Search

The article discusses multi-agent systems, which are gaining acceptance in the computer industry and academia as a paradigm for designing and developing software systems. The author suggests that there is a need for a conceptual framework that defines the abstractions of different agent-based systems, which can be very confusing for software engineers. The authors stress the fact that successful multi-agent system deployment requires modeling languages to explore the use of agent-related abstractions. Methods to reduce risk with the system are examined.

This article focuses on the quest to build a quantum computer. This machine would exploit the weird properties of quantum mechanics to perform tasks millions of times faster than today's most powerful supercomputers. Such a device would revolutionize the computer industry. David Deutsch, a University of Oxford physicist, drew up the first blueprint for a quantum computer in 1985. That was when theorist Simon Benjamin, also at Oxford, told him about cluster states. The concept redefines how a quantum computer processes information. It should also scale up much more easily than previous designs, allowing researchers to perform larger computations. Deutsch now sees a practical quantum computer arriving within 10 years. INSETS: Quantum contenders;What's the payoff?.

Focuses on Japanese electronic giant Sony and its highly profitable games division. Features of Sony's PlayStation Portable (PSP), a handheld game machine and media player; Comments of Ken Kutaragi, head of the Sony Computer Entertainment division; Efforts of Kutaragi's team to create a supercomputerlike PlayStation 3; Background on the company; Outlook for the release of the PSP; Strategy of Nobuyuki Idei, Sony's chief executive officer; Sony's rivals, including Microsoft and Apple; Views of analysts; Sony's attempt to strike a balance between protecting content and giving customers the ability to use technology to its full potential. INSET: Small Is Beautiful.

This article presents information on various events related to the computer industry to be held in several countries. 18th Workshop on Parallel and Distributed Simulation 2004 will be held in Kufstein, Austria on May 16-19, 2004. The 17th International Conference on Industrial and Engineering Applications of Artificial Intelligence and Expert Systems will be held in Ottawa, Ontario on May 17-19. Real-Time and Embedded Technology and Applications Symposium will be held in Toronto, Ontario on May 25-28. International Conference on Management of Data and Symposium on Principles Database and Systems will be held in Paris, France on June 13-18.

Although rapid changes in information technology (IT) sector has created opportunities, it is challenging those responsible for it around the world. IT projects are notorious for budget overruns and delays, and the rapid IT change can exacerbate these problems. Therefore managers must make difficult choices and then implement, deliver and support these choices throughout their organization. Rapid IT change can affect budgetary issues in a multitude of ways. For example, it can produce the need for new skills and thus unforeseen training demands. This article discusses a study to understand how IT organizations cope with rapid IT change and how they might better do so. According to the study, IT organizations do not cope effectively with rapid IT changes. This article suggests constructive actions for coping with those effects while capitalizing on the benefits and also provides some guidance for improved coping. Such rapid IT change is likely to persist and different types of IT may require different coping strategies. INSET: How the Survey was Conducted..

Presents letters to the editor related to the computer industry, published in the August 1998 issue of the periodical "Communications of the ACM." Differences in the operating environments of the software-based IBM Corp. and Microsoft Corp.; Significance of several computer programming languages.

The article focuses on the computer game business. In the early days of computer games the television was inextricably linked to the idea of presented electronic displays. In fact there was no other source than television broadcasts for electronically displayed imagery. When the computer game industry was being invented it was much cheaper to create computer games using actual televisions from which the tuner would be striped out rather than buying CRTs. The early games used standard production model television sets that were modified. The game industry, like the business industry, moved from mechanical to electronics to computers. Many user interfaces were developed for the game business. The user interface demands of games are undeniable. From the leisure/entertainment definition games must be easy to interact with and learn. The use of a non-keyboard interface was perfected in the game industry. The dependence on direct manipulation of on-screen programming, and the use of anthropomorphic characters to create a sense of relationship started in the game industry.

This article presents information related to Phoenix that contains two timestamped versions of the in-memory file system allowing for a reserve version. The Phoenix in-memory file system is motivated by a safe, continuous-processing model and by a number of specialized applications. In this, small diskless computing systems are used in portable laboratory instruments such as logic analyzers and digital oscilloscopes. Phoenix starts with a timestamped and write-protected version of the file system and evolves it through a copy on write strategy while leaving the original version undisturbed. The Phoenix logical disk is represented as the leaves of a tree that has a root node and a layer of interior nodes. The contents of the root node are pointers to memory locations where the interior nodes are found and the contents of the interior nodes are pointers to memory locations where data is found. The tree version pointed to by a timestamp is garbage collected after the succeeding timestamp. The existing timestamp represents the fallback state of the file system and must be preserved until after the next checkpoint.

This article presents information related to a pattern matching algorithm for a two-dimensional case which is a combination of the KMP and RK algorithms. The KMP algorithm solves the problem by comparing the characters of the pattern with those of the text from the left end of the pattern. Since the text pointer points to the character b, which does not match a in the pattern, the pattern is shifted one place to the right and the next text character is inspected. Computer experiments show that for various pattern sizes the average cost for either of the algorithms is much less than that of the B algorithm. The RK algorithm solves the problem by treating each possible M-character section of the text as a key in a hash table, then computing the hash function of it and checking to see if it is equal to the hash function of the pattern. The general scheme of the algorithm is to use the hash function method proposed in the RK algorithm vertically. The procedure KMP only works because the KMP algorithm is independent of the size of the character alphabet, which can consequently be arbitrarily large.

Presents several letters to the editor about the technical industry. Focus on the harm caused by the use of GOTOs in programming; Efforts on attempting to eliminate the GOTO; Problems created by GOTO for those attempting to maintain or understand code written by someone else; Comments on the higher the percentage of GOTO statements; Discussion on procedures of programming languages that treats all specialized control structures as combinations of properly compiled procedure.

The article presents news briefs related to the computer industry in the U.S. The American Federation of Information Processing Societies has received a grant from the U.S. National Science Foundation to develop an expanded taxonomy of occupations in the computer science work force. National Bureau of Standards Director Ernest Ambler has recently told the House Subcommittee on Science, Research, and Technology that the private sector, not the federal government, should take the initiative for reviewing and translating significant Japanese electronics and electrical engineering literature to help the U.S. stay in a competitive position in engineering fields. Reports of interest to information processing professionals have been released by the U.S. National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA), the House Science and Technology Committee, and the joint Committee on Science, Engineering, and Public Policy. The NTIA has released two reports focusing on the competitiveness of U.S. high technology firms in international information trade.

As part of Japan's effort to become a leader in the computer industry, the Institute for New Generation Computer Technology has launched a revolutionary ten-year plan far the development of large computer systems which will he applicable to knowledge information processing systems. These Fifth Generation computers will be built around the concepts of logic programming. In order to refute the accusation that Japan exploits knowledge from abroad without contributing any of its own, this project will stimulate original research and will make its results available to the international research community. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents the views of Gordon Bell, vice-president of Digital Equipment Corp., on developments in the computer industry and intercomputer communication. In the 1980s, users are expected to recognize a better interface for direct and indirect communication with their computers. Thus, the large computer population will force intercommunication and standardization among machines. The effect of minicomputers on the user population has been highly significant. Nearly all important features that minicomputers have such as floating-point and other data-type operations, paging and segmentation for better memory management and a reasonably large software library. Minicomputers are often connected to larger, more general purpose computers arranged at a higher level and thus, a hierarchy of computers can be created usually corresponding to hierarchies within the human organization. At present, programming languages are fundamentally special purpose and they solve problems within a particular context.

Discusses some of the thinking and philosophy behind changes in the communications of the journal of "Association for Computing Machines." Logistical and administrative reasons for the intended changes; Purposes and goals of the periodical; Technical papers relevant to the computer industry that are sought by the periodical.

The article presents information on the "1967 Spring Joint Computer Conference," which is scheduled to be held at Convention Hall, Atlantic City, New Jersey, from April 18-20, 1967. It informs that the second W.W. McDowell Award for an outstanding contribution to the computer field will be presented at the SJCC banquet. Management's viewpoint of the diverse and controversial activities constituting the development of management information systems will be the topic of a special session. Brian W. Pollard, general conference chairman, and Donald L. Stevens, vice chairman, state that the SJCC 67 takes a broader view of the computer industry in an effort to analyze and to clarify many of the misconceptions about EDP and its effect upon society. On April 19th, Major General John W. O'Neill will address the conference at its banquet in the Pennsylvania Room of the Chalfonte-Haddon Hall. Seven SJCC sessions have been designated as panel discussions, to provide opportunity for a careful and candid examination of timely, controversial topics.

The article discusses the role of the U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) in the development of the computer industry in the country. It is stated that the FCC is paying special attention to the development of various communication carrier facilities as they are the source of imparting computer knowledge on a massive scale. The FCC will also introduce amendments in the Communication Act. Surveys and inquiries will also be conducted by the FCC to get feedback on the computer industry and implement various measures.

The article discusses the manner in which primary and secondary school U.S. students might develop computational thinking (CT) skills as an element of improving computer science education. The computer science industry has had difficulty attracting students since the collapse of the dot-com bubble, the authors state. Topics include the systematic and efficient processing of information and tasks, whether computer programing can be separated from teaching basic computer science, and to what degree should programming be required for CT proficiency.

The article discusses open source software (OSS), exploring the question of whether or not OSS represents the future of computer software going forward from 2008. The author, citing the 1995 book "The Future of Software," indicates that technical experts can extrapolate when trying to predict the future, but can miss discontinuities that transform technologies. The history of the development of OSS is traced from the 1950's to 2008. Topics include computer manufacturers who gave away their software for free and software supplied in both source and object code form.

This article reports on the merger between Chinese company Lenovo and American computer giant IBM. Two years after the 2005 partnership, the advantages are finally paying off. The company posted a $67 million net profit in the most recent quarter, well above expectations. PC shipments surged more than 22 percent, nearly twice the industry growth rate, with market share gains in Europe and the United States.

Focuses on Sony's PlayStation Portable (PSP) and its creators. Comments of videogame producer Yoshi Yamamoto, who created Talkman, which translates spoken words into the language of the person who is being addressed; Features and innovations of the PSB, both technical and demographic; Reactions of game developers; Comments of Sony Computer Entertainment America marketing chief Andrew House; Outlook for games; Potential audience.

Presents letters to the editor related to the computer industry published in the July 1999 issue of the periodical "Communications of the ACM." Information related to laws governing the certification of software engineers in Texas; Advantages and disadvantages of information sharing on Internet; Features of several common Internet protocols.

The article presents various news related to technology, computer industry and recent development in these areas. The transfer of space technology of the U.S. to China is under investigation by the U.S. Justice Department. A preliminary Defense Department report found that Hughes Electronics Corp. gave China potentially damaging information after a Chinese rocket carrying a Hughes-built satellite crashed in 1995. In order to benefit from the job-creating capacity of e-commerce, Europe must improve skills and technical literacy of its population. A pen-like device designed to move files from one computer to another without touching a mouse or keyboard is in the development stage at Sony Computer Laboratories in Tokyo, Japan. In 1998, network professionals salaries rose more than 10% from 1997. Intel Corp. and Sandia National Laboratory in New Mexico have developed a radiation-proof chip. Intel provided the government with existing technology that then allowed it to build a radiation-hardened product, said a source close to the deal. INSET: Y2K COUNTDOWN..

Focuses on the rapid progress in the semiconductor process industry in the U.S. Developments in the computer industry; Fabrication of high-performance processor chips and high-density memory chips; Consideration of the production capacity of companies.

The article presents information about various events related to computer industry. 11th Annual ACM Mountain Regional Conference will be held on April 18-19, in Denver, Colorado. The Mathematics Research Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison will sponsor the Conference on Large Scale Scientific Computation on May 17-19, in Madison. Annual Meeting of the Human Factors Society sponsored by the Human Factors Society will be held on October 10-14, in Norfolk, Virginia. Third Conference on Foundations of Software Technology and Theoretical Computer Science sponsored by National Centre for Software Development and Computing Techniques will be held on December 12-14, in Bangalore, India.

The article presents the comments of F.T. Cary, president of International Business Machines Corp., on the growth experienced by the computer industry in the U.S. The growth facing the computer industry has been enhanced by the increasing need for information and a growing computer technology that has made it possible to deliver information more easily, more quickly and at less cost per computer operation. Computers are being used everywhere in the world for providing better education, better health care, and improved services from both government and industry. Continuing improvements in large-scale integration, semiconductor memory, and magnetics, facilitating in putting more logic and more information online to the user and they also enable putting logic and automatic calculating functions in small, low-cost remote terminals. But before the users can take full advantage of the computer, they will have to be supplied with more tools and techniques that will help them improve their productivity. They will require more ready-made applications software that provide most of the source coding.

The article presents the comments of Robert S. Oelman, chairman of National Cash Register Co., on the future prospects for the computer industry. During the next five to ten years, computer manufacturers are expected to concentrate not just on better equipment performance but on more developmental capital to virtually every phase of information processing which is called a total integrated systems approach. Data terminals are expected to adjust to the needs of the system operator as software and hardware will adjust to the requirements of management. In long-term, computer systems will accomplish more tasks and will completely justify their costs. There are two additional factors which offer considerable promise in improving system performance over the next several years. The first factor involves an evolution of software design similar to the pronounced advances achieved in hardware development over the past few years. This will provide long-expected benefits for computer users who have not only experienced software costs climb but also have experienced the frustration of not having their programs work properly.

The article presents the comments of G.G. Probst, president of UNIVAC division of Sperry Rand Corp., on an emerging phase for the computer industry in the U.S. The industry is emerging from a consolidation and adjustment phase that was precipitated by the recession in the U.S. economy. As in most consolidation and corrective phases, the industry is emerging from the temporary interruptive phase in a stronger and more vigorous position than before. The economic situation of the country has actually forced users and manufacturers to take a close look at what their computers were costing them and whether or not they were getting their money's worth. Capital investment decision for computers, which had previously been relegated to lower levels of management, was brought under the watchful eye and management of the chief executive and his executive committees. The net effect of the consolidation and adjustment in the U.S. is the return of computer equipments at much higher than normal rate of returns. The next 25 years in the computer industry are expected to show greater accomplishments than the first 25 years of the industry.