DocuComp® Pinpoints Web Site Changes for World’s Largest Internet Archive

Internet Archive selects DocuComp comparison technology so users can see how public Web sites have changed over time

LOS ALTOS, CA (PRWEB) November 7, 2002 -based non-

profit Internet Archive has licensed ASI’s market-leading DocuComp® comparison technology to compare web pages on its popular Wayback Machine website archive (http://www.archive.org). With the new DocuComp capability, Wayback Machine visitors can instantly identify the differences between any two historical web page versions in the website archive of more than 10 billion pages.

Founded in 1996, the Internet Archive has assembled the world’s largest Internet library (over 100 terabytes of data), offering researchers, historians, and scholars permanent access to historical collections in digital format.

The Wayback Machine, among the most heavily trafficked sites on the Internet, has helped more than a million visitors locate past versions of Web sites, even those of companies no longer in existence.

“If you’re interested in the evolution of the Web or of a specific Web site, you’ll inevitably run into similar pages that leave you wondering what’s changed,” explains Internet Archive founder Brewster Kahle. “With DocuComp, Wayback Machine visitors now have an easy and powerful way to compare any two web page versions,” he added.

The DocuComp comparison engine, best known as the popular “compare versions” feature in Microsoft® Word, uses sophisticated pattern matching techniques to compare any two web pages, reporting inserted, deleted, replaced and even moved text.

“The Internet Archive provides an important public service, and Advanced Software is excited that DocuComp is helping Wayback Machine visitors derive more value from the archive,” said Eric Quanstrom, DocuComp's Director of Business Development.

DocuComp is included as the “Compare Archive Pages” option from within all Wayback Machine search results pages. The results of a comparison are displayed in a new page, with each change clearly highlighted.

ASI’s DocuComp comparison technology operates in cross-platform client and server application environments and is accessible through a robust C, C++ or Java application programmer’s interface. Licensees can embed the DocuComp technology into any web-based application to compare HTML, XML or other SGML variants.

About Advanced Software

Advanced Software develops and licenses change management technologies for use in client and server-based collaborative solutions. As the developer of DocuComp, the world’s first automated document comparison program, it was awarded a United States patent titled Apparatus and method for comparing data groups. Advanced Software has licensed the DocuComp comparison engine to a number of notable companies including Microsoft, Apple Computer and many others. It now focuses exclusively on licensing and developing DocuComp and related change management technologies. For more information, please visit the DocuComp Web site at http://www.docucomp.com or call Advanced Software toll-free at (866) 329-7480.

About The Internet Archive

The Internet Archive was founded in 1996 in order to build a digital library and other cultural artifacts in digital form, with the purpose of offering permanent and free access to researchers, historians, scholars, and the general public. The Archive holds a collection of archived web pages, dating from 1996 and comprising 100 terabytes. Since 1999, the Archive has expanded its collections to include: a September 11 television and online catalog; an Election 2000 online library; archived movies from 1903-1973; and other documents. Located in San Francisco, the Archive is a 501(c)(3) public nonprofit whose benefactors include Alexa Internet, Markle Foundation, Compaq, the Kahle/Austin Foundation, Prelinger Archives, Xerox PARC, the Library of Congress, and the National Science Foundation. Visit the Internet Archive website at http://www.archive.org.

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