.. vim: set fileencoding=utf-8 : .. Copyright (c) 2016 Idiap Research Institute, http://www.idiap.ch/ .. .. Contact: beat.support@idiap.ch .. .. .. .. This file is part of the beat.web module of the BEAT platform. .. .. .. .. Commercial License Usage .. .. Licensees holding valid commercial BEAT licenses may use this file in .. .. accordance with the terms contained in a written agreement between you .. .. and Idiap. For further information contact tto@idiap.ch .. .. .. .. Alternatively, this file may be used under the terms of the GNU Affero .. .. Public License version 3 as published by the Free Software and appearing .. .. in the file LICENSE.AGPL included in the packaging of this file. .. .. The BEAT platform is distributed in the hope that it will be useful, but .. .. WITHOUT ANY WARRANTY; without even the implied warranty of MERCHANTABILITY .. .. or FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. .. .. .. .. You should have received a copy of the GNU Affero Public License along .. .. with the BEAT platform. If not, see http://www.gnu.org/licenses/. .. .. _faq: ============================ Frequently Asked Questions ============================ What kind of experiments does the |project| platform support? ----------------------------------------------------------------- The |project| platform can run software-based experiments on any kind of raw data, for as long as the following broad conditions are met: 1. You can define a dataset for the evaluation task, with usage protocols for its data (e.g. *train* and *test* subsets) 2. You can read the raw data from the dataset using Python (any further dependence on external packages is OK) 3. You can define a workflow (or a *toolchain* in |project| jargon, see :ref:`toolchains`) that express at least in one way to perform the evaluation task 4. You can define a metric for the performance evaluation of the task 5. You can write :ref:`algorithms` for any of the `available environments`_ to create valid :ref:`experiments` for the task at hand. I can't write Python code. Can I insert ```` code instead? --------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- In principle, yes. In practice, this is currently not possible at our instance of the platform. More information: Our backend executes user algorithms in a caged-environment, which is swappable. Each block is executed as an isolated process, which communicates with the backend processing infrastructure through an agnostic message passing library called ZeroMQ_. For as long as you can write the API for the user algorithms that is able to communicate with the backend, then you could enable users to program using that new language. I want to write a new backend for ````. How should I proceed? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Start by contacting our `development mailing list`_ for help on how to proceed. Can I run a version of the |project| platform on my premises? ------------------------------------------------------------- Yes, you can download the core components of the |project| platform and install it on your servers. This version will, of course, not contain algorithms, datasets, toolchains and experiments available on other instances of the |project| platform. The source-code is at `our Gitlab repository`_. You may contact our `development mailing list`_ for help to install the platform, in case you don't manage it from the provided instructions. I'm getting an error, or the platform is not functioning as expected, or the platform does not do something I need. How can I submit a feature request or a bug report? ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- It is great you asked! Always start by posting your question at our `development mailing list`_. If the new feature or bug report is confirmed, we will add it to our bug tracker. This strategy allows us to help you in case what you want to do is already possible! Additionally, sometimes after updates to the BEAT Platform, there are still old files left in your browser's cache. Clearing your caching and reloading the page may fix the issue! How can I have my dataset available on your platform? ----------------------------------------------------- There are 4 steps: 1. License agreement Formally we need to sign your End User License Agreement (EULA) explicitly mentioning the use on the |project| platform -- ideally this EULA should contain this statement or similar: *Subject to prior identification of the End User and signature of this License, the Corpus is available to the benefit of the End User. The Licensor grants to the End User the right to use the Corpus, for use on the* |project| *platform as described in the* `terms of service`_ *and for the purpose of scientific research only.* *The Licensor grants to the End User the right to reproduce temporarily, to adapt, arrange and modify the Corpus for use on the* |project| *platform. The Licensor grants to the End User the right to rework and build upon the Corpus, or any component thereof, as necessary or desirable for research or technology development activity and create derivative products or services for the End User's use of the Corpus on the* |project| *platform. The End User is permitted to make a copy of the Corpus for archiving only.* *This License gives no right of any kind to the End User over the Corpus. The License is deemed non-exclusive and non-transferable to third parties.* This step allow us to download and copy the dataset on the platform disks. 2. Bob database interface and protocol The |project| platform is using some elements of the `Bob`_ library and, in particular, Bob-styled `database interfaces`_. That allows to describe data accessors and an experiment protocol (e.g, train/dev/test subsets). Some examples: * https://pypi.python.org/pypi/bob.db.atvskeystroke * https://pypi.python.org/pypi/bob.db.gbu * https://pypi.python.org/pypi/bob.db.mobio Someone (you) needs to write a simple piece of python code for that. Support and examples can be provided `on request`_. 3. The |project| platform needs a small python interface to know how to read the data from the disk (through the ``bob.db`` accessor) and feed it into the toolchains during experiment execution. Someone (you) needs to write a simple piece of python code for that. Support and examples can be provided `on request`_. 4. The final step is to provide examples to others on how to use the database for projects, lab exercises and/or challenges/competitions. Someone (you) needs to write an `example toolchain`_ that can execute on your database to produce `example results`_. `On request`_ we may be able to complete steps 2-4 for you. Are there restrictions on dataset size? Are you ready for Big-Data? ------------------------------------------------------------------- There are no restrictions on dataset size, for as long as we can store it on the server and read the data for executing the experiments. See above for instructions on how to request the inclusion of a dataset in an instance of the |project| platform. The computing power is too limited for my needs. Can I get more CPU/Memory/Processing Time? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- The |project| platform is capable of controlling computing power that is allocated to users or groups of users running experiments. It is possible to assign exclusive or non-exclusive usage of computing resources on demand. Extra-computing power for a particular purpose may be available `on request`_. You may contact the specific platform instance administrators for more information. Why can't I un-share a contribution of mine in the platform? ------------------------------------------------------------ Sharing at the |project| platform is an irreversible procedure. For example, public objects cannot be made private again. If you share an object with a user or team and change your mind, you can still delete the object, for as long as it is not being used by you or another colleagues with access. This is implemented this way to avoid complications when users use objects that where shared with them, but then these objects disappear as the result of a *un*-sharing action. Suppose you're using algorithm ``user/algo/1``, that was shared with you. You run an experiment with it, things look good. Next day you come back and you realize you cannot re-run the same experiment because ``user/algo/1`` is gone. It disappeared from your list because the user ``user`` decided to *un*-share it with you. Now you have an irreproducible experiment at hand, one with results and so on, but without means to repeat it. In a way, *un*-sharing is equivalent to deleting the contribution for a particular user. In order to guarantee reproducibility, the platform must ensure that, once you used a contribution, it is not going away. If the contribution appeared to you as the result of sharing by another user, then only by making it *irreversible*, is the platform able to guarantee reproducibility. What is unique about the |project| platform? Why shouldn't I use Spark/Hadoop/HDFS/```` instead? ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Conducting analysis and research is not just about running an application. While these frameworks can do this much, you're still left with huge tasks at hand: porting applications and learning techniques, enforcing protocol usage, publishing and comparing results. The |project| platform provides an answer to those issues. You can write applications using the native framework you're used to - if you'd like to use Spark, so be it. If another framework, we can install it for you. No need to port the core of your work to another language or re-implement it, just slightly adapt your algorithm I/O to work against the |project| stack. Once you encode the algorithm, the platform can parallelize it automatically. Once the experiment is done, it is directly comparable to other experiments available in the platform. No need to worry about constraints - they have all been enforced by the platform already. Just sit back and prepare reports as you wish to analyze results. Reports are readily available on the internet so they can be easily shared with other parties. :ref:`Reports` and :ref:`attestations` guarantee experiments in the platform are reproducible. Want to write code in ````? Not a problem! The |project| platform can handle algorithms in different programming languages (for as long as there is a compatible backend installed). An experiment can be formed by putting together the best of each world. Feature extractors written in C, machine learning code written in Python and running on GPUs - you name it. That said, it is possible to run the |project| platform on any cloud provider and have your algorithms using whatever frameworks you'd like to. Just make sure to respect legal constraints on privacy-sensitive datasets, if that is the case for you. Can the platform run on a cloud provider? ----------------------------------------- Yes, it is possible to make the |project| platform to run on Amazon EC2 (or the like) for as long as legal constraints are respected. Services like this are just a virtualization solution. Your datasets can be stored on Amazon S3 as well. The only requirement is that the backend can access them transparently. Can I install the |project| platform on my premises? Is it free? ---------------------------------------------------------------- Yes, you can. We distribute the |project| platform code as an open-source project, under the `GNU Affero GPL v3 license`_. To get started, download the package ``beat.web`` and read its README.rst file located on its root for quick start instructions: .. code-block:: sh git clone https://gitlab.idiap.ch/beat/beat.web In case of issues, please share your questions through our `development mailing list`_. What is a supervisor? --------------------- A supervisor is a recognized person on the platform. The supervisor is generally a person that holds a senior position in a laboratory/research institute or company. It is important to note that your email should be institutional! Why do I need a supervisor to start using the |project| platform? ----------------------------------------------------------------- Supervisors ensure you belong to a work group. They are institutionally responsible that you follow the |project| platform terms of use. To successfully register, you'll need to specify the username of a *currently existing* supervisor on the platform. After you have validated your institutional e-mail address, a request will be made to such an user in order to confirm your registration. Once the supervisor has confirmed your affiliation, your account becomes active and you can use the platform. Re-activation is required after a period of time (usually every year). It is important to note that your email should be institutional! If your supervisor is not registered on the |project| platform, ask them to register, and to make a request to become a supervisor (see text below). Once their account is created, you will then be able to make a supervision request to them. My account got blocked for various reasons, how do I unblock it? ---------------------------------------------------------------- The procedure for re-activating your account is the following: * Go to the `sign in`_ page and follow the ``reactivation`` process or directly click on the following link to `reactivate an account`_. * Fill in the form: username, password (the ones used when creating your profile), and supervisor username: any supervisor registered on the |project| platform (note that it should be someone willing to supervise you). Please refer to the paragraph above for why this necessary. * Once the form is completed click on the ``Reactivation request`` button. * An email will be sent to the supervisor who has a few days to accept your supervison request. * You will be informed if your supervisor has accepted or rejected your application. * If no information is given by the assigned supervisor, you will be allowed to make a new supervision request after a few days. How do I become a supervisor on the |project| platform? ------------------------------------------------------- As stated above, a supervisor ensures that their supervisees belong to a research group and follow the |project| platform terms of use. To become a supervisor, there are two ways. * Sign up on the platform and `register as a supervisor`_. After you have validated that your institutional email is correct, a request will then be made to the |project| admins in order to validate your account. After checking, that you hold a position in your university/research institute or laboratory, an admin of the platform will accept your request. * If your position has changed in your university/research institute or laboratory, please do contact us following the contact link on the main page. A |project| admin will then check that you really hold a position and will turn your account into a supervisor account in order to let you manage supervisees. .. include:: links.rst