X-Databases - The Integration of XML into Enterprise Database Management Systems

An examination of how the eXtensible Markup Language (XML) and database management systems (DBMS) fit together, and current approaches to providing database technologies that support XML. Analysis of how XML is being deployed in four classes of XML Database (X-Database) applications provides a basis for understanding the direction of X-Database technology and associated standards. In a simple implementation, an XML Document Type Definition (DTD) is mapped to relational structures, and XML data are stored in a DBMS (Oracle8i). Sample queries are presented to retrieve XML from the database. A middleware tool (XSQL Java Servlet) is used to transform query results into records on a Web page. The results demonstrate that relational databases require data to be rigidly mapped to relational structures. The paper concludes by exploring future challenges to integrating XML and DTDs with X-Databases, which establishes the need for a more "native" integration approach

Web Site Content Management Systems: Selection and Usage at Land-Grant Universities

American land-grant universities generate large amounts of information for their Web sites, which serve a variety of audiences in addition to students, faculty, and staff. Many of these universities are beginning to search for Web site content management systems (CMS) to help organize this information. However, there are hundreds - if not thousands - of systems in this emerging arena, with no clear market leader. This paper provides a snapshot of the experiences of communicators at several universities where content management systems are in use. The purpose is to provide criteria to help Web site managers at universities and other organizations make more informed decisions as they consider which content management system to implement. Specifically, the study used an online survey followed by a questionnaire to selected Webmasters at land-grant universities across the United States, and tracked comments on a university Web developers\u27 discussion board to determine the Web site content management system that is currently in use or under consideration, usage patterns, advantages and disadvantages, staffing requirements, and advice to colleagues considering such a system. This study does not attempt to offer a definitive answer as to which content management system is the best. After all the questions, comments, and analysis, it confirms Noel Ward\u27s observation (2001), \u27No one-size-fits-all content management solution exists.\u27 However, it does offer some insights into what Owen Linderholm (2001) aptly described as the \u27seemingly endless array of content management software\u27 by identifying some criteria for evaluating CMS choices and it reveals a glimpse into fascinating possibilities for the future of content management systems. Criteria to consider when evaluating a CMS include: Usability of the authoring environment for developers and content providers Internal needs assessment (e.g., cost of the software and the personnel to develop/maintain the CMS and train/coach content providers) Vendor considerations (e.g., what is involved to make the system do what the sales representative says it will do

New perspectives on indigenous navigation tradition

Stick charts are a significant part of the Micronesian Marshallese navigation tradition in the Pacific Ocean. The islanders navigated without instruments just by observing, among others, oceanic phenomena such as swells, currents, and roughness characteristics of the sea surface. For a long time, the explanation of the various sticks of such latticework remained secret and something of a mystery and was only obtained by oral transmission under great difficulties. Old and new interpretations of stick charts are compared and presented. Signatures of different swells manifested on stick charts were identified and proved by satellite remote sensing data. Current research on indigenous navigation is growing to conserve such unique tradition in the Pacific and especially in the sea area of the Marshall Islands. For scientific research on indigenous navigation knowledge collaboration between natural scientists and ethnologists is necessary

Fachzeitschrift für Hydrographie und Geoinformation

Hydrography made in German

The file naming habits of personal computer users

This study is an extension of research by J.M. Carroll (1982) on the naming of personal computer files. Eleven one-on-one interviews were conducted with both veteran and novice Personal Computer users to gain insights into the filenaming habits of individuals and the reasons for each of these naming behaviors. Randomly-selected filenames were examined both in isolation and within the context of other filenames, for morphological, lexical and semantic attributes and patterns; and evidence of the participants' purposes in employing each technique was obtained from the interview transcripts. The range of different filenaming strategies observed in this sample has implications for both the design of future measures of filenaming behavior, and of improved file management systems