Roland H. Kaschek

On the evolution of conceptual modeling

Since the 1980s the need increased for overcoming idiosyncrasies of approaches to modeling in the various sub-disciplines of computing. The theoretical model of evolution is used in this paper for analyzing how computing and conceptual modeling have changed. It is concluded that computing has changed into a social phenomenon with a technical core and that therefore relying on (formal) model semantics as the sole tool for the discussion of conceptual modeling is no more adequate. A number of language games of computing is identified and the task set to describe these language games to the extent necessary for deciding whether or not they can serve as the foundation of computing.Conceptual modeling represents a recent approach to creating knowledge. It has emerged in response to the computer revolution, which started in the middle of the 20th century. Computers, in the meantime, have become a major knowledge media. Conceptual modeling provides an answer to the difficulties experienced throughout the development of computer applications and aims at creating effective, reasonably priced, and sharable knowledge about using computers in business. Moreover, it has become evident that conceptual modeling has the potential to exceed the boundaries of business and computer usage. This state-of-the-art survey originates from the International Seminar on the Evolution of Conceptual Modeling, held in Dagstuhl Castle, Germany, in April 2008. The major objective of this seminar was to look into conceptual modeling from a historical perspective with a view towards the future of conceptual modeling and to achieve a better understanding of conceptual modeling issues in several different domains of discourse, going beyond individual (modeling) projects. The book contains 14 chapters. These were carefully selected during two rounds of reviewing and improvement from 26 presentations at the seminar and are preceded by a detailed preface providing general insights into the field of conceptual modeling that are not necessarily discussed in any of the chapters but nevertheless aid in conceptualizing the inner structure and coherence of the field. The chapters are grouped into the following three thematic sections: the evolution of conceptual modeling techniques; the extension of conceptual modeling to a service-oriented, peer-to-peer, or Web context; and new directions for conceptual modeling.

A Conceptual View of Web-Based E-Learning Systems

Starting from a general framework for web-based e-learning systems that is based on an abstraction layer model, this paper presents a conceptual modelling approach, which captures the modelling of learners, the modelling of courses, the personalisation of courses, and the management of data in e-learning systems. Courses are modelled by outline graphs, which are further refined by some form of process algebra. The linguistic analysis of word fields referring to an application domain helps to set up these course outlines. Learners are modelled by classifying value combinations for their characteristic properties. Each learner type gives rise to intentions as well as rights and obligations in using a learning system. Intentions can be formalised as postconditions, while rights and obligations lead to deontic constraints. The intentions can be used for the personalisation of the learning system to a learner type. Finally, the management of data in an e-learning system is approached on two different levels dealing with the content of individual learning units and the integrated content of the whole system, respectively. This leads to supporting databases and views defined on them.

Web Information Systems - WISE 2004 Workshops

Workshop on Web-Based Massive Data Processing.- Efficient Filtering Query Indexing in Data Stream.- Modelling and Guaranteeing Quality of Service over Data Streams.- Research on Prediction Models over Distributed Data Streams.- A Grid-Based Subspace Clustering Algorithm for High-Dimensional Data Streams.- Mining h-Dimensional Enhanced Semantic Association Rule Based on Immune-Based Gene Expression Programming.- An Efficient Algorithm for Distributed Incremental Updating of Frequent Item-Sets on Massive Database.- Mining Maximum Frequent Access Patterns in Web Logs Based on Unique Labeled Tree.- Short Documents Clustering in Very Large Text Databases.- A Simple Yet Efficient Approach for Maximal Frequent Subtrees Extraction from a Collection of XML Documents.- A Web-Based Transformation System for Massive Scientific Data.- Supporting Complex Query with Structured Overlays in Schema-Based P2P System.- DRO+: A Systemic and Economical Approach to Improve Availability of Massive Database Systems.- Research and Implement of Real-Time Data Loading System IMIL.- Workshop on Web Information Access and Digital Library.- Blogs in American Academic Libraries: An Overview of Their Present Status and Possible Future Use.- Rebuilding the Library OPAC.- Web Content Mining for Market Intelligence Acquiring from B2C Websites.- Design of Chinese Word Segmentation System Based on Improved Chinese Converse Dictionary and Reverse Maximum Matching Algorithm.- Cross-Media Database Retrieval System Based on TOTEM.- Semantic Query Planning Mechanism on XML Based Web Information Systems.- Analysis on the Construction of Management Modes of E-Government Information Exchange in China.- Aggregated Framework of Enterprise Information System Based on Synergic Theory.- Web Personalization Based on Artificial Psychology.- Grid Resource Management Based on Mobile Agent.- The Use of Intelligent Information Access Technologies in Digital Libraries.- Encryption and Program Realization of Information Resources in DRM.- Knowledge Organization Systems and Interfaces of Digital Libraries in China.- Study on Distribution Model of Internet Information Resources in China.- Advances in Web-Based Learning.- Collaborative User Tracking for Community Organization on Blogosphere: A Case Study of eLearning@BlogGrid.- Adaptive UI Storytelling System Using MOL.- Construction of a Distributed Learning Resource Management System Based on RSS Technology.- A Semantic Web Application to Automate the Construction of Didactic Material for Web-Based Education System.

A characterization of OOA tools

Despite unification of tools supporting object oriented analysis (OOA) there is still a variety of tools making it hard to select one of them for a given environment. Clearly, if one is willing to apply a certain favorite OOA method, the choice would be restricted to tools supporting that method. However, there are usually several such tools and no clear criteria for selecting between them without extensive experimentation. But this, in general, is impossible due to time restrictions. The paper deals with the selection problem and poses a set of OOA tool characteristics that can be used for tool description and thus form a base for an efficient tool comparison. In order to show how this set of characteristics may be applied, we give, as an example, a characterization of OMTool.

Modelling Web-based banking systems: Story boarding and user profiling

Electronic Business applications are often implemented using web-based Information Systems, in which human-to-human interaction is replaced by human-computer interaction. To design systems that meet both the users’ needs and the business intentions of the service provider requires anticipating the users’ behaviour. User profiles can be used to classify user needs as well as the various kinds of system support for them. For this end also analysis and description of story boards, i.e., navigation paths of users through the system can used. In this article the problems of story boarding and user profiling are approached in the context of loan application systems as a typical banking application.

Towards amplifying business process reuse

This paper proposes an approach to the reuse of business processes. We consider business process reuse as a problem of software economy. An infrastructure component that we call Process Assembler is supposed to aid in business process reuse. That component together with a number of other components could realize an environment for assessing, pricing and trading business processes. We work out the key functionality that needs to be provided by a software component that aids in reusing business processes. Furthermore we discuss a high level architecture for the Process Assembler and argue that this software component can aid users in performing the key reuse functionality.

Integrating Context in Modelling for Web Information Systems

While using large-scale Web Information Systems (WISs) customers sometimes get confused and experience difficulties in solving their business problems. We propose context modelling as a conceptual tool for aiding customers to regain the possibility of using the respective WIS efficiently. We integrate context modelling into the co-design methodology, identify some losing track patterns and propose respective customer aid. Finally we formalise our approach based on the theory of media types and the model of contextual information systems developed by Teodorakis et al.

Emphasizing the communication aspects for the successful development of electronic business systems

Abstract.In order to be successful, web-based electronic business systems have to be developed in such a way that both the customers’ needs and the business intentions of the provider are met. As human-to-human interaction is partly replaced by human-computer interaction in such systems, this requires anticipating the users’ behaviour and paying a lot of attention to the communication aspects.In this article a development method is suggested that emphasizes the communication aspects in web-based systems. It is based on user profiling and story boarding. User profiles can be used to classify user needs as well as the various kinds of system support for them. The story board describes stories, i.e. navigation paths of users through the system, which can be used to model the behaviour of users.To discover user profiles and stories, two interleaved activities are suggested: communication analysis and linguistic analysis. Communication analysis addresses typical human-to-human interaction in the application domain and classifies typical communication barriers. We argue that using localisation abstraction and metaphors can help to overcome communication barriers, implying that their use may enhance the users’ understanding and successful navigation through a web site. Linguistic analysis addresses how the activities of the users would be described in natural language. Analysing the used word fields and metaphorical structures may provide guidance for centering the story board around the central activities. We use a typical banking application, on-line loan systems, as an example to illustrate our method.

Learner typing for electronic learning systems

e-Learning systems will provide new pathways to knowledge and skills acquisition. To increase their quality using a parametric learner model is proposed. Tailoring the learning material presented to the respective parameter values may fit this material to the actual learners needs. We use a stereotype user model. Our learner characteristics complement the IMS UP. We first represent learners by points in a learner space. Then we propose increasingly generic ways of grouping together such points to form learner types. The less generic one models learner types using convex regions in the learner space. The more generic one models learner types using characteristic functions. While the latter approach allows for more flexible learner type combination the former approach allows for convincing definition of initial learner types. Combining both approaches thus may result in a reasonable number of useful learner types.

Towards Simulation-Based Quality Requirements Elicitation: A Position Paper

The future users of a system under development are not necessarily good at talking about the quality they require of that system if they cannot yet experience it. We therefore propose to support them by a simulation of the system under development thus allowing them to experience and validate system quality. Requirements are supposed to be expressed in a user-centered glossary-based semantic model.