Microsoft tests EntityCube project
Have you ever searched for someone, even yourself, on the Web and then found it hard to actually cull the interesting facts, figures, and news from the vast amount of results? If so then Microsoft’s new EntityCube could be just the tool you’ve been waiting for.
Search engine’s such as Google and Microsoft’s own Bing are an essential part of the Web – without them whole rafts of the Internet would become vast wildernesses rarely visited as people fail to actually locate them. However, they aren’t perfect, being reliant on a user’s ability to enter the correct keywords and then to sift through the results for the most relevant information.
There are obviously sites which pull together information about a subject or a person and presents it without the need to search. Wikipedia is probably the best know example. However, if you’re not famous then you aren’t welcome on Wikipedia, with non-entities such as myself not afforded the pleasure of seeing their own biography presented on the site for all to see. Although, with Wikipedia’s penchant for errors maybe that’s not such a bad thing.
Microsoft’s new EntityCube is a place where I could turn up though. As could you. And your next door neighbor.
Currently part of Microsoft Research, EntityCube is based on the Chinese language tool Renlifang, which literally translates into EntityCube. Renlifang is proving very popular in China, with millions of page views on a daily basis. And Microsoft is keen to repeat that level of success with an English language version.
EntityCube is in essence a research tool that draws information from 3 billion Web pages to create an instant profile of anyone in the world. If they’ve ever done anything on the Web then there will be at least some information relating to that person.
As well as the biography there are links to related social networks and a list of people the person searched for may have connections to. It’s not yet perfect, as searching for myself brings up a Dave Parrack who is an Equipment Engineer at GlaxoSmithKline. Which isn’t me, although I’m sure he’s more handsome and earns more money than me.
The best feature of the whole thing is the Guanxi Map, which brings up a visual representation of the person’s connections. My one has some names I recognize, some I don’t, and some celebrities. Unfortunately, I’ve never met either David Beckham or Eddie Murphy, and I wasn’t in The Dark Knight.
EntityCube is fun and useful for those whose search brings up the person intended. However, there are clearly a few problems to iron out before this is ready to leave Microsoft Research. You can try it out for yourself now though.
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