor engineers acquire over time during practice. Application knowledge was the dominant knowledge during knowledge transfer activities and its acquisition enabled vendor staff to solve maintenance tasks. We discuss implications for widespread assumptions in outsourcing research.

Knowledge representation through graphs

Due to the increasing amount of data, knowledge aggregation, representation and reasoning are highly important for companies. In this paper, knowledge aggregation is presented as the first step. In the sequel, successful knowledge representation, for instance through graphs, enables knowledge-based reasoning. There exist various forms of knowledge representation through graphs; some of which allow to handle uncertainty and imprecision by invoking the technology of fuzzy sets. The paper provides an overview of different types of graphs stressing their relationships and their essential features.

Applying the fuzzy analytical hierarchy process in digital marketing

The fuzzy analytical network process (FANP) is introduced as a potential multi-criteria-decision-making (MCDM) method to improve digital marketing management endeavors. Today’s information overload makes digital marketing optimization, which is needed to continuously improve one’s business, increasingly difficult. The proposed FANP framework is a method for enhancing the interaction between customers and marketers (i.e., involved stakeholders) and thus for reducing the challenges of big data. The presented implementation takes realities’ fuzziness into account to manage the constant interaction and continuous development of communication between marketers and customers on the Web. Using this FANP framework, the marketers are able to increasingly meet the varying requirements of their customers. To improve the understanding of the implementation, advanced visualization methods (e.g., wireframes) are used.

Enhancing multidirectional communication for cognitive cities

This paper presents the technical background and functionality of a meta-application (meta-app) for cognitive cities. This app enhances communication and thereby facilitates e-governance. This paper focuses on a user-centered implementation of the Fuzzy Analytical Hierarchy Process (FAHP) by presenting its technical specifications in relation with cognitive cities. For didactical reasons, a use case from the user perspective is included. Finally the findings are summed up and future work is presented

Smart Cities – Ein Überblick!

Nach einer kurzen Begriffsfassung von Smart Cities gehen wir basierend auf den folgenden Beiträgen dieses Heftes auf verschiedene Eigenschaften einer solchen smarten Stadt ein. Dadurch versuchen wir den Ist-Zustand dieser Städte zu dokumentieren. Damit die jeweiligen Stakeholder (strategische) Entscheide treffen können, widmen wir danach ein Kapitel den Chancen und Risiken von Smart Cities. Anhand einer Studie des Europäischen Parlaments zeigen wir nachfolgend entsprechende Bestrebungen aus Europa auf. Anschliessend präsentieren wir eine Best-Practice-Roadmap für die Realisierung von Smart Cities. Zum Schluss zeichnen wir auf einer konnektivistischen Lern- und Kognitionstheorie aufbauend einen Weg zur Cognitive City der Zukunft. Dabei wird der Mensch nicht als isoliertes, sondern als vernetztes Individuum gesehen. Dies begünstigt die Weiterentwicklung von Smart Cities zu Städten, welche aktiv und selbstständig lernen und dadurch automatisch auf Veränderungen ihrer Umwelt reagieren können.

Simulation of SLA-based VM-scaling algorithms for cloud-distributed applications

Cloud Computing has evolved to become an enabler for delivering access to large scale distributed applications running on managed network-connected computing systems. This makes possible hosting Distributed Enterprise Information Systems (dEISs) in cloud environments, while enforcing strict performance and quality of service requirements, defined using Service Level Agreements (SLAs). {SLAs} define the performance boundaries of distributed applications, and are enforced by a cloud management system (CMS) dynamically allocating the available computing resources to the cloud services. We present two novel VM-scaling algorithms focused on dEIS systems, which optimally detect most appropriate scaling conditions using performance-models of distributed applications derived from constant-workload benchmarks, together with SLA-specified performance constraints. We simulate the VM-scaling algorithms in a cloud simulator and compare against trace-based performance models of dEISs. We compare a total of three SLA-based VM-scaling algorithms (one using prediction mechanisms) based on a real-world application scenario involving a large variable number of users. Our results show that it is beneficial to use autoregressive predictive SLA-driven scaling algorithms in cloud management systems for guaranteeing performance invariants of distributed cloud applications, as opposed to using only reactive SLA-based VM-scaling algorithms.