Abstract: A method and system for determining a service provider to perform a service. An indication of willingness by each service provider of at least two service providers to perform the service in conformity with at least two quality of service requirements is received. Both an indication of previous performance of the service by each service provider and statistical data indicative of an extent to which the previous performance of the service by each service provider matches each quality of service requirement are received. A preferred service provider of the at least two service providers is ascertained, by analyzing the statistical data and concluding that the performance of the service by the preferred service provider is a closer match to the at least two quality of service requirements than is a match of the performance of the service by each other service provider to the at least two service requirements.

Abstract: A method and system for determining a service provider to perform a service. An indication of willingness by each service provider of at least two service providers to perform the service in conformity with at least two quality of service requirements is received. Both an indication of previous performance of the service by each service provider and statistical data indicative of an extent to which the previous performance of the service by each service provider matches each quality of service requirement are received. A preferred service provider of the at least two service providers is ascertained, by analyzing the statistical data and concluding that the performance of the service by the preferred service provider is a closer match to the at least two quality of service requirements than is a match of the performance of the service by each other service provider to the at least two service requirements.

Abstract: Reliability and availability modeling of a software application is provided. A reliability and availability model is generated in the form of a white-box model of a software application. An existing model of the software application's structure and behaviour is inspected and/or the software application is inspected. The accuracy of the reliability and availability model is determined and reliability and availability metrics for the software application are calculated. Additional input parameters relating to the software application's performance may be determined and the additional input parameters may be added to the reliability and availability model.

Abstract: A method of determining a service provider to perform a service. A request for the service and requirements pertaining to performance of the service is received. Identification of providers of service capable of performing the service in conformity with the requirements is received. The request and the requirements are broadcasted to the providers of service. An indication of willingness, by service providers selected from the providers of service, to perform the service in conformity with the requirements is received. An indication of performance of the service by each service provider and statistical data indicative of an extent to which performance of the service by each service provider matches each requirement are received. A preferred service provider is ascertained from analysis of the statistical data, based on performance of the service by the preferred service provider most closely matching the requirements. An identification of the preferred service provider is stored.

Abstract: System, method and program for controlling access to a file within a computer. A predetermined value of an attribute of the computer is identified. A current value of the attribute is determined. Periodically, a determination is made if the predetermined value matches the current value. If so, access to the file is allowed. If not, access to the file is prevented. The period at which the determination is performed is based on a type of the attribute. The attribute of the computer can be a physical location of the computer, a type of network connection of the computer, or a type of application program resident in the computer.

Abstract: A natural language (NL) analyzing system is provided with the capability to analyze NL expressions and to resolve ambiguities and present them to the user for verification of correct interpretation. A conceptual model of the system, relevant to the application in which the invention is implemented, is created (customizing the system) by the user, and is stored as a conceptual schema. The schema is built of logical facts representing entities (concepts) and relationships between entities, forming a description of the universe of discourse or object system in question. The entities of the schema have at least one external connection, namely to natural language terms in a vocabulary. The schema itself is completely language independent, though the components of it may have "names" expressed in a natural language such as English. There may be a second connection to the entities, namely where the system is used in a query system for relational data bases.

Abstract: A computer implemented system creates natural language paraphrases of information contained in a logical form, where the logical form may be a representation of a natural language expression. (Logical forms are widely used by database query systems and machine translation systems and are typically forms of first-order logic, with the possible addition of higher-order operators.) The paraphraser is implicitly defined via the BNF description of CLF (Baclis-Naur Forms) of Initial Trees and of the paraphrase rules. The paraphraser uses a technique for mapping logical forms to natural language. The natural language paraphrases which are created could be used either as input to a query system, as part of a machine translation system, or to generate natural language corresponding to an interpretation created by a natural language database query system of a user's query for the purpose of verification of the paraphrase by the user.