Thesis Book "Adaptive Data Compression"

Thesis History And Details

From 1984 to 1989 I was a Ph.D. candidate in the Department Of Computer Science at the University of Adelaide. My supervisor was Bill Beaumont. Tao Li acted as temporary supervisor for about a year. I submitted my dissertation on 30 June 1989. My thesis examiners were Glen Langdon and Moshe Zukerman. The thesis was accepted on 16 November 1989 and I was awarded the degree on 30 April 1990. The number of the thesis at the Barr-Smith Library at the University of Adelaide is BSL-09PH-W7262.

In 1990/1991 my thesis was published as a book by Kluwer Academic Publishers. The book subsequently sold out (in 1992) and was reprinted (as reported in Lumen "Ph.D. Thesis Sold Out", Lumen 21(5) p.6, 8 May 1992, (The University of Adelaide News Magazine))

One of the reasons I think that the book sold well was because in addition to being a Ph.D. thesis bringing new ideas and research results, it was also a solid reference work. The book contains a 100 page overview of the field of text data compression which still remains a good introduction to the field of text compression.

In addition, the thesis is rich in experimental results and includes dozens of graphs of the performance of Markov text compression algorithms running under a wide range of conditions. It is an essential reference for anyone designing a text compression algorithm of any kind.

You can order the book from the publisher Kluwer Academic Publishers or from Amazon Books:

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More Information

Title: Adaptive Data Compression
Author: Ross N. Williams
ISBN: 0-7923-9085-7
Price: US$143 (July 1998)
Publisher:
   Kluwer Books
   101 Philip Drive
   Norwell MA 02061
   USA
   Ph: +1 (781) 871-6600
   Fx: +1 (781) 871 6528
   Nt: kluwer@wkap.com
Size:
   Approx 24cmx17cmx3cm
   (or approx 9.5"x6.5"x1.25")
Pages:
   Hardback, 382 pages,
   printed on acid free paper.
Contents include:
   106 figures, 51 tables,
   185 references, 24 page index.

Here is an abbreviated table of contents:

   Chapter 1: Introductory Survey.................   1
   Chapter 2: The DHPC Algorithm.................. 107
   Chapter 3: A Classification of Adaptivity...... 125
   Chapter 4: An Experimental Adaptive Algorithm.. 145
   Chapter 5: A Multimodal Algorithm.............. 245
   Chapter 6: Applications to User Interfaces..... 283
   Chapter 7: Conclusions......................... 305

Chapter 1 gives a comprehensive overview of the field of text data compression. Chapter 2 describes a simple Markov algorithm called DHPC. Chapter 3 investigates the use of adaptivity in data compression algorithms. Chapter 4 describes the SAKDC algorithm and also contains a wealth of experimental data. Chapter 5 introduces a new class of adaptivity in data compression algorithms (multimodal adaptivity) and describes the MMDC algorithm which implements it. Chapter 6 shows how data compression techniques can be applied in user interfaces.

Blurb On The Back Of The Book

ADAPTIVE DATA COMPRESSION reviews the field of text data compression and then addresses the problem of compressing rapidly changing data streams. To compress such streams, the compressor must continuously revise its model of the data, and sometimes even discard its model in favour of a new one.

While the techniques involved in data compression are often complicated, the basic ideas are simple, and throughout ADAPTIVE DATA COMPRESSION, Williams has endeavoured to keep them so. The reader should be able to comprehend this volume with little or no previous knowledge of data compression.

"The modern data compression paradigm furthered by this work is based upon the separation of adaptive context modelling, adaptive statistics, and arithmetic coding. This work offers the most complete bibliography on this subject I am aware of. It provides an excellent and lucid review of the field, and should be equally as beneficial to newcomers as to those of us already in the field." (from the foreword by Glen G. Langdon, Jr.)

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You can order the book online from the publisher Kluwer Academic Publishers or from Amazon Books:

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