Describing the technologies to combine language resources flexibly as
web services, this book provides valuable case studies for those who
work in services computing, language resources, human-computer
interaction (HCI), computer-supported cooperative work (CSCW), and
service science. The authors have been operating the Language Grid,
which wraps existing language resources as atomic language services and
enables users to compose new services by combining them. From
architecture level to service composition level, the book explains how
to resolve infrastructural and operational difficulties in sharing and
combining language resources, including interoperability of language
service infrastructures, various types of language service policies,
human services, and service failures.
The research based on the authors' operating experiences of handling
complicated issues such as intellectual property and interoperability of
language resources contributes to exploitation of language resources as
a service. On the other hand, both the analysis based on using services
and the design of new services can bring significant results. A new
style of multilingual communication supported by language services is
worthy of analysis in HCI/CSCW, and the design process of language
services is the focus of valuable case studies in service science. By
using language resources in different ways based on the Language Grid,
many activities are highly regarded by diverse communities.
This book consists of four parts: (1) two types of language service
platforms to interconnect language services across service grids, (2)
various language service composition technologies that improve the
reusability, efficiency, and accuracy of composite services, (3)
research work and activities in creating language resources and
services, and (4) various applications and tools for understanding and
designing language services that well support intercultural
collaboration.
