Web-based UMLS concept retrieval by automatic text scanning: a comparison of two methods

The Web is increasingly the medium of choice for multi-user application pro gram delivery. Yet selection of an appropriate programming environment for rapid prototyping, code portability, and maintainability remain issues. We summarize our experience on the conversion of a LISP Web application, Searc h/SR to a new, functionally identical application, Search/SR-ASP using a re lational database and active server pages (ASP) technology. Our results ind icate that provision of easy access to database engines and external object s is almost essential for a development environment to be considered viable for rapid and robust application delivery. While LISP itself is a robust l anguage, its use in Web applications may be hard to justify given that curr ent vendor implementations do not provide such functionality. Alternative, currently available scripting environments for Web development appear to ha ve most of LISP's advantages and few of its disadvantages. (C) 2001 Elsevie r Science Ireland Ltd. All rights reserved.