article

Free access

A prototype electronic encyclopedia

Editor: Robert B. Allen Authors: Stephen A. Weyer, Alan H. BorningAuthors Info & Claims

ACM Transactions on Information Systems (TOIS), Volume 3, Issue 1

Pages 63 - 88

https://doi.org/10.1145/3864.3865

Published: 02 January 1985 Publication History

PDF eReader

Abstract

We describe a prototype electronic encyclopedia implemented on a powerful personal computer, in which user interface, media presentation, and knowledge representation techniques are applied to improving access to a knowledge resource. In itself, an electronic encyclopedia is an important information resource, but this work also illustrates the issues and approaches for many types of electronic information retrieval environments. In the prototype we make dynamic use of the structure and semantics of the text articles and index of an existing encyclopedia, while experimenting with other forms of representation, such as simulation and videodisc images. We present a long-term vision of an intelligent user-interface agent; summarize previous work related to futuristic encyclopedias, electronic books, decision support systems, and knowledge libraries; and outline current and potential research directions.

References

[1]

Academic American Erwyclopedia. Grolier, Danbury, Conn., 1983.

Google Scholar

[2]

BARR, A., AND FEIGENBAUM, E., EDS. The Handbook o{ Artificial Intelligence. William Kaufmann, Los Altos, Calif., 1981.

Google Scholar

[3]

BOBROW, D., AND WINOGRAD, T. An overview of KRL, a knowledge representation language. Cognitive Sci. 1, 1 (Jan. 1977), 3-46.

Google Scholar

[4]

BORNING, A.H. ThingLab--A constraint-oriented simulation laboratory. Ph.D. dissertation, Dept. of Computer Science, Stanford Univ., Stanford, Calif., Mar. 1979. A revised version is available as Tech. Rep. SSL-79-3, Xerox Palo Alto Research Center, Palo Alto, Calif., July 1979.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[5]

BORNING, A.H. The programming language aspects of ThingLab, a constraint-oriented simulation laboratory. ACM Trans. Program. Lang. Syst. 3, 4 (Oct. 1981), 353-387.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[6]

BUSH, V. As we may think. Atlantic Monthly 176 (July 1945), 101-108.

Google Scholar

[7]

CLARKE, A. C. The second century of the telephone. In The View from Serendip. Random House, New York, 1977, pp. 215-236.

Google Scholar

[8]

COOK, P.R. Electronic encyclopedias. Byte 9, 7 (July 1984), 151-170.

Google Scholar

[9]

FEINER, S., NAGY, S., AND VAN DAM, A. An experimental system for creating and presenting interactive graphical documents. ACM Trans. Graph. 1, I (Jan. 1982), 59-77.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[10]

GANO, S. Forms for Electronic Books. Master's thesis, M.I.T., Cambridge, Mass., June 1983.

Google Scholar

[11]

GREGORY, R. Xanadu: Hypertext from the future. Dr. Dobb's J. 75 (Jan. 1983), 28-35.

Google Scholar

[12]

GREINER, R., AND LENAT, D.B. A representation language language. In Proceedings of the National Conference on Artificial Intelligence (Stanford, Calif., Aug.). American Association for Artificial Intelligence, Menlo Park, Calif., 1980, pp. 165-169.

Google Scholar

[13]

HEROT, C.F. Spatial management of data. ACM Trans. Database Syst. 5, 4 (Dec. 1980), 493- 514.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[14]

KAY, A.C. New directions for novice programming in the 1980s. in Programming Technology, P. J. L. Wallis, Ed. Pergammon Infotech, Elmsford, N.Y., 1983, pp. 209-247.

Google Scholar

[15]

LEE, A., Woo, C. C., AND LOCHOVSKY, F.H. Officeaid: An integrated document management system. In Proceedings of A CM SIGOA Conference on Office Automation (Toronto, Canada, June 25-27). ACM, New York, 1984, pp. 170-180.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[16]

LENAT, D., BORNING, A., MCDONALD, D., TAYLOR, C., AND WEYER, S. Knoesphere: Building expert systems with encyclopedic knowledge. In Proceedings of the 8th International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence, (Karlsruhe, West Germany). 1983, pp. 167-169.

Google Scholar

[17]

MCCRACKEN, D. L., AND AKSCYN, R.M. Experience with the ZOG human-computer interface system. Int. J. Man-Mach. Stud. 21, 4 (Oct. 1984), 293-310.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[18]

MCDONALD, D.D. Natural language generation as a computational problem: An introduction. In Computational Theories of Discourse, M. Brady, Ed. MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass., 1982.

Google Scholar

[19]

NELSON, T.H. Literary machines. Swarthmore, Pa. Available from the author.

Google Scholar

[20]

PREECE, W. E., Ed. Encyclopaedia Britannica, t5th ed. Encyclopaedia Britannica, Chicago, 1979.

Google Scholar

[21]

PREECE, W.E. Notes toward a new encyclopedia. Part 1. Scholarly Pub. 12, 1 (Oct. 1980), 13- 30.

Google Scholar

[22]

PREECE, W.E. Notes toward a new encyclopedia. Part 2. Scholarly Pub. 12, 2 (Jan. 1981), 141- 157.

Google Scholar

[23]

PRICE, L.A. Thumb: An interactive tool for accessing and maintaining text. IEEE Trans. Syst. Man. Cybern. SMC-12, 2 (Mar./Apr. 1982), 155-161.

Google Scholar

[24]

REGGIA, J. A., PULA, T. P., PRICE, T. R., AND PERRICONE, B. T. Towards an intelligent textbook of neurology. In Proceedings of the 4th Annual Symposium on Computer Applications in Medical Care (Nov.). IEEE, New York, 1980, pp. 190-199.

Google Scholar

[25]

ROUSE, S. H., AND ROUSE, W.B. Computer-based manuals for procedural information. IEEE Trans. Syst. Man Cybern. SMC-IO, 8 (1980), 90-147.

Google Scholar

[26]

SIMMONS, R.F. A text knowledge base for the AI handbook. Tech. Rep. TR-83-24, Dept. of Computer Sciences, Univ. of Texas at Austin, Dec. 1983.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[27]

SLEEMAN, D., AND BROWN, J. S., EDS. Intelligent Tutoring Systems. Academic Press, London, 1982.

Google Scholar

[28]

SMITH, L.C. Artificial intelligence applications in information systems. In Annual Review of Information Science and Technology. M. E. Williams, Ed. American Society for Information Science, Washington, D.C., 1980, pp. 67-105.

Google Scholar

[29]

STONEBRAKER, M., STETTNER, H., LYNN, N., KALASH, J., AND GUTTMAN, A. Document processing in a relational database system. ACM Trans. Office Inf. Syst. i, 2 (Apr. 1983), 143- 158.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[30]

TRIGG, R.H. A network-based approach to text handling for the online scientific community. Ph.D. dissertation, Dept. of Computer Science, Univ. of Maryland, College Park, Md., Nov. 1983. Published as Maryland TR- 1346.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[31]

VAN DOREN, C. The idea of an encyclopedia. In The Growth of Knowledge: Readings on Organization and Retrieval of Information, M. Kochen, Ed. Wiley, New York, 1967, pp. 66-71.

Google Scholar

[32]

WEINREB, D., AND MOON, D. The Lisp Machine Manual. Symbolics, Inc., Cambridge, Mass., 1981.

Crossref

Google Scholar

[33]

WEYER, S. A. Searching for information in a dynamic book. Ph.D. dissertation, Dept. of Education, Stanford Univ., Stanford, Calif., Feb. 1982. Also available as Tech. Rep. SCG-82-1, Xerox Palo Alto Research Center, Palo Alto, Calif.

Google Scholar

[34]

WEYER, S.A. The design of a dynamic book for information search. Int. J. Man-Mach. Stud. 17, 1 {July 1982), 87-107.

Google Scholar

Cited By

View all

Waterworth JChignell M(2018)A Manifesto for Hypermedia Usability ResearchHypermedia10.1080/09558543.1989.120311661:3(205-234)Online publication date: 29-Oct-2018
https://doi.org/10.1080/09558543.1989.12031166
Rada RBarlow J(2009)Expert systems and hypertextThe Knowledge Engineering Review10.1017/S02698889000045983:04(285)Online publication date: 7-Jul-2009
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0269888900004598
Baker BAcquah SRada R(2008)Prototyping a collaborative learning tool for nursesJournal of Computer Assisted Learning10.1111/j.1365-2729.1994.tb00282.x10:1(55-64)Online publication date: 28-Jun-2008
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2729.1994.tb00282.x
Show More Cited By

Recommendations

Encyclopedia of Cybercrime
Comparison of the different electronic versions of the Encyclopaedia Britannica: a usability study

Over the years, Encyclopaedia Britannica has undergone a number of revisions and has been provided in a number of formats other than print. The different electronic formats include a CD-ROM version, a subscription online version, a free online version ...
Wiretaps and Electronic Eavesdropping: Federal Law and Legal Ethics

Reviews

Reviewer: Hilary D. Burton

Weyer and Borning describe a prototype electronic encyclopedia which combines extensive full text browsing and retrieval capabilities with graphics and simulation features to create a powerful, user-responsive, interactive information system. Well thought out, the prototype brings together a variety of information processing techniques to create an environment which supports the multiple access and analysis approaches which an intelligent user might employ. The tour-filter-guide-model methaphor which they develop for navigation and presentation of the system is imaginative, but useful. The system is written in the object-oriented language ZETALISP. Future plans called for implementation on a VAX 11/780 using RTI's INGRES, but premature termination of the project interrupted this effort. Hopefully, the work can be resumed in the future. There is a good review of earlier, as well as current, related work and an extensive list of references.

Access critical reviews of Computing literature here

Become a reviewer for Computing Reviews.

Comments

Information & Contributors

Information

Published In

Publisher

Association for Computing Machinery

New York, NY, United States

Publication History

Published: 02 January 1985

Published in TOIS Volume 3, Issue 1

Permissions

Request permissions for this article.

Request Permissions

Check for updates

Qualifiers

Article

Contributors

Other Metrics

View Article Metrics

Bibliometrics & Citations

Bibliometrics

Article Metrics

98
Total Citations
View Citations
733
Total Downloads

Downloads (Last 12 months)112
Downloads (Last 6 weeks)20

Reflects downloads up to 16 Oct 2024

Other Metrics

View Author Metrics

Citations

Cited By

View all

Waterworth JChignell M(2018)A Manifesto for Hypermedia Usability ResearchHypermedia10.1080/09558543.1989.120311661:3(205-234)Online publication date: 29-Oct-2018
https://doi.org/10.1080/09558543.1989.12031166
Rada RBarlow J(2009)Expert systems and hypertextThe Knowledge Engineering Review10.1017/S02698889000045983:04(285)Online publication date: 7-Jul-2009
https://doi.org/10.1017/S0269888900004598
Baker BAcquah SRada R(2008)Prototyping a collaborative learning tool for nursesJournal of Computer Assisted Learning10.1111/j.1365-2729.1994.tb00282.x10:1(55-64)Online publication date: 28-Jun-2008
https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2729.1994.tb00282.x
Brown LHua H(2006)Magic Lenses for Augmented Virtual EnvironmentsIEEE Computer Graphics and Applications10.1109/MCG.2006.8426:4(64-73)Online publication date: 1-Jul-2006
https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1109/MCG.2006.84
Barker PManji K(2006)New Books for OldPLET: Programmed Learning & Educational Technology10.1080/135580088025040625:4(310-313)Online publication date: 9-Jul-2006
https://doi.org/10.1080/1355800880250406
Page C(2006)The Nuffield Interactive Book SystemEducational and Training Technology International10.1080/095473091028040928:4(334-340)Online publication date: 9-Jul-2006
https://doi.org/10.1080/0954730910280409
Lawrence T(2006)Impacts of artificial intelligence on organizational decision makingJournal of Behavioral Decision Making10.1002/bdm.39600403064:3(195-214)Online publication date: Nov-2006
https://doi.org/10.1002/bdm.3960040306
Gaines B(2005)Representation, discourse, logic and truth: Situating knowledge technologyConceptual Graphs for Knowledge Representation10.1007/3-540-56979-0_2(36-63)Online publication date: 27-May-2005
https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-56979-0_2
Görz G(2005)Database support for knowledge representation?Information Systems and Artificial Intelligence: Integration Aspects10.1007/3-540-53557-8_21(47-61)Online publication date: 4-Jun-2005
https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-53557-8_21
Hammond N(2005)Hypermedia and learning: Who guides whom?Computer Assisted Learning10.1007/3-540-51142-3_59(167-181)Online publication date: 31-May-2005
https://doi.org/10.1007/3-540-51142-3_59
Show More Cited By

View Options

View options

PDF

View or Download as a PDF file.

PDF

eReader

View online with eReader.

eReader

Get Access

Login options

Check if you have access through your login credentials or your institution to get full access on this article.

Cited By

Index Terms

Recommendations

Encyclopedia of Cybercrime

Comparison of the different electronic versions of the Encyclopaedia Britannica: a usability study

Wiretaps and Electronic Eavesdropping: Federal Law and Legal Ethics

Reviews

Access critical reviews of Computing literature here

Comments

Published In

Publisher

Publication History

Permissions

Check for updates

Qualifiers

Other Metrics

Article Metrics

Other Metrics

Cited By

PDF

eReader

Login options

Full Access

Abstract

References

Cited By

Index Terms

Recommendations

Encyclopedia of Cybercrime

Comparison of the different electronic versions of the Encyclopaedia Britannica: a usability study

Wiretaps and Electronic Eavesdropping: Federal Law and Legal Ethics

Reviews

Access critical reviews of Computing literature here

Comments

Information

Published In

Publisher

Publication History

Permissions

Check for updates

Qualifiers

Contributors

Other Metrics

Bibliometrics

Article Metrics

Other Metrics

Citations

Cited By

View options

PDF

eReader

Get Access

Login options

Full Access

Figures

Other

Share

Share this Publication link

Share on social media

Affiliations