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Supervisor, Brian Gaines, Department of Computer Science

________________________________________________
Ken Loose, Department of Computer Science

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Robert Kremer, Department of Computer Science

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Steve Norman, Department of Electrical Engineering

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Date

I would also like to thank Rob Kremer for the lengthy discussions we had that helped me to cope with the intricacy of object-oriented abstractions. Likewise, I would like to thank Dr. Mildred Shaw, Dr. Saul Greenberg, Dr. Dickson Lukose, Lee Chen, Mark Roseman, Carl Gutwin, Gladimir Baranoski, Jalal Kawash, and Pim van Leewen for their timely input and advice. A special mention goes to the people at the Computer Science Department (students, faculty and staff) for their unconditional support and friendship.

Many thanks to Dr. Jorge Carpizo, Wilhelm Pérez, José Luis Zamorano, Dr. Enrique Sauri and Fernando Novelo Castro, who gave me the opportunity to enter graduate school in the first place. Thanks to José Alvarez Jr. for his invaluable job of proof-reading this Thesis.

And last, but not least, I would like to thank my wife Cecilia and child Ricardo for being a source of motivation and encouragement. Thanks to my parents, Augusto and Ligia, for teaching me that I could accomplish anything I set out to do.

This work was supported by the Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tecnología (CONACYT).

Approval Page
Abstract
Acknowledgments
Dedications
Table of Contents
List of Tables
List of Figures



CHAPTER 1 Introduction


1.1 Aim
1.2 Motivation
1.3 Concept Maps

1.3.1 Applications

1.4 Client-Server Computing

1.4.1 The Internet
1.4.2 The World Wide Web
1.4.3 Executable Code on the World Wide Web

1.4.3.1 Common Gateway Interface
1.4.3.2 Helpers and Plug-ins
1.4.3.3 Downloadable Code

1.4.4 The Java Programming Language

1.5 Research Objectives
1.6 Thesis Overview




CHAPTER 2 Downloadable Code on the World Wide Web


2.1 Issues for Downloadable Code

2.1.1 Portability
2.1.2 Security
2.1.3 Functionality

2.2 Integration of Downloadable Code to the World Wide Web

2.2.1 ActiveX

2.2.1.1 Portability
2.2.1.2 Security
2.2.1.3 Functionality

2.2.2 Java

2.2.2.1 Portability
2.2.2.2 Security

2.2.2.2.1 The Language and Compiler
2.2.2.2.2 The Class Loader
2.2.2.2.3 The Bytecode Verifier
2.2.2.2.4 Security Manager

2.2.2.3 Functionality

2.3 Chapter Summary




CHAPTER 3 The Java Programming Language


3.1 Overview

3.1.1 Object-Oriented
3.1.2 Distributed
3.1.3 Portable
3.1.4 Secure
3.1.5 Multi-threaded

3.2 Programming for the Internet and the World Wide Web

3.2.1 Integration with Netscape Navigator
3.2.2 Internet Networking

3.3 Language comparison between Java and C++
3.4 Chapter Summary




CHAPTER 4 Implementing a Java Concept Mapping Tool


4.1 Previous Work
4.2 System Requirements

4.2.1 Development Framework
4.2.2 Supporting Multi-User Environments

4.3 jKSImapper

4.3.1 The Windows Manager
4.3.2 The Concept Map Window

4.4 jKSImapplet

4.4.1 jKSImapplet Navigator

4.5 Chapter Summary




CHAPTER 5 System Architecture


5.1 The jCMap Class Library

5.1.1 The Behavioural Graphic Classes
5.1.2 The Visual Graphic Classes
5.1.3 The User Interface Classes
5.1.4 The Command Handling Classes
5.1.5 The Networking and Server Classes
5.1.6 The File Storage Classes

5.2 Runtime System Architecture

5.2.1 Client Systems

5.2.1.1 jKSImapper

5.2.1.1.1 Execution Structure
5.2.1.1.2 Concept Mapping Structure

5.2.1.2 jKSImapplet

5.2.1.2.1 Execution Structure
5.2.1.2.2 Concept Mapping Structure

5.2.2 Server Process
5.2.3 MIME File Format

5.3 Porting C++ Code to Java: Lessons Learned

5.3.1 Automatic Memory Management
5.3.2 Portability and Graphical User Interfaces
5.3.3 Class Inheritance and Interfaces
5.3.4 Generic Programming
5.3.5 Parameter-Passing
5.3.6 Multi-Threading
5.3.7 World Wide Web Integration

5.4 Chapter Summary




CHAPTER 6 Evaluation and Future Development


6.1 Evaluation

6.1.1 Requirements
6.1.2 Background
6.1.3 Current Work in the Field
6.1.4 Implementation
6.1.5 Demonstration
6.1.6 Future Work

6.2 Areas of Future Development

6.2.1 Extending Functionality

6.2.1.1 Conceptual Graphs
6.2.1.2 The Habanero Environment

6.2.2 Improving Functionality

6.2.2.1 Human-Computer Interface
6.2.2.2 Multi-user Issues
6.2.2.3 Miscellaneous Improvements

6.3 Thesis Summary and Conclusion




REFERENCES

Table 1. Scenarios for Executable Code on the Web
Table 2. Access parameter compliance of prevalent Java interpreters
Table 3. Java Primitive Data Types
Table 4. Interaction modes of CSCW systems
Table 5. Operations performed in Concept Map Windows
Table 6. Command values defined on the Command class

Figure 1. Concept Map on the Java Language
Figure 2. Models for Software distribution
Figure 3. Java Security Model
Figure 4. Component classes from the Abstract Window Toolkit library
Figure 5. Code example for a Java method invocation from JavaScript
Figure 6. Code Example for a JavaScript method invocation from Java
Figure 7. Code example on initialization of strings and arrays
Figure 8. Concept Mapping Development at the Knowledge Science Institute
Figure 9. jKSImapper components
Figure 10. The Windows Manager
Figure 11. A formal concept map describing the sentence "Tom believes that Mary wants to marry a sailor."
Figure 12. Available Shapes for Nodes
Figure 13. Available Links
Figure 14. Example of a Context Box
Figure 15. jKSImapper selection example
Figure 16. Arrow head configurations exemplified on trinary links
Figure 17. HTML widgets interacting with jKSImapplet through JavaScript
Figure 18. jKSImapplet Navigator
Figure 19. The jCMap class hierarchy
Figure 20. The Behavioural Graphic class hierarchy
Figure 21. The Visual Graphic class hierarchy
Figure 22. The User Interface class hierarchy
Figure 23. Runtime Composition of a jKSImapperWindow object
Figure 24. The Command Handling class hierarchy
Figure 25. The Networking and Server class hierarchy
Figure 26. The File Storage class hierarchy
Figure 27. Groupware Concept Mapping Collaboration using jKSImapper and jKSImapplet
Figure 28. Sample invocation of jKSImapper on a Command Line
Figure 29. jKSImapper Execution Structure diagram
Figure 30. jKSImapper Concept Mapping Structure diagram
Figure 31. Sample invocation of jKSImapplet declared inside an HTML document
Figure 32. jKSImapplet Execution Structure diagram
Figure 33. jKSImapplet Concept Mapping Structure diagram
Figure 34. jKSImapper Server Structure diagram
Figure 35. Conceptual Graph describing the sentence "No student read the book the teacher wrote"
Figure 36. Data representing the concept map displayed on Figure 35
Figure 37. Backus-Naur Form notation for the jKSImapper MIME file format
Figure 38. Java variable states
Figure 39. Example of a Conceptual Graph as a Diagram
Figure 40. Example of a Conceptual Graph in Linear Form
Figure 41. Example of a Conceptual Graph as a First-order logical formula
Figure 42. Font style modification using menu commands
Figure 43. jKSImapper Toolbar