Digital Image Access & Retrieval

The 33th Annual Clinic on Library Applications of Data Processing, held at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign in March of 1996, addressed the theme of "Digital Image Access & Retrieval." The papers from this conference cover a wide range of topics concerning digital imaging technology for visual resource collections. Papers covered three general areas: (1) systems, planning, and implementation; (2) automatic and semi-automatic indexing; and (3) preservation with the bulk of the conference focusing on indexing and retrieval.published or submitted for publicatio

Output constraints in multimedia database systems

Zusammenfassung Semantische Fehler treten bei jeder Art von Datenverwaltung auf. Herkömmliche Datenbanksysteme verwenden eine Integritätskontrolle, um semantische Fehler zu vermeiden. Um die Integrität der Daten zu gewährleisten werden Integritätsregeln benutzt. Diese Regeln können allerdings nur die Konsistenz einfach strukturierter Daten überprüfen. Multimedia Datenbanksystem verwalten neben einfachen alphanumerischen Daten auch komplexe Mediendaten wie Videos. Um die Konsistenz dieser Daten zu sichern, bedarf es einer erheblichen Erweiterung des bestehenden Integritätskonzeptes. Dabei muss besonders auf die konsistente Datenausgabe geachtet werden. Im Gegensatz zu alphanumerischen Daten können Mediendaten während der Ausgabe verfälscht werden. Dieser Fall kann eintreten, wenn eine geforderte Datenqualität bei der Ausgabe nicht erreicht werden kann oder wenn Synchronisationsbedingungen zwischen Medienobjekten nicht eingehalten werden können. Es besteht daher die Notwendigkeit, Ouptut Constraints einzuführen. Mit ihrer Hilfe kann definiert werden, wann die Ausgabe von Mediendaten semantisch korrekt ist. Das Datenbanksystem kann diese Bedingungen überprüfen und so gewährleisten, dass der Nutzer semantisch einwandfreie Daten erhält. In dieser Arbeit werden alle Aspekte betrachtet, die notwendig sind, um Ausgabebedingungen in ein Multimedia Datenbanksystem zu integrieren. Im einzelnen werden die Modellierung der Bedingungen, deren datenbankinterne Repräsentation sowie die Bedingungsüberprüfung betrachtet. Für die Bedingungsmodellierung wird eine Constraint Language auf Basis der Prädikatenlogik eingeführt. Um die Definition von zeitlichen und räumlichen Synchronisationen zu ermöglichen, verwenden wir Allen-Relationen. Für die effiziente Überprüfung der Ausgabebedingungen müssen diese aus der Spezifikationssprache in eine datenbankinterne Darstellung überführt werden. Für die datenbankinterne Darstellung werden Difference Constraints verwendet. Diese erlauben eine sehr effiziente Bedingungsüberprüfung. Wir haben Algorithmen entwickelt, die eine effiziente Überprüfung von Ausgabebedingungen erlauben und dies anhand von Experimenten nachgewiesen. Neben der Überprüfung der Bedingungen müssen Mediendaten so synchronisiert werden, dass dies den Ausgabebedingungen entspricht. Wir haben dazu das Konzept des Output Schedules entwickelt. Dieser wird aufgrund der definierten Ausgabebedingungen generiert. Durch die Ausgabebedingungen, die in dieser Arbeit eingeführt werden, werden semantische Fehler bei der Verwaltung von Mediendaten erheblich reduziert. Die Arbeit stellt daher einen Beitrag zur qualitativen Verbesserung der Verwaltung von Mediendaten dar.Semantic errors exist as long as data are managed. Traditional database systems try to prevent this errors by proposing integrity concepts for stored data. Integrity constraints are used to implement these integrity concepts. However, integrity constraints can only detect semantic errors in elementary data. Multimedia database systems manage elementary data as well as complex media data, like videos. Considering these media data we need a much wider consistency concept as traditional database systems provide. Especially, data output of media data must be taken into account. In contrast to alphanumeric data the semantics of media data can be falsified during data output if data quality or synchronization of data are not suitable. Thus, we need a concept for output constraints that allow for preventing semantic errors in case of data output. For integrating output constraints into a multimedia database system we have to consider modelling, representation and checking of output constraints. For modelling output constraints we have introduced a constraint language which uses the same principles as traditional constraint languages. Our constraint specification language must support temporal and spatial synchronization constraints. However, it is desired to support both kinds of synchronization in almost the same manner. Therefore, we use Allen-Relations for defining temporal synchronization constraints as well as for defining spatial synchronization constraints. We need a database internal representation of output constraints that makes efficient constraint checking possible. The Allen-Relations used in the constraint language cannot be checked efficiently. However, difference constraints are a class of constraints that allows an very efficient checking. Therefore, we use difference constraints as database internal representation of output constraints. As methods for checking consistency of output constraints we use an approach based on graph theory as well as an analytical approach. Both approaches require a constraint graph as data structure. For data output we need an output order that is adequate to the defined output constraints. This output schedule can be produced based on the output constraints. With output constraints, proposed in this thesis, semantical correctness of media data considering the data output can be supported.Thus, the contribution of this work is an qualitative improvement of managing media data by database systems

Towards a Framework for Developing Mobile Agents for Managing Distributed Information Resources

Distributed information management tools allow users to author, disseminate, discover and manage information within large-scale networked environments, such as the Internet. Agent technology provides the flexibility and scalability necessary to develop such distributed information management applications. We present a layered organisation that is shared by the specific applications that we build. Within this organisation we describe an architecture where mobile agents can move across distributed environments, integrate with local resources and other mobile agents, and communicate their results back to the user

Designing interoperable museum information systems

Museum collections are characterized by heterogeneity, since they usually host a plethora of objects of categories, while each of them requires different description policies and metadata standards. Moreover the museum records, which keep the history and evolution of the hosted collections, request proactive curation in order to preserve this rich and diverse information. In this paper, the architecture of an innovative museum information system, as well as its implementation details is presented. In particular the requirements and the system architecture are presented along with the problems that were encountered. The main directions of the system design are (a) to increase interoperability levels and therefore assist proactive curation and (b) to enhance navigation by the usage of handheld devices. The first direction is satisfied by the design of a rich metadata schema based on the CIDOC/CRM standard. The second direction is fulfilled by the implementation of a module, which integrates the museum database with a subsystem appropriate to support user navigation into the museum floors and rooms. The module is expressed as a navigation functionality, which is accessed through handheld devices and peripherals, such as PDAs and RFID tags. The proposed system is functional and operates into the Solomos Museum, situated in Zakynthos island, Greece

Proceedings of the ECSCW'95 Workshop on the Role of Version Control in CSCW Applications

The workshop entitled "The Role of Version Control in Computer Supported Cooperative Work Applications" was held on September 10, 1995 in Stockholm, Sweden in conjunction with the ECSCW'95 conference. Version control, the ability to manage relationships between successive instances of artifacts, organize those instances into meaningful structures, and support navigation and other operations on those structures, is an important problem in CSCW applications. It has long been recognized as a critical issue for inherently cooperative tasks such as software engineering, technical documentation, and authoring. The primary challenge for versioning in these areas is to support opportunistic, open-ended design processes requiring the preservation of historical perspectives in the design process, the reuse of previous designs, and the exploitation of alternative designs. The primary goal of this workshop was to bring together a diverse group of individuals interested in examining the role of versioning in Computer Supported Cooperative Work. Participation was encouraged from members of the research community currently investigating the versioning process in CSCW as well as application designers and developers who are familiar with the real-world requirements for versioning in CSCW. Both groups were represented at the workshop resulting in an exchange of ideas and information that helped to familiarize developers with the most recent research results in the area, and to provide researchers with an updated view of the needs and challenges faced by application developers. In preparing for this workshop, the organizers were able to build upon the results of their previous one entitled "The Workshop on Versioning in Hypertext" held in conjunction with the ECHT'94 conference. The following section of this report contains a summary in which the workshop organizers report the major results of the workshop. The summary is followed by a section that contains the position papers that were accepted to the workshop. The position papers provide more detailed information describing recent research efforts of the workshop participants as well as current challenges that are being encountered in the development of CSCW applications. A list of workshop participants is provided at the end of the report. The organizers would like to thank all of the participants for their contributions which were, of course, vital to the success of the workshop. We would also like to thank the ECSCW'95 conference organizers for providing a forum in which this workshop was possible

Concurrent constraints models of music interaction

International audienceIn this chapter we follow this "economy of means" way to present several vari- eties of CCP calculi, starting from a very basic one and building from it by adding new features. A fundamental one for music applications is the ability to represent temporal behavior. This can be introduced within the context of determinate (tcc, utcc) or non-determinate (ntcc) computation. For the determinate case, we show how the addition of a process abstraction feature (utcc) allows to model dynamic musical structures in a very simple way. In particular, we model a dynamic version of interactive scores ([ALL 07]). For the nondeterminate case, we use the possibility of defining many alternative computational paths to model an agent following different rhythmic patterns constructed from a given basic one. We then go on to consider a more "metrical" notion of time (rtcc) based on uniform ticks used by processes to define their time of execution in a more fine-grained way, or to cause preemption of other processes at more precisely defined points in time. We use these new "real-time" features to describe a simple model of a basic form of musical dissonances

CHORUS Deliverable 2.2: Second report - identification of multi-disciplinary key issues for gap analysis toward EU multimedia search engines roadmap

After addressing the state-of-the-art during the first year of Chorus and establishing the existing landscape in multimedia search engines, we have identified and analyzed gaps within European research effort during our second year. In this period we focused on three directions, notably technological issues, user-centred issues and use-cases and socio- economic and legal aspects. These were assessed by two central studies: firstly, a concerted vision of functional breakdown of generic multimedia search engine, and secondly, a representative use-cases descriptions with the related discussion on requirement for technological challenges. Both studies have been carried out in cooperation and consultation with the community at large through EC concertation meetings (multimedia search engines cluster), several meetings with our Think-Tank, presentations in international conferences, and surveys addressed to EU projects coordinators as well as National initiatives coordinators. Based on the obtained feedback we identified two types of gaps, namely core technological gaps that involve research challenges, and “enablers”, which are not necessarily technical research challenges, but have impact on innovation progress. New socio-economic trends are presented as well as emerging legal challenges

Making Exhibitions, Brokering Meaning: Designing new connections across communities of practice

New media museum exhibits often see designers representing the research of expert content providers. Despite perceptions that such exhibits provide museum visitors with a greater depth and range of experience, differences in knowledge and practice between designers and content providers can see content development become an unruly, competitive process in which audience experience, digital mediation, visualisation techniques and meaning become contested territory. Drawing on Etienne Wenger’s theory of “communities of practice”, this paper argues that designers’ advocacy for audiences and distance from exhibition content well positions them to broker interdisciplinary goal setting so that exhibitions observe the representational objectives of content providers and meet the needs and preferences of museum visitors. A wide range of design literature already discusses the pragmatic benefits and ethical importance of user-centered design, while the literature on co-design suggests that designed outcomes are more successful if the design process considers the interests of all stakeholders. These discussions can be compelling, but the inherent challenges in engaging others’ perspectives and knowledge in the design process are less acknowledged, Wenger’s ideas on the social dynamics of group enterprise offering designers valuable insights into the actuality of negotiating designed outcomes with non-designer stakeholders. The paper has two main aspects. The first outlines the theory of communities of practice, focusing on the brokering of knowledge and practice between disciplines. This discussion frames an analysis of the design process for two museum exhibitions. Representing an original application of Wenger’s ideas, the discussion recognises the unique role of the designed artifact in brokering information visualization processes, transcending the actions and intentions of individual stakeholders. While accepting there are successful examples of interdisciplinary exchange in various areas of design, the interpretation of examples via Wenger contributes useful principles to the theorisation of co-design with non-designer stakeholders. Keywords: Information visualization; New media museum exhibits; Multidisciplinary projects; Communities of Practice; Brokering; User-centered design; Co-Design; Etienne Wenger</p