1. ¹LGI2P Research Centre, Ecole des Mines d'Alès, Nîmes, France
2. ²School of Computer Science and Engineering, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia
3. ³NETIA Inc., Halle Industrielle de Farjou, Claret, France

Correspondence: Michel Crampes, LGI2P Research Centre, EMA/Site EERIE, Parc scientifique G. Besse, F - 30 035 Nîmes cedex, France. Tel: (33)+0 466 785 232; Fax: (33)+0 466 387 074; Michel.Crampes@ema.fr

Received 16 December 2005; Revised 4 April 2006; Accepted 13 April 2006; Published online 22 June 2006.

Abstract

Concept Maps (CMaps) are an excellent method to visually represent and interact with a knowledge domain. A Knowledge Map (KMap) is a further complicated instance of a CMap, containing many instances of concepts and concept relations that add to the complexity of a visual representation. Adaptivity is also a key requirement for KMaps that we will demonstrate through practical example. This paper presents both a method, called 'Domain-View-Controller' (DVC) and a software environment specifically designed to create adaptive KMaps from CMaps. These tools give professional knowledge designers the means for specifying the domain knowledge of end users, allowing them to build well-organized adaptive KMaps with partial automated assistance. This paper also presents a scheme for the fully automated process of creating KMaps from domain specifications, giving end users the ability to display complex knowledge without having the expertise of knowledge engineers. The paper focuses on a real-world example from the domain of music to illustrate the underlying principles.