Abstract: Workflow techniques for coordinating organizational processes by providing flexible representations of work using generalized process structure grammars (GPSG). The techniques take into account that, in reality, work evolves both horizontally, in the co-operation of causally unrelated, but information-sharing tasks, and vertically, in the co-ordination of causally-dependent activities. Process modeling involves (1) viewing documents and tasks as duals of each other, capturing horizontal co-operation; and (2) exploiting constraints to express the soft dependencies among related activities and documents within the framework of generative rule-based grammars for processes, thus handling vertical co-ordination. This alleviates or avoids rigidity arising in conventional workflow solutions in part from viewing work processes as unfolding along a single line of temporally chained activities.

Abstract: An information retrieval system for retrieving information from multiple information sources. The information retrieval system provides for the building of dynamic queries through the use of query channels. A query channel permits the passing of attributes of the search results between different queries. The query channel can cause the automatic passing of the attributes, or it can be user controlled (breakpoints). Further, the query results may be transformed so that they are in the context of the target query (computational transformations). For example, the results may be translated or reformatted into a form utilized by the target query. Query channels are created based on graphical representations of queries and their attributes. A simple drag and drop operation, wherein an attribute is selected and dragged to the target query, is used to create the channel. A channel may be created while a query is running.

Abstract: An information retrieval system for retrieving information from multiple information sources. The information retrieval system provides for the building of dynamic queries through the use of query channels. A query channel permits the passing of attributes of the search results between different queries. The query channel can cause the automatic passing of the attributes, or it can be user controlled (breakpoints). Further, the query results may be transformed so that they are in the context of the target query (computational transformations). For example, the results may be translated or reformatted into a form utilized by the target query. Query channels are created based on graphical representations of queries and their attributes. A simple drag and drop operation, wherein an attribute is selected and dragged to the target query, is used to create the channel. A channel may be created while a query is running.