Jensen's Technology Glossary (Starting with "O")

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Object linking and embedding = (See OLE)

Object-Oriented Database Systems

Object-oriented database systems are quite different from the extremely relational database systems (e.g., MS Access, FoxPro, DBase, etc) that are extremely popular today. I will begin this module with a quote from my favorite online textbook in accounting information systems (that I adopt each year for my ACCT 5342 course):

Emerging database systems concepts
We conclude this chapter with a brief discussion of an emerging concepts relating to database systems. Object-oriented (OO) approaches to modeling and implementing database systems are becoming increasingly popular. This approach employs object-oriented modeling (OOM) techniques to model the domain of interest and then implements the resulting model using an object-oriented database management system (OODBMS). The object-oriented approach focuses on the objects of interest in the domain. Customers, vendors, employees, sales orders, and receipts are all viewed as objects that have certain attributes. OOM involves identifying the objects of interest, their attributes, and relationships between objects.

A critical feature unique to the OO approach is that an "object" package includes both the attributes of the object and the methods or procedures that pertain to that object. The methods might dictate how the object's attributes are modified in response to different events, or how the object causes changes in the attributes of other objects. Thus, a key difference between the database models described earlier and the OO approach is that OO models combine data (attributes) and procedures (methods) in one package, i.e., the "object." This feature of OO models is referred to as encapsulation - attributes and methods are represented together in one capsule. Another powerful feature of OO models is inheritance. OO models depict the real world as a hierarchy of object classes, with lower level classes inheriting attributes and methods from higher level classes. Thus, lower level object classes do not need to redefine attributes and methods that are common to the higher level object classes in the class hierarchy.

An OO model contains all details needed for implementation and object-oriented DBMS are powerful enough to represent all the information contained in the model. However, most organizations that have made heavy investments in RDBMS see little need to migrate to OO environments. While OO modeling methods are available, there is no consensus regarding the "best" method to use. Finally, although OODBMS are beginning to become commercially available, they have not gained much acceptance in the marketplace probably due to their relatively high cost and poor performance in comparison to RDBMS. Gemstone, ObjectStore, VBase, and O2 are some examples of OODBMS.

Accounting Information Systems: A Database Approach
by Uday S. Murthy and S. Michael Groomer
For more information go to http://www.cybertext.com/

Next I will repeat a great illustration pointed out in the message below from Alexander Lashenko:

Hello Bob,

Take a look at http://www.sanbase.com/cx.html

It's an original object-oriented DBMS with web interface. Looks very nice.

Regards,

Alex.
Alexander Lashenko [alashenko@cryptologic.com]

Also see Database.

OCR = Optical Character Recognition software and hardware used to interpret scanned symbols into characters of text or numbers recognized as something other than mere graphics images. The term is commonly used in such software as OmniPage Pro (800-535-7226) to indicate options of translating scanned words and numbers into computer text files that can be read by word processing and spreadsheet software. Leveraging ScanSoft's world-leading optical character recognition (OCR) and PDF conversion technology, the OmniPage Search Indexer creates index data from your document images, without changing the original. The ScanSoft OmniPage Search Indexer includes an OCR engine that is very fast and accurate, as well as a lightning fast PDF indexing engine - both tuned for search applications.

ScanSoft is the OCR behind the world's largest book scanning projects, and has been selected by nearly 100% of commercial vendors delivering imaging solutions, including AnyDocs, Autodesk, Avision, Brother, Canon, Captiva, CardScan, Dell, HP, Hummingbird, FileNET, Kofax, Verity, Visioneer and Xerox --- http://www.scansoft.com/OmniPage/Search/

(See also Scanner)

ODBC = Open Database Connectivity support. Open Database Connectivity (ODBC) refers to a standard for accessing different database systems in Visual Basic and Visual C++. Applications in most any software (e.g., Asymetrix ToolBook) can submit statements to ODBC using the ODBC type of SQL. ODBC then translates the code for use in common database systems such as Access, Paradox, dBase, Text, Excel and Btrieve databases. ODBC is based on Call-Level Interface and was defined by the SQL Access Group. Microsoft was one member of the group and was the first company to release a commercial product based on its work (under Microsoft Windows) but ODBC is not a Microsoft generated standard. ODBC drivers and development tools are available now for Microsoft Windows, Unix, OS/2, and Macintosh. See http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/260wp/260wp.htm#ODBC.

ODF = OpenDocument Format

"Software Hardball," by Scott McNealy, The Wall Street Journal, March 3, 2006; Page A10 --- http://online.wsj.com/

In the larger scheme of things, barriers to exit are bad for the consumer. It means that in the long term we often end up paying more than we should and getting less innovation than we would on a level playing field. Companies should compete on the value their products provide, not on their ability to lock customers into a proprietary "standard." At this point, some people throw up their hands and say that's just the way of the world. Nothing we can do about it.

Not so. There is now an open, international standard for common personal productivity applications -- spreadsheet, presentation and word-processing programs -- called the OpenDocument Format (ODF). Approved by an independent standards body, ODF has the backing of a broad community of supporters including consumer groups, academic institutions, a collection of library associations including the American Library Association, and many leading high-tech companies, but no single company owns it or controls it. (A "standard" created and controlled by a single company is not a true standard.) Any company can incorporate the OpenDocument Format into its products, free of charge, and tear down the barriers to exit.

Imagine being able to open any email attachment, read it and make changes, even if you don't have the exact program it was created in. That's the kind of interoperability the OpenDocument Format is designed to foster.

If this standard is to become a reality, we must insist on it. In the U.S., Massachusetts has been leading the way with a mandate that all software purchased by the commonwealth comply with ODF. Globally, 13 nations are considering adopting it. The reason is simple. The data belongs to the people, not to the software vendor that created the file format.

OEM? I think not!
Short for original equipment manufacturer, which is a misleading term for a company that has a special relationship with computer producers. OEMs buy computers in bulk and customize them for a particular application. They then sell the customized computer under their own name. The term is really a misnomer because OEMs are not the original manufacturers -- they are the customizers.
Webopedia --- http://www.webopedia.com/TERM/O/OEM.html

OKI = Open Knowledge Initiative

For more detail see http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/000aaa/updateee.htm#OKI

OKI and OCW: Free sharing of courseware from MIT, Stanford, and other colleges and universities.
"CourseWork: An Online Problem Set and Quizzing Tool," by Charles Kerns, Scott Stocker, and Evonne Schaeffer, Syllabus, June 2001, 27-29. I don't think the article is available online, although archived table of contents for the June edition is at http://www.syllabus.com/

"MIT's Superarchive," by Sally Atwood, Technology Review, November 2002 --- http://www.technologyreview.com/articles/atwood1202.asp

A digital repository will revolutionize the way research is shared and preserved.

Every year MIT researchers create at least 10,000 papers, data files, images, collections of field notes, and audio and video clips. The research often finds its way into professional journals, but the rest of the material remains squirreled away on personal computers, Web sites, and departmental servers. It's accessible to only a few right now. And with computers and software evolving rapidly, the time is coming when files saved today will not be accessible to anyone at all.

Until recently there has been no overall plan to archive or preserve such work for posterity. But true to its problem-solving nature, MIT has come up with a solution. In September the Institute launched DSpace, a Web-based institutional repository where faculty and researchers can save their intellectual output and share it with their colleagues around the world and for centuries to come. The result of a two-year collaboration of the MIT Libraries and Hewlett-Packard, DSpace is built on open-source software and is available to anyone free of charge. But it's even more important to note that many believe this groundbreaking effort will fundamentally change the way scholars disseminate their research findings.

OLAP = Online Analytical Processing database design in which data can be analyzed from a multidimensional point of view. A great example is given online at the FedScope Website of the U.S. Government. Whereas a relational database can be thought of as two-dimensional, a multidimensional database considers each data attribute (such as product, geographic sales region, and time period) as a separate "dimension." OLAP software can locate the intersection of dimensions (all products sold in the Eastern region above a certain price during a certain time period) and display them. Attributes such as time periods can be broken down into sub-attributes.

I stumbled upon a rather unique website that organizes data in a way that may interest some of you. It has possibilities for online training and education site designs. The site is called FedScope from the Office of Personnel Management of the U.S. Government --- http://www.fedscope.opm.gov/index.htm

FedScope is an On Line Analytic Processing tool which provides a free and easy way to access and analyze a large array of Federal employment data on your own.

FedScope uses multidimensional data sources called "Cubes". A FedScope cube brings together 13 key dimensions (data elements) on the Federal workforce and lets you explore any combination of the data: up, down, and across the dimensions.

You can easily

· use our shortcut canned reports that we've provided in this application.

· free-style with our OLAP tool to create your own reports.

· export data to your favorite software (i.e. Excel Spreadsheet) for analysis and presentation.

· export reports to Adobe Acrobat PDF for printing.

Online Glossary of Online Terms from the Office of Personnel Management of the U.S. Government --- http://www.fedscope.opm.gov/glossary/index.htm
(This glossary has a somewhat unique design for online users.)

Another OLAP-type approach entails pivot table analysis in Excel spreadsheets. You can download sample pivot table illustrations from Microsoft Corporation's financial statement Website at http://www.microsoft.com/msft/tools.htm . To slice and dice these pivot table reports, the Excel spreadsheets containing the data must be downloaded into an Excel program (which in reality makes this no longer an "online analytical process." After doing so, the pivot tables can be manipulated and users can prepare their own custom charts, other pivot tables, etc. This is very useful, but is not as neat and tidy as the truly online Cube OLAP approach available at the Fedscope site note above.

OLE = Object Linking and Embedding standards established by Microsoft Corporation for Mac and Windows operating systems. In 1997, Microsoft declared that OLE no longer stands for object linking and embedding (seeActiveX and CORBA ). Before 1997, however, OLE standards allowed the creation of links between documents and the embedding of documents in multiple applications. The OLE standards are designed to be "dynamic" in that as changes are made in an object in one document, the changes are simultaneously made automatically in all linked documents. For example, in pasting from the clipboard, authors choose the Paste Link or Paste Special command rather than the Paste command in the Edit menu. Pasting in this way creates a dynamic link between the source document and the destination document. OLE also supports embedding which embeds the source document (or a portion of the document) into the destination file such that the two documents become a "compound" file. Embedding is often used where a server file (creating embedded items) and client files (receiving embedded files) are in the system. In contrast to OLE linkages, OLE embedding edits in client files will not alter server files. This is not the case with OLE linkages, where any changes in a linked file will change all other linked files. Most word processor and spreadsheet software options have OLE capabilities. (See ActiveX, CORBA, and Java)

OLE/DCOM = (See CORBA )

Online = (See also Networks)

OLTP = On-Line Transaction Processing in database management systems. See Database.

On-the-fly recording = Sending data from your hard disk directly to the CD-R burner, without creating a physical image file first. (See also CD-R)

Ontology Web Language --- See OWL

Open = a public standard in computer contexts that is the opposite of "proprietary." Open refers to software and hardware made from published specifications that anyone can copy --- so customers have choice among multiple suppliers that compete on price and innovation. (See also Cross-platform)

Operating system = The master control software system that serves as a foundation for applications software. Examples of past, present, and forthcoming operating systems include MS-DOS, Amiga DOS, Windows, Windows XP, Windows 2000, Windows Chicago, Windows Cairo, OS/2, Workplace OS, Apple/Mac Systems 7 and 8, Taligent (Pink), PowerOpen, NEXTStep, Rhapsody, Unix, SCO, AIX, HP/UX, HP/MPE, SCO Open Desktop, Solaris, and UnixWARE (Novell). A second class of operating systems is known as real time processing. These are used more for on-the-fly control systems such as aviation control systems and military applications. Examples include the Intel Multibus and iRMX operating systems. For a comparative analysis of the 32-bit options, see PC/Computing Special Report (1994) where it is concluded that there are advantages and drawbacks of each option and no clear optimal choice at this juncture in time. For 10 years, Apple Corporation would not license its proprietary Mac operating system to other manufacturers. However, in 1994 Apple announced that it would license its System 7 operating system to other vendors on PowerPC computers. In 1997, plans for Copeland and Gershwin upgrades were abandoned in favor or Rhapsody. Apple's hopes are riding heavily upon the evolution of a new operating system called Rhapsody that is a revolutinary operating system based upon NEXTStep technology. This may help to overcome the problem that Apple Corporation's market share has declined to less tan 5% of the desktop computing market and an even smaller percentage of the laptop/notebook computer market. The new licensing agreement is designed to cut into the huge market share of Windows operating systems from Microsoft Corporation. However, Microsoft Windows still remains the market share choice. Then along came Linux to challenge the Microsoft's operating systems. Linux (pronounced Leenicks) is a freely-distributable implementation of UNIX that runs on a number of hardware platforms, including Intel and Motorola microprocessors. It is very popular among computer scientists who have freely given their time to develpment of Linux.

The Linux home page is at http://www.ssc.com/linux/ .

"The Penguin Is Popping Up All Over Linux is fast breaking out of its original stomping ground in servers and into cell phones, cars, telecom gear, consumer electronics...," Business Week Online, March 30, 2004 --- http://www.businessweek.com/

UNCOUNTED MILLIONS.
Sound familiar? It should. To a degree, the same dynamics are propelling Linux' swift rise in the server OS market. Linux had a 7% share of that market in the fourth quarter of 2003 according to Framingham (Mass.) tech tracker IDC. But this number may not reflect the tens of millions of free versions of Linux that system administrators have downloaded and installed themselves. And year-over-year, Linux posted a 63% increase in market share, by far the biggest increase for any server OS.

This rapid growth in part reflects Linux' rapid move into the embedded operating system market. Until recently, makers of proprietary operating systems mainly worked that sector. The largest among them, Wind River (WIND ), attained close to 50% market share but remained far from dominant, as no one company could create products to span the thousands of types of processors that run embedded software. In fact, many device companies -- in aerospace and defense in particular -- have kept their development and code in-house.

As Linux has begun to mature, however, electronics makers have started to focus on its advantages. By incorporating it, they can minimize the number of operating systems they use in products to boost efficiency -- and thus free their programmers to concentrate on work that adds value to their products.

Continued in the article

Linspire^TM (formerly Lindows) is a full-featured operating system like Microsoft Windows XP or Apple Mac OSX. Linspire offers you the power, stability and cost-savings of Linux with the ease of a windows environment. In addition, Linspire features exclusive CNR technology that makes installing software on Linspire fast and easy -- simply find the software you want in the CNR Warehouse, then click and run it! Watch a 5-minute Flash Demo to quickly learn more about Linspire and CNR --- http://www.linspire.com/lindows_sales_intro.php

Apple Corporation's operating system for its Mac OS X servers is called "Darwin." Apple announced that it will make the Darwin source code available to developers. It is a variant of UNIX.

News from Microsoft --- http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/migrate/unix/default.asp

As the Windows platform continues to evolve to address changing business computing needs, many organizations currently on UNIX platforms are turning to Windows to run their new client and server business applications. They're discovering that moving to the Windows platform does not require abandoning existing investments in UNIX applications and infrastructure.

This section explains why customers should consider migrating to Windows from UNIX. It also provides detailed information for IT professionals and developers on how to move from UNIX systems to Windows XP, Windows 2000, and the upcoming Windows .NET Server and Microsoft .NET Web services platforms.

Optical character recognition = (See OCR)

Optical drive = Any medium or device using a laser beam for accessing data stored on an optical disc. Typical optical drives are CD drives and videodisc drives. However, there are many types of optical drives including those that can be written on and re-written on much like floppy discs or computer tape. To date, most optical drives have slower access time than magnetic drives. (See also CD and Videodisc)

Optical scanner = (See OCR)

ORB = (See CORBA )

OS/2 = Operating System 2 introduced by IBM Corporation in 1992 and upgraded to OS/2 Warp in 1994. This is the first 32-bit processing system designed for PCs. It beat its rival Microsoft Windows 2000 to the market by almost two years. In early 1994, neither Windows 2000 nor OS/2 have made a huge dent in the DOS and Windows market. For example, there were only four million OS/2 adopters and 250,000 Windows 2000 adopters at the end of 1993 in comparison with over 40 million Microsoft Windows adopters. As older PCs are replaced by higher speed PCs with more memory, 32-bit processors will become more popular. OS/2 gets some high praises when compared with current 32-bit alternatives in PC/Computing Special Report (1994). At issue is whether OS/2 or Windows 2000 or Pink or some other operating system will saturate the market (after DOS, Windows, Apple/Mac, and Windows Chicago stubbornly fade from the scene). OS/2 is a very reliable operating system that requires less PC capacity than Windows 2000. However, Windows 2000 has more networking utilities that may give it the competitive edge in the future. Until software vendors offer a wider array of options for either OS/2 or Windows 2000, the operating systems most widely used worldwide will continue to be DOS, Windows, and Windows Chicago. An alternate IBM operating system called Workplace OS combines the object-oriented Workplace with the OS/2 operating environment. Since OS/2 Warp has such a small market share, developers are not generating significant native software applications that run more efficiently in OS/2 vis-a-vis Windows. In CD-ROM Today, February 1995, pp. 40-51, OS/2 Warp performance is evaluated and a forecast is made that IBM will abandon OS/2. Although OS/2 Warp runs DOS applications better than MS-DOS itself, it is very slow when trying to run Windows applications. Neither Apple Corporation nor IBM Corporation have been able to significantly gain market share against Microsoft Windows. (See also Ultimedia Video, Operating system, DOS, Windows, Windows Chicago, and Windows 2000)

OS 8 = (See Copeland)

OSI Model = The Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) reference model for describing network protocols was devised by the Internet Standards Organization. It divides protocols into seven layers to standardize and simplify definitions.

OTM = (See CORBA).

Outernets = Systems of computer networks that are not bundled on the Internet but nevertheless can be accessed to the Internet through gateways that translate outernet protocols into Internet protocols. The worldwide system of gateways is called the "Matrix" or "the Net". (See also Internet)

OWL = Ontology Web Language (OWL)

The main link for Web Ontology is at http://www.w3.org/2001/sw/WebOnt/

The OWL Web Ontology Language is designed for use by applications that need to process the content of information instead of just presenting information to humans. OWL facilitates greater machine interpretability of Web content than that supported by XML, RDF, and RDF Schema (RDF-S) by providing additional vocabulary along with a formal semantics. OWL has three increasingly-expressive sublanguages: OWL Lite, OWL DL, and OWL Full.

Also see RDF at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/XBRLandOLAP.htm#RDF_Extended

It is interesting how OWL had an entirely different meaning at one time. OWL was the first commercial hypertext course management system in a box following OWL Corporations training development efforts for the U.S. Navy. OWL died when DOS faded. You can read the following at http://www.trinity.edu/rjensen/290wp/290wp.htm