A study on information security management system evaluation—assets, threat and vulnerability

The security of information system is like a chain. Its strength is affected by the weakest knot. Since we can achieve 100% Information Security Management System (ISMS) security, we must cautiously fulfill the certification and accreditation of information security. In this paper, we analyzed, studied the evaluation knowledge and skills required for auditing the certification procedures for the three aspects of ISMS—asset, threat, and vulnerability.     

A GUI for Jess

The paper describes JessGUI, a graphical user interface developed on top of the Jess expert system shell. The central idea of the JessGUI project was to make building, revising, updating, and testing Jess-based expert systems easier, more flexible, and more user friendly. There are many other expert system building tools providing a rich and comfortable integrated development environment to expert system builders. However, they are all either commercial or proprietary products. Jess and JessGUI are open-source freeware, and yet they are well suited for building even complex expert system applications, both stand-alone and Web-based ones. An important feature of JessGUI is its capability of saving knowledge bases in XML format (in addition to the original Jess format), thus making them potentially easy to interoperate with other knowledge bases on the Internet. Jess and JessGUI are also used as practical knowledge engineering tools to support both introductory and advanced university courses on expert systems. The paper presents design details of JessGUI, explains its links with the underlying Jess knowledge representation and reasoning tools, and shows examples of using JessGUI in expert system development. It also discusses some of the current efforts in extending Jess/JessGUI in order to provide intelligent features originally not supported in Jess.     

Managing service level agreements in Premium IP networks: a business-oriented approach

This paper presents a market-enabling framework where users, content providers and network operators can interact in the seamless, transparent sale and delivery of a wide range of services. The framework allows for dynamic creation, configuration and delivery of services with quality assurance, via automated management of Service Level Agreements (SLAs). We propose an approach relying on a systemic treatment of business, service and network layer issues, which translates into a layered architecture where components belonging to different levels interact on the basis of a mediation paradigm. We use mediation as a generic term for a combination of negotiation, brokerage and state notification, jointly concurring to the realization of the entire life-cycle of a service.     

Normal vector compression of 3D mesh model based on clustering and relative indexing

As the transmission of 3D shape models through Internet becomes more important, the compression issue of shape models gets more critical. While the compressions of topology and geometry have been explored significantly, the same issue for normal vectors has not yet been studied as much as it deserves.

Presented in this paper is an approach to compress the normal vectors of a 3D mesh model using the concept of clustering and relative indexing. The model is assumed to be manifold triangular mesh model with normal vectors associated with vertices. The proposed scheme clusters the normal vectors of given model and the representative normal vector of each cluster is referred to via a mixed use of relative as well as absolute indexing concepts. It turns out that the proposed approach achieves a significant compression ratio (less than 10% of the original VRML model files) without a serious sacrifice of the visual quality.     

Pencil curve detection from visibility data

The trajectory of the ball-center point of a ball-end mill slid along a concave-edge region on a part surface becomes a pencil curve, and the ball-end milling along the pencil curve is called pencil curve machining. Presented in the paper is a procedure for computing pencil curves for 3-axis sculptured surface machining. The proposed algorithm traces pencil curves from an offset triangular mesh having numerous intersections (self-intersections). Since the outer skin of an offset triangular mesh makes the valid CL-surface, pencil curves can be obtained by connecting valid intersections lying on the outer skin of the offset mesh. The underlying concept of the proposed algorithm is that visible intersections are always valid for pencil curves. To obtain the visibility data of intersections, the proposed algorithm uses a graphics board, which performs hidden surface removal at a rate of up to a million polygons per second. Various examples have been tested with implementation of the algorithm, and some examples are presented for illustration.     

Query by image and video content: a colored-based stochastic model approach

For efficient image retrieval, the image database should be processed to extract a representing feature vector for each member image in the database. A reliable and robust statistical image indexing technique based on a stochastic model of an image color content has been developed. Based on the developed stochastic model, a compact 12-dimensional feature vector was defined to tag images in the database system. The entries of the defined feature vector are the mean, variance, and skewness of the image color histogram distributions as well as correlation factors between color components of the RGB color space. It was shown using statistical analysis that the feature vector provides sufficient knowledge about the histogram distribution. The reliability and robustness of the proposed technique against common intensity artifacts and noise was validated through several experiments conducted for that purpose. The proposed technique outperforms traditional and other histogram based techniques in terms of feature vector size and properties, as well as performance.     

Organizational memory information systems: a transactive memory approach

Effective management of organizational memory (OM) is critical to collaboration and knowledge sharing in organizations. We present a framework for managing organizational memory based on transactive memory, a mechanism of collective memory in small groups. While being effective in small groups, there are difficulties hindering the extension of transactive memory to larger groups. We claim that information technology can be used to help overcome these difficulties. We present a formal architecture for directories of meta-memories required in extended transactive memory systems and propose the use of meta-knowledge to substitute for the lack of tacit group knowledge that exists in small groups.