Kum-Yew Lai

Experiments with Oval: a radically tailorable tool for cooperative work

This article describes a series of tests of the generality of a “radically tailorable” tool for cooperative work. Users of this system can create applications by combining and modifying four kinds of building blocks: objects, views, agents, and links. We found that user-level tailoring of these primitives can provide most of the functionality found in well-known cooperative work systems such as gIBIS, Coordinator, Lotus Notes, and Information Lens. These primitives, therefore, appear to provide an elementary “tailoring language” out of which a wide variety of integrated information management and collaboration applications can be constructed by end users.

Semi-structured messages are surprisingly useful for computer-supported coordination

This paper argues that using a set of semi-structured message templates is surprisingly helpful in designing a variety of computer-based communication and coordination systems. Semi-structured messages can help provide automatic aids for: (1) composing messages to be sent, (2) selecting, sorting, and prioritizing messages that are received, (3) responding automatically to some messages, and (4) suggesting likely responses to other messages. The use of these capabilities is illustrated in a range of applications including electronic mail, computer conferencing, calendar management, and task tracking. The applications show how ideas from artificial intelligence (such as inheritance and production rules) and ideas from user interface design (such as interactive graphical editors) can be combined in novel ways for dealing with semi-structured messages. The final part of the paper discusses how communities can evolve a useful set of message type definitions.

KBase: a customizable tool for building Dbase-compatible knowledge-based systems

Abstract KBase is a customizable development tool for building knowledge-based systems that are compatible with DBase III tables. Currently, most tools for developing knowledge-based systems do not integrate well with databases. DBase III is the most common database system used in the personal computer environment. KBase is built such that all DBase III commands and functions are supported. Furthermore, customizing and extending KBase is as easy as programming in DBase. This flexibility arises because KBase is built using the “C” programming language and Clipper, a DBase compiler. Using Clipper also allows KBase to use many functions in the Clipper library. In this paper, we describe how KBases design is conceived. At the end, we also give a brief tour of the program with an implemented example to illustrate its application.

High fidelity knowledge systems

Abstract Knowledge systems are permeating into practical use, but they can only pay off if users can easily use and understand them. Most contemporary knowledge systems emphasize only the semantic correctness of representations and inference mechanisms. We believe that an increasingly important, but not yet widely appreciated, class of knowledge systems is that of high fidelity knowledge systems whose representation and processes closely resemble the objects and work processes that people now already use. Such systems are much more likely to be accepted into real use, and offer a high potential for reaping the benefits of knowledge system technology. In this paper, we descibe Hypertelligence, an environment for building high fidelity knowledge systems. Hypertelligence makes use of two converging technologies: hypertext and object-based artificial intelligence. We also illustrate the idea of high fidelity and the potential of Hypertelligence with an implemented system for selecting construction scheduling programs.

Libra: a high fidelity knowledge-based system for recommending scheduling programs

Abstract Contemporary knowledge systems are usually neither easy to use or understand. We propose a new class of knowledge systems, which we call high fidelity systems, that use representations and processes that closely resemble the objects and tasks with which people are already familiar. To illustrate the concept of high fidelity, we describe Libra, one such system for recommending scheduling programs. Our initial experience with Libra and its usage suggests that high fidelity not only enhances the user acceptability of knowledge-based systems, but it also facilities high speed design and implementation. We chose to replicate the knowledge in Libra because it is already published, and because we wanted to show that a Libra user can have an interface similar to the diagrams drawn in the journal paper. The latter was used to describe the knowledge-based framework for selecting scheduling systems. If we can replicate them in the user interface, we would have successfully created a high fidelity system — that is, the Libra user interface would be at least as able to communicate the framework to the user as the journal paper.

A simple knowledge system environment for engineering problem solving

Abstract In this paper, we describe Spartan, a simple environment for developing engineering knowledge systems. The design of Spartan is motivated by the observation that many development environments incur computational overhead that buy us largely unneeded sophistication. Spartan provides only a simple set of building blocks but offers a convenient way to extend its functionalities. We offer both anecdotal and analytical support for some example applications constructed using Spartan. We conclude that Spartan can be used to construct some fairly straightforward knowledge systems. A more surprising result is that even some moderately large knowledge systems can be constructed using Spartan.

An approach to embed knowledge in database systems

Abstract Most tools for developing knowledge-based systems do not integrate well with databases. This lack of integration is hampered by slow database queries or by overly limited database interfaces. This paper describes a novel approach to the knowledge-data integration problem by embedding knowledge directly into the database systems. This approach entails the simple but powerful extension of a database system to increase its ability to represent and manipulate knowledge. A description is given of KBase, an environment for embedding knowledge in databases using facilities and extended constructs of the familiar dBase database programming environment. At the end, the applicability of the approach is illustrated with a developmental prototype, CICONSA, for scheduling construction projects.