Abstract: A computer processor monitors a service marketplace and a deployed service application that includes one or more services based on a set of service requirements. The computer processor collects consumption data of the deployed service application and service marketplace information including change and trend information associated with the service marketplace. The computer processor analyzes the consumption data and the service marketplace information with respect to the set of service requirements, and the computer processor determines a gap between at least a requirement of the set of requirements and the consumption data, and a gap between at least a requirement of the set of requirements and the service marketplace information.

Abstract: Various embodiments predict performance of a system including a plurality of server tiers. In one embodiment, a first set of performance information is collected for a base allocation of computing resources across multiple server tiers in the plurality of sever tiers for a set of workloads. A set of experimental allocations of the computing resources is generated on a tier-by-tier basis. Each of the set of experimental allocations varies the computing resources allocated by the base allocation for a single server tier of the multiple server tiers. A second set of performance information associated with the single server tier for each of the set of experimental allocations is collected for a plurality of workloads. At least one performance characteristic of at least one candidate allocation of computing resources across the multiple server tiers is predicted for a given workload based on the first and second sets of performance information.

Abstract: A method for providing a voice application includes executing control flow logic modeling a dialog flow with a user via a voice browser. The control flow logic produces a disambiguation requirement. A disambiguation module is initiated and a set of at least two candidates and partitioning criteria is sent from the control flow logic to the module. Attributes of the candidates are analyzed to determine a partitioning score for each attribute indicative of ability to distinguish between candidates based on the partitioning criteria. The attributes are sorted based on the partitioning scores. The user is queried based on a top-sorted attribute and results of the query are used to reduce the set of candidates. The steps of analyzing, sorting, and querying are repeated until the set of candidates is reduced to a single candidate. The single candidate is returned to the control flow logic for continued execution.

Abstract: Offline functionality-based co-ranking and clustering is carried out on a knowledge base that characterizes a heterogeneous information technology services network including a plurality of services, a plurality of providers, and a plurality of attributes. Results of the functionality-based co-ranking and clustering are stored as annotations of the services and the providers in the knowledge base, to obtain an annotated knowledge base. A service requirement is obtained from a customer requiring information technology services. The annotated knowledge base is queried, based on the service requirement; and an ordered list of at least given ones of the services, based on the querying, is returned to the customer.

Abstract: An embodiment of the invention provides a method for non-intrusive cloud services billing, including storing service log files in a data store, wherein each of the service log files include a lifecycle event of a resource in a service produced by an instance of the service. A log transformer connected to the data store converts the service log files into a standardized format. A metering descriptor describing billable entities for each offering of the service is obtained, wherein each offering of the service has a different metering descriptor, and wherein the billable entities include multiple categories of billing. A billing record generator connected to the log transformer is programmed, wherein the billing record generator converts standardized log records into metering records. The billing record generator generates a metering record with one or more of the service log files in the standardized format and the metering descriptor.

Abstract: A natural language specification of at least one high level information technology services requirement is obtained from a user, via a conversational interface; the same is parsed into first pre-defined semi-structured data, using a conversation parser. Based on the first pre-defined semi-structured data, a subset of candidate information technology services is identified, with a dialog engine, from a plurality of candidate information technology services provided by a plurality of vendors, the dialog engine is used to formulate a response including second pre-defined semi-structured data. The response is reverse-parsed into a natural language response, using the conversation parser. The natural language response includes a question for the user to assist in further refining the subset of candidate information technology services; the natural language response is presented to the user via the conversational interface.

Abstract: Systems and methods for custom-fitting a service solution to consumer requirements are provided. A method for custom-fitting a service solution to consumer requirements, comprises acquiring a request for the service solution from a consumer via a conversational interface, and issuing a query to a service knowledge base to obtain a set of service knowledge representation items from the service knowledge base and analyzing each service knowledge representation item to determine whether a custom-fit service solution can be developed.

Abstract: Systems and methods for custom-fitting a service solution to consumer requirements are provided. A method for custom-fitting a service solution to consumer requirements, comprises acquiring a request for the service solution from a consumer via a conversational interface, and issuing a query to a service knowledge base to obtain a set of service knowledge representation items from the service knowledge base and analyzing each service knowledge representation item to determine whether a custom-fit service solution can be developed.

Abstract: Various embodiments manage service labels for association with service specifications in a service-oriented environment. In one embodiment at least one candidate service label is received from a user associated with a service domain of a distributed federated service-oriented environment. The candidate service label includes at least one of a service type and a set of terms characterizing a service. The candidate service label is sent to a community of users associated with one or more service domains in the distributed federated service-oriented environment. One of a vote for accepting the candidate service label and a vote for rejecting the candidate service label is received from each of a plurality of users in the community of users. The candidate service label is stored as an accepted service label in the service domain based on a number of votes for accepting the candidate service label being above a given threshold.

Abstract: A method for providing a voice application includes executing control flow logic modeling a dialog flow with a user via a voice browser. The control flow logic produces a disambiguation requirement. A disambiguation module is initiated and a set of at least two candidates and partitioning criteria is sent from the control flow logic to the module. Attributes of the candidates are analyzed to determine a partitioning score for each attribute indicative of ability to distinguish between candidates based on the partitioning criteria. The attributes are sorted based on the partitioning scores. The user is queried based on a top-sorted attribute and results of the query are used to reduce the set of candidates. The steps of analyzing, sorting, and querying are repeated until the set of candidates is reduced to a single candidate. The single candidate is returned to the control flow logic for continued execution.

Abstract: A natural language specification of at least one high level information technology services requirement is obtained from a user, via a conversational interface; the same is parsed into first pre-defined semi-structured data, using a conversation parser. Based on the first pre-defined semi-structured data, a subset of candidate information technology services is identified, with a dialog engine, from a plurality of candidate information technology services provided by a plurality of vendors, the dialog engine is used to formulate a response including second pre-defined semi-structured data. The response is reverse-parsed into a natural language response, using the conversation parser. The natural language response includes a question for the user to assist in further refining the subset of candidate information technology services; the natural language response is presented to the user via the conversational interface.

Abstract: A virtual process system includes a processor, a first physical business process coupled to the processor, and a second physical business process coupled to the processor. The processor is configured to execute a virtual business process according to a virtual business process definition. The processor is further configured to receive a first event relating to the first physical business process and a second event relating to the second physical business process. The processor is further configured to execute a first state transition in response to receiving the first event at the processor and execute a second state transition in response to receiving the second event at the processor and execute a behavior in response to a received event. The received event includes one of the first event or the second event.

Abstract: A system in a cloud services environment comprises one or more service offerings, one or more service instances and one or more service support utilities. Each of the one or more service offerings is described by at least one service descriptor. Each of the one or more service instances is obtained from at least one of the one or more service offerings. Each of the one or more service support utilities is customized by at least one service descriptor. A service comprises at least one component and a service descriptor comprises one or more models.

Abstract: A system and method for reducing complexity by reuse of programming models includes defining a model controller view (MVC) unit as a programming model abstraction in a first program and permitting access by a second program to a model in the MVC unit. The first program and the second program communicate to employ the model in the second program. Access of the model by the second program is responded to in the first program to execute an action.

Abstract: A method for providing a cloud-based service includes receiving information from a customer of the service over a conversational interface, the information identifying a requirement of the customer related to a resiliency of the service, and identifying a service provider who provides the service in a manner that satisfies the requirement. A method for building a knowledge base of cloud-based service providers includes receiving information from a service provider, the information specifying at least one resiliency attribute of the service provider, matching the information to a standardized service descriptor, wherein the service descriptor is indexed within an ontology-based organizational framework that indexes a plurality of service descriptors, and storing the service descriptor for the service provider.

Abstract: A system for providing a cloud-based service includes a processor and a computer readable storage medium that stores instructions which, when executed, cause the processor to perform operations including: receiving information from a customer of the cloud-based service over a conversational interface, the information identifying a requirement of the customer related to a resiliency of the service, and identifying at least one service provider who provides the cloud-based service in a manner that satisfies the requirement of the customer. Another embodiment of a system for providing a cloud-based service includes a conversational interface for receiving information from a customer of the cloud-based service, the information identifying a requirement of the customer related to a resiliency of the service and a resiliency analysis engine for identifying at least one service provider who provides the cloud-based service in a manner that satisfies the requirement of the customer.

Abstract: A small baseline audio sample is sampled when a person initially calls in and the sample is held only for the duration of the call. For each subsequent transfer, a comparison is made to the baseline established from the initial call and at the end of the call the voice sample is discarded so no resources need to be maintained. Speaker verification and VOIP technologies are used to persist the customer's verification information as service representative hand-offs occur.

Abstract: Systems and methods for custom-fitting a service solution to consumer requirements are provided. A method for custom-fitting a service solution to consumer requirements, comprises acquiring a request for the service solution from a consumer via a conversational interface, and issuing a query to a service knowledge base to obtain a set of service knowledge representation items from the service knowledge base and analyzing each service knowledge representation item to determine whether a custom-fit service solution can be developed.

Abstract: Systems and methods for custom-fitting a service solution to consumer requirements are provided. A method for custom-fitting a service solution to consumer requirements, comprises acquiring a request for the service solution from a consumer via a conversational interface, and issuing a query to a service knowledge base to obtain a set of service knowledge representation items from the service knowledge base and analyzing each service knowledge representation item to determine whether a custom-fit service solution can be developed.

Abstract: A system and method for managing resources in a programming environment includes providing mutable entities including related data including triples, listening for changes in the related data, and triggering a first construct in accordance with the changes in the related data to update the mutable entities. Updates are propagated from the first construct to other constructs such that a cascade of updates occurs. The cascade of updates is executed concurrently such that the updates are propagated to completion and are executed all at once relative to other cascades of executing constructs.