Open Source TechFinder
Inspired by the AUTM conference, I got inspired to look at some of the common processes techtransfer folks do. Main idea was to try to develop something relatively ‘standalone’ that might address a use case I learned about, so I decided on building a web-based open source techfinder tool to publish licensable technologies.
The notion of a ‘techfinder’ isn’t specifically new – many departments have one – I think AUTM itself even has one. However, I decided I’d try my hand at putting something basic together, partially as a challenge to build something ‘start to finish’ that could stand on its own, as opposed to just enhancements to current systems.
A main question that has no simple answer: where to draw the lines around functionality? Having seen various systems, there’s common behaviour, but lots of variation – tag clouds vs nested hierarchies vs nothing, for example. Speed – some systems are fast, some slow.
When deciding how much to put in a base system, I’m also aware that not everyone will have the skills to get everything set up, and I’m trying to figure out where to draw the line between simplicity and complexity.
How important is full text search? Fuzzy searching (to handle spelling mistakes by the end user)? Semantic/AI-enhanced search? Searching of any provided support documents? Speed? Any type of analytics/usage tracking?
How are you handling techfinder-type systems in your office operations? Would you use them more if they provided more functionality?
If you’re interested in learning more about the system under development, let me know. I’ll likely post about it here in the coming weeks, but happy to discuss any specific details before then.
The notion of a ‘techfinder’ isn’t specifically new – many departments have one – I think AUTM itself even has one. However, I decided I’d try my hand at putting something basic together, partially as a challenge to build something ‘start to finish’ that could stand on its own, as opposed to just enhancements to current systems.
A main question that has no simple answer: where to draw the lines around functionality? Having seen various systems, there’s common behaviour, but lots of variation – tag clouds vs nested hierarchies vs nothing, for example. Speed – some systems are fast, some slow.
When deciding how much to put in a base system, I’m also aware that not everyone will have the skills to get everything set up, and I’m trying to figure out where to draw the line between simplicity and complexity.
How important is full text search? Fuzzy searching (to handle spelling mistakes by the end user)? Semantic/AI-enhanced search? Searching of any provided support documents? Speed? Any type of analytics/usage tracking?
How are you handling techfinder-type systems in your office operations? Would you use them more if they provided more functionality?
If you’re interested in learning more about the system under development, let me know. I’ll likely post about it here in the coming weeks, but happy to discuss any specific details before then.