Kelly L. Dempski

In search of a new generation of knowledge management applications

Todays typical Knowledge Management systems are not much different from document management systems. In both cases, the retrieval process involves entering a set of keywords and then browsing through a list of documents related to those keywords found by the systems. If Knowledge Management is to live up to its promises, a new generation of Knowledge Management-enabled applications has to be developed. The information has to be presented beyond just a list of documents. Applying data mining techniques to these systems is one of the few promising avenues that may yield a new set of applications. This paper describes our on-going research effort to extract and mine information from one of the largest private Knowledge Management systems in the world.

Augmented Workspace: The World as Your Desktop

We live in a three dimensional world, and much of what we do and how we interact in the physical world has a strong spatial component. Unfortunately, most of our interaction with the virtual world is two dimensional. We are exploring the extension of the 2D desktop workspace into the 3D physical world, using a stereoscopic see-through head-mounted display. We have built a prototype that enables us to overlay virtual windows on the physical world. This paper describes the Augmented Workspace, which allows a user to position windows in a 3D work area.

Implementation of Advanced Encryption Standard for encryption and decryption of images and text on a GPU

In this paper, we propose a system for the complete implementation of the advanced encryption standard (AES) for encryption and decryption of images and text on a graphics processing unit. The GPU acts as a valuable co-processor that relieves the load off the CPU. In the decryption stage, we use a novel technique to display the decrypted images and text on the screen without bringing it onto CPU memory. We also present a system for encryption and decryption of hybrid map tiles generated from GIS data sets.

Context-sensitive eCommerce

Physical commerce has existed for thousands of years. Although the Internet is a relatively recent phenomenon, electronic commerce conducted over the Internet represents an increasing proportion of all commercial transactions. We believe that the most significant benefits to commerce can be realized through augmented commerce, a combination of the best of physical and electronic commerce worlds. In particular, we believe that ideas from the area of augmented reality, involving see-through head-mounted displays, can provide considerably more context in purchasing decisions than is possible using a desktop browser. This richer context enables more informed decisions and will lead to significantly greater levels of online transactions.

Touchable interactive walls: opportunities and challenges

Very large, high resolution, interactive screens—also known as interactive walls—can be used to deliver entertainment and advertising content that is qualitatively different from what is available in television, kiosk, or desktop formats. At a sufficient resolution and size, the touchable wall can offer the engaging interactivity of full-fledged entertainment software, but on a scale that enables new kinds of public experiences. This paper describes some of the opportunities enabled by what we believe to be a new computing medium in its own right. We also describe some of the new design challenges inherent in this medium, together with suggestions based on our own approach to those challenges.

The Use of Broadcast Infrastructures for On-Demand Services

Most on-demand architectures focus on delivering services through new delivery mechanisms such as broadband networking or digital cable. Very few focus on increasing the capabilities of the endpoints. This paper proposes the use of inexpensive consumer electronics devices such as PVRs to create a storage based on-demand solution. Such a system would be capable of utilizing currently available broadcast networks to deliver content, alleviating the need for new and costly real time streaming architectures. This paper examines the feasibility of such a solution and suggests additional services that could be delivered through a storage-based architecture.

weShop: using social data as context in the retail experience

Uncertainty about a product can act as a barrier to purchase. The more confident a customer is about a product, the more likely she is to purchase it. Online shopping websites provide an array of tools and information to support decision-making (e.g., product comparison, ratings, reviews, etc.). In contrast, few tools are available in physical stores to help customers navigate the decision process. We have developed a mobile application prototype to support the purchase decision process in the store. At the core of the experience is the use of social profile data as a form of context to provide a tailored experience aimed at reducing customer uncertainty.

Technology for Supporting Collaboration across Enterprise Boundaries

This position paper provides an informal framework for thinking about Cross-Enterprise Collaboration (CEC), which is an increasingly crucial factor in driving business results. We argue that sustaining effective CEC generally requires careful consideration of technology to support both person-to-person and system-to-system interaction. We outline the main ingredients of CEC, identify common CEC patterns, and discuss some key technologies that enable collaboration across enterprise boundaries.