Back-end Tools Research Articles

An interconnected IoT-inspired network architecture for data visualization in remote sensing domain

Geospatial Data Analytics (GDA) is a futuristic platform for analyzing and processing volumetric data in remote sensing and GIS applications. GDA utilizes the Internet of Spatial Things (IoST), mist, fog, and cloud computing architecture as a backend tool for analyzing and processing big geospatial data. This paper introduces utilizing these interconnected network architectures of cloud, fog, and mist to process a large volume of geospatial data. Also, the paper presents a flexible, interconnected distributed network system, i.e., IoST-mist-fog-cloud GIS architecture, to analyze and manage geospatial data. The proposed system helps cloud platforms when MIST devices are trying to cut down on latency and boost throughput at the edge of the IoST tier. It also performs the geospatial crime data visualization of the total number of stolen vehicles from 2001 to 2011 from all the states of India as a case study by using the proposed model. It explains the mathematical and analytical queueing model of the proposed system. In addition, it performs a performance evaluation and experimental findings on the proposed architecture and uses graphs to represent the various arithmetic outcomes. The experimentation result proves the proposed interconnected network architecture's efficacy in terms of reliability and efficiency.

A Methodical Framework for Conducting Reconnaissance and Enumeration in the Ethical Hacking Lifecycle

Reconnaissance and enumeration are both equally significant phases of the penetration testing lifecycle. In hindsight, both reconnaissance and enumeration seem to be very similar as the pair involve information gathering. Whilst reconnaissance leverages passive approaches without direct interaction with the target, enumeration exploits susceptibilities and vulnerabilities in direct client-server communication. Both phases involve gathering information and pinpointing the attack surface within the network of the target. To do so, powerful tools such as Nmap and Netcat are utilized by ethical hackers and penetration testers to identify and resolve security vulnerabilities and weaknesses. Nmap is an open-source command-line tool used for information gathering, network discovery, and security auditing. Whereas Netcat is a back-end tool that manages networks, monitors traffic flow between systems, as well as allows port scanning and listening. However, the plethora of tools and approaches available for these two phases often introduce inconsistencies and time wastage, which can lead to frustration and poor outcome for inexperienced penetration testers. Additionally, not all commands found online are relevant and applicable. In such situations, there is a high probability that the user will feel overwhelmed and exasperated with the overflow of new and foreign information. To address this daunting challenge, this study developed a methodical framework that can provide a technical guide for the reconnaissance and enumeration phases of the penetration testing lifecycle. Furthermore, a clear and thorough step-by-step procedure and detailed explanations of each stage and commands initiated using Nmap and Netcat are provided. The output of this study will be extremely beneficial and informative to a vast group of audience, ranging from university students majoring in security to individuals interested in ethical hacking, and even someone looking for a job with a position of a penetration tester. Furthermore, this technical guide on Nmap and Netcat extends the common body of knowledge in penetration, as a bridge between the industry and academia.

How to help digital-native students to successfully take control of their learning: A return of 8 years of experience on a computer science e-learning platform in higher education

In this article, we present an educational reform we implemented a few years ago to respond to a marked drop in the success of students entering higher education in computer science. The main objective of our reform is to adapt the teaching methods of Generation X-Y to Generation Y-Z or more. To do this, we propose two approaches. First, to make learning more active, stimulating and empowering. Second, to make learning more individualized in a context of a large group of students with an optimization of the teacher’s time. We first present an analysis of the probable reasons for the lower level of students and the specific issues encountered by both students and teachers. Then, we detail how we implemented these solutions in the form of an original e-learning platform based on two back-end tools able to manage large number of students: an efficient real-time auto-corrector of source codes and a very robust anti-plagiarism software based on computer distance information theory. Finally, we present the results obtained after an experimentation of 8 years. These results are put into perspective by an analysis of 15 years of qualitative and quantitative indicators carried out on hundreds of students each year. The analysis shows that the technical skills and the involvement of students are improved even in groups of several hundreds of students. Computer science teachers wishing to quickly and concretely develop the involvement of their students can rely on these tried and tested key levers and solutions presented.

CRISPRon/off: CRISPR/Cas9 on- and off-target gRNA design.

The effectiveness of CRISPR/Cas9-mediated genome editing experiments largely depends on the guide RNA (gRNA) used by the CRISPR/Cas9 system for target recognition and cleavage activation. Careful design is necessary to select a gRNA with high editing efficiency at the on-target site and with minimum off-target potential. Here, we present our webserver for gRNA design with a user-friendly graphical interface, which provides interoperability between our on- and off-target prediction tools, CRISPRon and CRISPRoff, for a complete and streamlined gRNA selection. The graphical interface uses the Integrative Genomic Viewer (IGV) JavaScript plugin. The backend tools are implemented in Python and C. The CRISPRon and CRISPRoff webservers and command-line tools are freely available at https://rth.dk/resources/crispr.

Automated alumni data tracking system

Automated alumni data tracking system is an internet-based application that can be accessed through the web. This project is built using the start wamp server and android studio. Automated alumni data tracking system is developed by using PHP as a frontend tool and MYSQL as a backend tool. An android application is developed to track all the alumni of the institution using web API. The location of alumni is tracked by GPS and the location will be plotted on google Map. Anyone can access automated alumni data tracking system to know about any alumni of that college but can’t able to modify the data. The repository and search engine are internet-based applications that can be accessed throughout the database on the forum. The automated alumni data tracking system has two modules namely alumni and admin. According to the modules the student and administrator can manage and easily do their activities.Admin has full access to all the modules of this system and is responsible for the accounts of all students. Admin has the power to update, modify or delete event details. Alumni can update, modify or delete job fair details.

RWRoute: An Open-source Timing-driven Router for Commercial FPGAs

One of the key obstacles to pervasive deployment of FPGA accelerators in data centers is their cumbersome programming model. Open source tooling is suggested as a way to develop alternative EDA tools to remedy this issue. Open source FPGA CAD tools have traditionally targeted academic hypothetical architectures, making them impractical for commercial devices. Recently, there have been efforts to develop open source back-end tools targeting commercial devices. These tools claim to follow an alternate data-driven approach that allows them to be more adaptable to the domain requirements such as faster compile time. In this paper, we present RWRoute, the first open source timing-driven router for UltraScale+ devices. RWRoute is built on the RapidWright framework and includes the essential and pragmatic features found in commercial FPGA routers that are often missing from open source tools. Another valuable contribution of this work is an open-source lightweight timing model with high fidelity timing approximations. By leveraging a combination of architectural knowledge, repeating patterns, and extensive analysis of Vivado timing reports, we obtain a slightly pessimistic, lumped delay model within 2% average accuracy of Vivado for UltraScale+ devices. Compared to Vivado, RWRoute results in a 4.9× compile time improvement at the expense of 10% Quality of Results (QoR) loss for 665 synthetic and six real designs. A main benefit of our router is enabling fast partial routing at the back-end of a domain-specific flow. Our initial results indicate that more than 9× compile time improvement is achievable for partial routing. The results of this paper show how such a router can be beneficial for a low touch flow to reduce dependency on commercial tools.

ESSENCE Features for 2019

ObjectiveThe objective of this presentation is to discuss the new features that are under development for ESSENCE in 2019. This is a chance to describe the features, the use cases for the features, and open a dialogue with the community on potential new enhancements that are available.IntroductionThe ESSENCE system is a community-driven disease surveillance system. Installed in over 25 jurisdictions across the US, the system is built on a single codebase that is shared across all instances. While each individual location can customize many of the settings, data sources, and configurations, the underlying code and functionality is shared. This means that when one jurisdiction works with the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) to create a new feature, it is available to all sites.MethodsThe roadmap for ESSENCE in 2019 is based upon ongoing and future projects between jurisdictions and JHU/APL. While specifics can change before features are deployed, the following list of new features have exceptional capabilities. These include:Social Elements to the User Experience: Ability for users to share what they are doing within ESSENCE with their peers. Ability for users to see what others are querying and find interesting. Support sharing both within a system and across jurisdictions.Text Analysis: Text analysis and visualizations to help support the user in building new free-text queries.Provide correlation, trend, and association analytics for words and phrases to help the user determine what should or should not be included in their queries.Site Monitoring: Back-end tools and checks to better monitor an ESSENCE system for issues and data irregularities. This administrative tool will help the system maintain its day-to-day availability and improve visibility of errors and issues that may develop over time.Longitudinal Surveillance: Visualizations and cohort clustering analytics to determine the types of patients who are using the healthcare systems that provide data to ESSENCE. These tools can show patient uses over time with trends to better inform utilization of healthcare resources in a community.Opioid Overdose Surveillance: Visualizations and analytics to better support the surveillance activities related to the opioid overdose crisis. Work with additional data sources (EMS, Poison Control, Death Records, etc.) to determine the benefit of fusing multiple pieces of information into a common picture for improved opioid surveillance.And other new features…ResultsThe presentation will describe the current roadmap, demonstrate features that are mature enough in the software development process, share mock-ups for features still in the early stages of development and provide use cases for each of the new features discussed.ConclusionsNo organization can build a successful system without the participation and buy-in from its stakeholder community. ESSENCE is an excellent example of a tool built on collective input whose ongoing enhancements benefit all its users. By seeing the roadmap and understanding the new features for 2019, the community can prepare for upcoming enhancements and begin discussions about other needs and use cases that will drive the development of the next round of ESSENCE features.

VLSI Implmentation of a Fast Kogge-Stone Parallel-Prefix Adder

This paper presents a VLSI implementation of a high speed Kogge-Stone adder (KSA) using 0.18µm process technology. The adder is known to be one of the fastest adder architectures, and this is validated through a comparison with other adder architectures including the standard ripple carry adder and the carry look ahead adder. Furthermore, our KSA adder is also compared with a default optmized adder from the Artisan standard cell library. The adders are compared for bit widths of 8, 16, and 32. The adders are designed using Verilog and synthesized using both front-end and back-end tools, with complete validation and verification stages, including analysis for performance, power, and area. Results show that in terms of performance, KSA results in the lowest propagation delay with almost constant delay for all bit widths, with up to 70% less delay as compared to all other architectures. Area and power penalty is found to also increase by roughly 59%. In terms of energy usage, the KSA adder results in up to 64% less. In the case when speed and energy are critical, this fast and energy efficient KSA adder can be readily integrated into custom VLSI designs.

Electronic Design Automation for IC Implementation, Circuit Design, and Process Technology and Electronic Design Automation for IC System Design, Verification, and Testing

This is the second edition of this book and consists of a two-volume set contained in 1430 pages in 52 chapters. The complexity of today’s designs and tools means that we can’t afford to rerun an EDA tool for each change, so tools must allow incremental runs. Design today is not feed-forward only. Changes made by a back-end tool must be reflected in the database used by front-end tools. This short and instructive chapter on this topic illustrates one of the main benefits of these books. Just as no two tools can work independently today, designers at different stages of implementation must work together. That means understanding, at least at a basic level, the tools used by other members of the design team. At least one set of these volumes belongs in the library of every design team, so that those working at the back end can understand the issues at the front end and vice versa. The second chapter is on logic synthesis, a reasonably mature area. This chapter deals with changes in the past decade with a short update section. It is a good, short tutorial. If the reader needs to explore further, there are 207 references. The high quality of the sample chapters reviewed suggests that the entire two-volume set is equally as good. This is a powerful resource for new designers and will also be valuable for experienced designers who find that they have fallen behind in some parts of the design flow, thanks to lack of time. You are not likely to find this much information in one place anywhere else.

Galaksio, a user friendly workflow-centric front end for Galaxy

There is a severe shortage of statisticians and bioinformaticians available in research. As universities fail to cover the increasing need of graduates with the necessary skills, ad hoc training and workshops have become commonplace but are insufficient to cover the needs. Technical solutions that distribute the workload more efficiently between researchers with a different education background (e.g., computer scientists and biologists) are therefore necessary to cover some of this shortage. Galaksio provides a workflow-centric graphical user interface for the Galaxy Workflow Management system easy to use for biologists and medical researchers who need to run routine tasks in bioinformatics. Combined with back end tools such as BioBlend, CloudMan and Pulsar, Galaksio provides a novel, layered approach to Galaxy making it easier to divide research tasks to researchers depending on their skills in interdisciplinary subjects such as bioinformatics and computational science. Galaksio is developed by the B3Africa project for the eB3Kit but functions as a stand-alone server that can be configured for to be connected to any Galaxy server using the Galaxy API. Galaksio can be downloaded at: https://github.com/fikipollo/galaksio .

RRDTool: A Round Robin Database for Network Monitoring

RRDtool is a circular database which stores time series data. RRDtool assumes time-variable data in intervals of certain length. An interval is named as a step and specified upon creation of an RRD file which cannot be changed afterward. Because data may not always come at just the right time, RRDtool will automatically interpolate any submitted data. This is done to fit its internal timestamps. If we compare linear databases with RRD then we can say that RRD is non-linear like a circular queue. Usually, in a Round-Robin Database (RRD), time-series data like network bandwidth, memory usage, CPU load are stored. The data is stored in a non-linear way so that system storage footprint remains constant over time. This actually avoids resource-expensive purge jobs which reduce complexity. MySQL does NOT provide any such kind of storage engine. RRDtool has also the ability to create and feed this database. RRDtool stores data; that makes it a back end tool. The RRDtool command set allows the creation of graphs that makes it a front end tool as well. Other databases just stores data and cannot create graphs. RRD combined with NET-SNMP can collect data and using scripts we can generate beautiful real-time graphs which can be used for monitoring computer networks.

Backend Tools for Speech Synthesis in Speech Processing

Speech synthesis is an artificial method of converting written text into machine generated speech. The Main Theme of this paper is to describe an overview of existing popular and advanced speech synthesizing techniques. Speech synthesis is a method of artificially generating the human speech from mathematical models and machines using some control parameters. The device which synthesizes is called as a synthesizer, the device which synthesizes is called as synthesizer and the synthesizer may be implemented as hardware or software. So for the research is not successful in generating a speech signal, usually researchers extract the speech parameters from the recorded speech and synthesize the original signal from it. A synthesizer can be viewed as Mathematical modeling of the vocal tract by extracting the acoustic/vocal features to produce the artificial generated speech output. The generated speech quality is described by its naturalness and intelligibility. The naturalness of synthesized speech gives an idea about how closely the generated output resembles the sounds produced by human speech production. Intelligibility describes how about the output can be understood by the listener after the perceiving it.

RTFM-core

The course in Compiler Construction is part of the Computer Science masters program at Luleå University of Technology (LTU). Since the fall of 2014, the course is given by the Embedded Systems group. This paper outlines the course syllabus and its relation to CPS/IoT and embedded systems in general. In particular, the course introduces domain specific language design with the outset from the imperative RTFM-core language. Students are exposed to design choices for the language, spanning from programming model, compiler design issues, back-end tools, and even runtime environments. The intention is to give a holistic perspective and motivate the use of compilation techniques towards robust, efficient, and verifiable (embedded) software. Of course, developing basic skills is not overlooked and as part of the laboratory assignments, students extend the min-imalistic Object Oriented language RTFM-cOOre and develop the compiler accordingly targeting the RTFM-core language as an intermediate representation. As the RTFM-core/-cOOre compilers are implemented using OCaml/Men-hir, the students are also exposed to functional languages and to their advantages in the context of compiler construction. However, for their own development they may choose alternative design tools and languages. This gives us the opportunity to review and correlate achievements and efficiency to the choice of tools and languages and it is an outset for future course development.

Nanotechnology Ontology: Semantic Access to Information in the Nano World

Scientific progress in a domain depends greatly on making use of results of previous research activities. Like human beings, it is difficult for computers to encode and retrieve the unsupervised Web information. The basic answer to this problem is to describe the information explicitly and semantically with ontology. The article presents a brief discussion of the study undertaken to design an ontology for Nanotechnology field.Scientific progress in a domain depends greatly on making use of results of previous research activities. Like human beings, it is difficult for computers to encode and retrieve the expanding web information. The basic answer to this problem is to describe the information explicitly and semantically with ontology. The article presents a brief discussion of the study undertaken to design an ontology for Nanotechnology, which was developed by using the Resource Description Framework (RDF). This paper further describes methodology opted to develop the Nanotechnology ontology, where a semantic structure of Nanotechnology thesaurus was utilised for its creation. The study has further presented the features of nMap software, which was developed specifically for the study by using VB.net as front-end tool and MS-access as back-end tool. Outcome of the study offers a semantic knowledge structure to Nanotechnology researchers in machine readable environment. Further, development of ontology in RDF format serves interoperability and will further support semantic interpretation by machines to facilitate human understanding. dx.doi.org/10.14429/djlit.36.1.9198

Experimenting the Effectiveness of Traditional vs Modern Learning of Web Technologies among Computer Professional Students

objective of the study is to analyze the opinion about traditional and online learning methods with respect to course, content, teacher and reachability. Keeping this in view, a software study was conducted and which was aimed to develop the learning tool which is known as Connection for Sank-Hara Computer Centre for Education and Learning. It is an intranet/internet based learning tool based on blended learning methodology. Pre Hypertext Processor, Apache Web Server and Mysql as the back end and other tools such as Dream weaver were used to create a learning model and SPSS 20 were used to interpret the results. Sample of 100 respondents were taken for the study based on simple random sampling method. The findings reveal that the students are much more interested towards online environment based on their mean value. This study is unique in the sense that new user friendly learning tool have been deployed to test the results. The results will be helpful to introduce more number of online courses which can be incorporated in the syllabus to enrich more knowledge towards knowledge society. KeywordsOnline learning, Knowledge-Connection, Blended learning, Knowledge society

Data Analytics and Operational Data Integration to reach out to Rural Masses for Early Detection of Non-communicable Diseases

This paper demonstrates the analysis of healthcare data and integration of operational data to abate the prevalence incidence of non-communicable diseases (NCD). Pilot experiments have been carried out in Suttur village, by screening the masses for early detection of NCDs. An app has been developed to record patient profile onto a tablet. The record is synchronized to update the database on the cloud where the repository is maintained. This provides an efficient way of analysis and statistics to the huge amount of health data. ETL (Extract, Transform and Load) is a process used to extract data from data repository and transform the data based on user requirements and store in a target database as a single repository which helps to achieve goals proactively and on time. The main aim of this paper is to generate reports from the collection of health data by using tools like QlikView for Business Objects as a front end tool for generation of reports and charts, Oracle 11g as backend tool for creation of data repository and Talend Open Studio 5.4 as an ETL tool. We conclude that ETL systems enable a smooth migration from one system to another. By creating an ETL script for each system, data can be stored in a consistent format in the repository. The source system can then be changed, without any impact on the repository or the reporting/analysis systems. Therefore there are phenomenal improvements in turnaround time for data access and reporting. The entire health data can be standardized as there will be one view of information. Health data synced by various sources from different places can be merged to create a more comprehensive information source. This leads to reduction in costs to create and distribute information and reports and also helps in reduction of prevalence incidence of NCDs.

Synthesis-based design and implementation methodology of high-speed, high-performing unit: L2 cache unit design

We propose a physical design methodology for synthesis using soft hierarchy, interior pin placement, pre-placing critical logic, and routing techniques on a very timing- and area-challenged unit, the L2 cache, with ~20 million synthesizable transistors. In any past and present standard design at IBM, this test case would stretch all front- and back-end design tools by two to three times due to data volume, congestion and timing criticality, which opens a new avenue to explore for Large Block Synthesis flow. The results confirm the ability to deliver a design in the shortest possible schedule at ~50% of Physical Design cost while still maintaining best-of-breed quality.

SPEEDY: An Eclipse-based IDE for invariant inference

SPEEDY is an Eclipse-based IDE for exploring techniques that assist users in generating correct specifications, particularly including invariant inference algorithms and tools. It integrates with several back-end tools that propose invariants and will incorporate published algorithms for inferring object and loop invariants. Though the architecture is language-neutral, current SPEEDY targets C programs. Building and using SPEEDY has confirmed earlier experience demonstrating the importance of showing and editing specifications in the IDEs that developers customarily use, automating as much of the production and checking of specifications as possible, and showing counterexample information directly in the source code editing environment. As in previous work, automation of specification checking is provided by back-end SMT solvers. However, reducing the effort demanded of software developers using formal methods also requires a GUI design that guides users in writing, reviewing, and correcting specifications and automates specification inference.

Camtek receives orders in excess of $3.5 Million for its backend semiconductor inspection tools from a leading global OSAT

Camtek receives orders in excess of $3.5 Million for its backend semiconductor inspection tools from a leading global OSAT

Variations Digital Music Library System and Variations Audio Timeliner (review)

For information regarding the scope of this column, consult the headnote in the September 2011 issue. The dates of access for each review of an online source indicate the dates during which the reviewer was evaluating the resource. All Web sites were last accessed to verify availability on 1 February 2012. Variations Digital Music Library System and Variations Audio Timeliner. [Bloomington, IN]: Indiana University, 2005-. http://www.dlib.indiana.edu/projects/variations3/index.html (Accessed December 2011). [Requires a Web browser, Adobe Flash Player, and an Internet connection. Full Variations system requires installation of Linux operating system, MySQL 5 database, Java, Darwin streaming server, DjVuLibre, Apache Web server, and Tomcat Web application server. Variations Audio Timeliner requires a Pentium II 500MHz processes, 256MB RAM (512MB preferred), 2GB hard drive or better, 16-bit audio, 1024x768 resolution, and QuickTime 7.0 or higher. Required operating systems include Windows 2000, XP, or Vista for Windows or Mac OS X for Macintosh. Pricing: free.] First launched by Indiana University in the mid-1990s, Variations is a digital asset management system uniquely designed to handle music materials. The software became available to other institutions as an open source release in 2009. While there are other systems on the market that institutions have adapted to manage musicrelated assets (such as DSpace (1) and CONTENTdm (2)), none of these focus specifically on music and none handle music materials as effectively as Variations. Iii its most current incarnation, Variations offers back-end tools for digitizing audio and print materials as well as front-end interfaces for accessing streamed audio and digital scores. Since Indiana's open source release, many institutions are using Variations as a reserves system, though it has potential for much broader applications. The system could be used for delivering institutional musical performances, rare/special collection recordings, or non-music recordings such as speeches. readings, and broadcasts. In addition to providing mechanisms for digitizing and delivery, Variations also offers tools specifically designed to enrich the user experience. Such tools include customizable bookmarks, playlists, annotation options, and quizzing functions. Variations is available both as a browserbased interface and as a standalone Java application (see figures 1 and 2). Presently the Web version works only with audio (riot scores)! The stand-alone version is available for the latest Mac or Windows operating systems (Mac OS X, Windows Vista, and Windows 7) and requires QuickTime software to function. (4) Details for downloading Variations will vary by institution, as will the way in which users launch and use the system. Users who wish to explore either the standalone version or browser-based interface with sample tracks may visit the Variations Web site for more information. (5) The particular process used at Baylor University) is discussed laler in this review. [FIGURE 1 OMITTED] AUDIO PLAYER In addition to the standard playback/ control functions one would expect (volume control, play/pause.and navigation). the audio player allows users to create playlists. These playlisis are exportable as either HTML, files or native Variations files (V2P). Either Format results in a small file (approximately 4KB). Opening a playlist file or HTML document launches Variations and loads the playlist. The audio player also has a bookmarking feature that allows users to mark locations within it recording for later use. While the default name for the bookmark is taken from the track listing. users can rename and rearrange bookmarks and can also add comments to each bookmark. From the edit screen, users can manage bookmarks by organizing them into folders. sending bookmarks to a playlist, or exporting them as HTML. or Variations (V2B) files. SCORE VIEWER The Variations score viewer allows navigation of the entire score through a scrub bar. …