ORF 2009 News Recap

Greetings:

I've been blogging on my own web site (http://javarules.blogspot.com) and have not been active enough on this one. So, here is a recap of all the new about October Rules Fest 2009:

The Adolphus dramatically dropped their room rates down to $129 / night so that the attendees will not have to stay at a cheaper hotel nearby and walk in what might be inclement weather to the conference. Also, they can hang out in the Pub Night room and then only have to catch the elevator to their room.

Keynote Speaker: Thomas Cooper, a contemporary of Charles Forgy, Anoop Gupta, Paul Haley, John McDermott, Allen Newell and others of that era. Tom co-authored a book on OPS5 in the 80's and is one of the "thought leaders" of this industry.

Thursday Think Tank - T3: On Thursday afternoon we will feature our leading speakers in a Think Tank that is open to the Attendees as well. Since the session is all afternoon, there should be plenty of time for questions and, maybe, an answer or two.

Drools Boot Camp - DBC: All day Sunday and Monday morning. Led by Mark Proctor and Edson Tirelli this proved to be a source of great interest last year and it should be even more interesting this year. This is free for ORF Attendees.

Jess Boot Camp - JBC: Jason Morris of Morris Technical Solutions will be giving a Jess tutorial all day on Sunday and Monday morning. The schedule is posted and promises to be extremely interesting to those who like Jess and/or CLIPS as their primary rulebase language. This is free for ORF attendees.

Student Fees: Once again this year we have discounted Student Fees to $150 for the entire ORF session that includes the JBC and DBC. Students will need to send us a copy of their current photo-ID drivers license and their photo-ID Student ID card to qualify. The same cards will have to be presented at ORF for verification.

Ping Pong / Table Tennis and/or Foosball has been cancelled due to lack of interest. Sorry about that. I was looking forward to a tournament kind of evening.

White Papers and Presentations will be available during the conference for you to load on your computer to follow along. However, all will be copyrighted to either the individual speaker or to October Rules Fest Corporation.

Brochures will be available at the conference and electronically later this week. (Thanks, Chelanie). This will be a real keep-sake for your Golden Years.

So, if you haven't registered already, do so NOW. He who hesitates is lost. :-)

More and more good news on ORF 2009

Greetings:

First, some GREAT news! We have re-arranged the Agenda so that we could accommodate a "Thursday Afternoon Think Tank on Needful Things." This would be a round table discussion (with some attendee participation) on various subjects that concern the more technical aspects of rulebased systems rather than their direct application to problems per se. Those who have agreed to be on the panel are Dr. Charles Forgy, Mark Proctor, Gary Riley, Dr. Jacob Feldman, Dr. Richard Hicks, Carole Ann Berlioz-Matignon, Carlos Seranno-Morales, Jason Morris and Paul Vincent. For example, a few of the topics will (might) be Complex Event Processing, Benchmarks in This Century, Patterns in Rulebased Systems, Finite State Machines as a Special Type of Rules, etc. This is focused more on the "hard core" developers and "thought leaders" in the rulebase field. However, ALL attendees and/or speakers are invited to attend and be part of the direction(s) that rulebased systems might take for the next decade.

Another change is that there will be another Drools Boot Camp (like last year) headed up by Mark Proctor. This will be co-located with October Rules Fest in The Adolphus hotel and will be all day SUNDAY and MONDY morning. Since Mark and Edson will be there anyway this was a great opportunity for another in a great series of DBCs that Mark has done in the past. The DBC will be absolutely free for ORF attendees but there will be a charge if you are attending DBC only so that we can pay for the room, coffee, etc.

Finally, the conference proper will start on MONDAY AFTERNOON rather than Tuesday morning. The lead-off speaker will be Lawrence Terrill on a really good explanation of the Rete Algorithm - one of the best that I have ever seen.

I've been reading through some of the early submissions of the White Papers for October Rules Fest and they are really outstanding! Dr. Charles Forgy's paper on parallel rulebased systems (need and solutions) is fantastic. As is that of Gary Riley on optimizing performance in CLIPS. Andrew Waterman submitted one on games and is looking for folks to submit more add-ons. Dr. Richard Hicks has submitted one on Validation and Verification that everyone should read. (He is giving each attendee a free copy of the game.) Dr. Daniel Levine's paper explores the inner-dimension of the brain itself, its own self-imposed rules and problems with "rational thought process." Remember, all of these will be available at no charge only to attendees at ORF 2009.

Anyway, you need to sign up (if you haven't already done so) and be sure to reserve a hotel room. We still have a few places left.

SDG

jco

http://www.OctoberRulesFest.org

Table Tennis or Foosball - Chess or Checkers

Greetings:

October Rules Fest is pretty much an "All Rules All The Time" kind of place. But, some folks need a bit of respite from constantly being bombarded with this or that technical feature of which rulebased system and its importance and just need something to relax. Something that is not getting drunk at one of the many local bars or hanging out at in the restaurant trying to stay awake because the geek on the other side of the table just runs on and on and on and...

So! We added two polls on the left side of this page. One is whether you would like to have Foosball or Table Tennis at ORF 2009. The other asks if you would like Chess or Checkers at ORF 2009. If (and only if) you plan on attending October Rules Fest 2009, and you actually care about either one of these activities, please vote on which one. If you think that things like Table Tennis (sometimes called Ping Pong) and Foosball are totally unprofessional at a conference such as ORF, then vote for neither. On the other hand, if you believe that that these are compatible with any conference, then please for one or the other or both. If we get enough interested, then maybe we could arrange some kind of tournament in the evenings.

Most of all, I would appreciate your comments on this subject. Yes (and why) or no (and why). Personally, I like both TT and Chess so I voted for those two.

SDG

jco

ORF 2009 Super Early Bird Discount Extension

Greetings:

October Rules Fest 2009 has extended the Super Early Bird discount of 20% off of normal registration fees to midnight, June 6th, 2009. Regular registration is $500 so that represents $100 savings. If you have any questions, check out http://www.OctoberRulesFest.org for more info on speakers, agenda, etc. The hotel should be determined not later than Friday of this week, June 5th. Anyway, be SURE to register THIS WEEK to get the best savings. :-)

With parking at ANY hotel in downtown Dallas being astronomical (cheaper than New York, San Francisco, London or Paris though) it might be more economical to park-and-ride. There will be directions on the ORF web page at a later date about how to do that.

SDG
jco

October Rules Fest 2009

Greetings:

Well, ORF 2009 is ready to rock and roll in downtown Dallas again, only this year the conference will be in the center of the downtown Dallas restaurant district rather than on the outskirts like last year. Just point your Google Earth to 1400 Commerce Street in downtown Dallas and you'll see what I mean. Everything from MacDonald's to The French Room to the "ultra cool" Fuse restaurant. After we check them out, the ORF web site have an ever-expanding list of top (not necessarily expensive) restaurants within a two- or three-block walking radius.

We won't have the same space as last year so, counting the 30+ speakers that we will have, there will be room for only about 170 attendees - first come first served. So, register early and you will still get your 20% discount. There is still no extra charge for tutorials if you are attending the conference and this year's tutorial have a great line up. As a matter of fact, the entire agenda is great. As you can see from the speaker bios those who are returning and the new speakers for this year are strictly "top drawer" - the best of the best.

If your company is interested in becoming a sponsor, contact info@OctoberRulesFest.org and let them know. Again, remember that there is room this year for only 170 attendees. Maybe 180, but that's about it. More on the hotel as it develops but it is down to a choice of only two really great hotels for the same price as last year - but more goodies.

So, register early and ensure that you have a great spot at the Second Annual October Rules Fest. Most of all, like last year, we're going to have FUN and we're going to enjoy ourselves.

SDG

jco

Data for Manners 2009

Greetings:

OK, here it is.  As you can see, we have to possibility of adding some complexity regarding the teachers and socialites.  BUT, we'll do that only if the times are extremely low.

==============================

Num,Profession,SubProf,Gender,Hobby1,Hobby2,Hobby3

-------------------------------------------

1,Politician,Democrat,F,4,1,2

2,Politician,Democrat,F,1,2,4

3,Politician,Democrat,F,5,1,3

4,Politician,Democrat,F,3,4,2

5,Politician,Democrat,F,2,5,3

6,Politician,Democrat,F,4,3,5

7,Politician,Democrat,M,4,1,2

8,Politician,Democrat,M,4,1,3

9,Politician,Democrat,M,2,3,4

10,Politician,Democrat,M,1,2,4

11,Politician,Democrat,M,5,3,1

12,Politician,Democrat,M,4,3,5

13,Politician,Republican,F,3,4,2

14,Politician,Republican,F,3,5,4

15,Politician,Republican,F,3,1,4

16,Politician,Republican,F,1,3,4

17,Politician,Republican,F,2,4,3

18,Politician,Republican,F,4,1,5

19,Politician,Republican,M,1,3,2

20,Politician,Republican,M,5,3,4

21,Politician,Republican,M,5,4,2

22,Politician,Republican,M,2,3,1

23,Politician,Republican,M,2,4,1

24,Politician,Republican,M,4,5,1

25,Doctor,Pediatrician,F,3,4,1

26,Doctor,Pediatrician,F,2,5,3

27,Doctor,Pediatrician,F,2,5,3

28,Doctor,Pediatrician,F,1,3,5

29,Doctor,Pediatrician,F,1,2,3

30,Doctor,Pediatrician,F,1,1,5

31,Doctor,Pediatrician,M,4,5,3

32,Doctor,Pediatrician,M,3,1,5

33,Doctor,Surgeon,F,2,3,1

34,Doctor,Surgeon,F,3,5,1

35,Doctor,Surgeon,F,5,4,1

36,Doctor,Surgeon,F,5,3,4

37,Doctor,Surgeon,M,2,4,1

38,Doctor,Surgeon,M,2,5,3

39,Doctor,Surgeon,M,4,3,2

40,Doctor,Surgeon,M,1,3,5

41,Doctor,Osteopath,F,4,3,2

42,Doctor,Osteopath,F,4,1,3

43,Doctor,Osteopath,M,5,4,1

44,Doctor,Osteopath,M,2,1,3

45,Doctor,Osteopath,M,2,5,3

46,Doctor,Osteopath,M,3,2,5

47,Doctor,Osteopath,M,5,4,3

48,Doctor,Osteopath,M,5,4,1

49,Sports,Basketball,F,1,3,5

50,Sports,Basketball,F,3,5,1

51,Sports,Basketball,F,5,1,3

52,Sports,Basketball,F,4,2,1

53,Sports,Basketball,M,2,1,4

54,Sports,Basketball,M,5,1,4

55,Sports,Basketball,M,4,5,1

56,Sports,Basketball,M,3,5,2

57,Sports,Football,M,4,3,2

58,Sports,Football,M,3,2,4

59,Sports,Football,M,5,3,2

60,Sports,Football,M,2,3,4

61,Sports,Football,M,4,1,2

62,Sports,Football,M,1,5,2

63,Sports,Football,M,3,5,1

64,Sports,Football,M,2,3,1

65,Sports,Football,M,3,4,5

66,Sports,Football,M,5,3,4

67,Sports,Football,M,2,1,3

68,Sports,Football,M,2,4,3

69,Sports,Baseball,M,2,5,4

70,Sports,Baseball,M,2,3,1

71,Sports,Baseball,M,4,2,3

72,Sports,Baseball,M,3,1,4

73,Teacher,Math,F,4,5,2

74,Teacher,Math,F,3,4,2

75,Teacher,Math,M,4,4,3

76,Teacher,Math,M,2,1,3

77,Teacher,Math,M,3,5,2

78,Teacher,Math,M,5,2,3

79,Teacher,Math,M,4,2,3

80,Teacher,Math,M,1,4,3

81,Teacher,English,F,3,5,4

82,Teacher,English,F,4,3,1

83,Teacher,English,M,4,3,5

84,Teacher,English,M,1,2,3

85,Teacher,Science,F,4,2,1

86,Teacher,Science,F,3,2,1

87,Teacher,Science,M,1,3,5

88,Teacher,Science,M,1,5,3

89,Teacher,Sports,F,5,3,2

90,Teacher,Sports,F,2,5,3

91,Teacher,Sports,M,1,4,2

92,Teacher,Sports,M,1,4,5

93,Teacher,History,F,1,5,3

94,Teacher,History,F,1,3,5

95,Teacher,History,M,4,1,2

96,Teacher,History,M,4,3,2

97,Programmer,MacIntosh,F,2,4,3

98,Programmer,MacIntosh,F,4,5,1

99,Programmer,MacIntosh,F,5,3,1

100,Programmer,MacIntosh,M,2,5,3

101,Programmer,MacIntosh,M,4,1,3

102,Programmer,MacIntosh,M,5,4,3

103,Programmer,MacIntosh,M,4,3,1

104,Programmer,MacIntosh,M,1,5,4

105,Programmer,Windows,F,5,4,3

106,Programmer,Windows,F,2,4,3

107,Programmer,Windows,F,1,5,4

108,Programmer,Windows,F,2,4,5

109,Programmer,Windows,F,4,2,3

110,Programmer,Windows,F,1,3,2

111,Programmer,Windows,M,4,3,2

112,Programmer,Windows,M,3,4,1

113,Programmer,COBOL,F,4,1,3

114,Programmer,COBOL,F,5,2,1

115,Programmer,COBOL,M,2,3,4

116,Programmer,COBOL,M,2,3,5

117,Programmer,COBOL,M,4,5,1

118,Programmer,COBOL,M,3,2,5

119,Programmer,COBOL,M,2,4,5

120,Programmer,COBOL,M,4,2,1

121,Socialite,Republican,F,4,5,3

122,Socialite,Republican,F,1,3,5

123,Socialite,Republican,F,2,2,3

124,Socialite,Republican,F,1,3,5

125,Socialite,Republican,F,3,2,4

126,Socialite,Republican,F,3,2,1

127,Socialite,Democrat,F,5,2,3

128,Socialite,Democrat,F,5,4,3

129,Socialite,Democrat,F,1,5,2

130,Socialite,Democrat,F,1,4,5

131,Socialite,Democrat,F,5,4,1

132,Socialite,Democrat,F,4,1,2

133,Socialite,Democrat,F,1,3,5

134,Socialite,Democrat,F,1,4,5

135,Socialite,Democrat,F,2,5,1

136,Socialite,Democrat,F,1,4,5

137,Socialite,Democrat,F,3,4,1

138,Socialite,Democrat,F,2,5,3

139,Socialite,Republican,M,3,1,5

140,Socialite,Republican,M,1,2,3

141,Socialite,Republican,M,1,5,3

142,Socialite,Republican,M,4,2,3

143,Socialite,Democrat,M,4,1,2

144,Socialite,Democrat,M,1,5,3

----------------------------------

Benchmarking at ORF 2009

Greetings:

There have been many suggestions as to the problems for the vendors at October Rules Fest this year.  I have submitted one already (Einstein's Puzzle) and the "beginning" of another (Miss Manners 2009) but I have not done the data on the last one.  I really was hoping that an enterprise-size vendor (FICO, ILOG, Haley, Pega, ???) would find someone on staff that is not too busy and task them with this simple but time consuming job.  Didn't happen.

Geoffrey De Smet suggested that we use the benchmark problem from the ITC competition, http://www.cs.qub.ac.uk/itc2007/index.htm that had to do with Exam Registration.  On the benchmarks page they said that it was running between 300 to 500 seconds on a "modern PC using Windows XP."  I would think that 5 - 10 minutes would be a bit long for my tastes but you never can tell.  Personally I prefer old-fashioned Unix (or UNIX if you're that old) rather than Windoze or even Linux.  

I have looked at this particular problem / benchmark and it appears to be more of an Operational Research (OR) problem in optimization than a rulebase problem.  We "could" require that the solution be done in a rulebase but those who have OR engines would scream bloody murder if we did.  

However, I leave it with you in the interim to determine what should be a good rulebase problem and what does not lend itself to simple "data smashing" of a typical "business" problem.  The problem should be fairly complex and require a bit of work on the part of the engine itself rather than depending on the operating system and database to do the work.  Please either comment (or if you have authorship privileges then blog) some kind of response to this.  Whatever is decided should be a problem that is long on complexity and short on blandness.  

SDG

jco