Beilstein Operating System

The multiprocessing system presented in this paper has been the result of a joint development effort of the Beilstein Institute of organic chemistry and Softron. While Beilstein provided its chemical know-how, hand-selected test data, and, last but not least, the funding, Softron defined the system architecture, built the hardware, wrote the operating system, and developed the search algorithms. 

Stmcture searching and display software are host-specific. The Softon Substmcture Search System (S4) was developed by the Beilstein Institute and Softon of Graefelfing Germany (50). It is a full stmcture and substmcture searching module. The S4 is used in-house by the Beilstein Institute and is operated by DIALOG. STN uses CAS ONLINE s messenger software for on-line stmcture searching of the Beilstein on-line database (51). 

Phosgene [75-44-5] M 98.9, m -118°, b 8.2°/756mm. Dry the gas with Linde 4A molecular sieves, de-gas it and distil it under vacuum at low temperature. This should be done in a closed system such as a vacuum line. It is hydrolysed by H2O but does not fume in moist air. It is available in cylinders and as a 20% solution in toluene. It is HIGHLY TOXIC and should not be inhaled. If it is inhaled, the operator should lie still and, be made to breathe in ammonia vaponr which reacts with phosgene to give urea. [Pope et al. J Chem Soc 117 1410 1920,Beilstein 3 IV 41.]... 

Consider the structure shown in Figure 2. The operation of the Beilstein System on this structure is unambiguous, as it is with any single complete structure. This structure alone fully localizes the position on the X-axis of the graph of Figure 1, and the printed Handbook indicates this position with a series of five pointers, completely independent of the Series concerned. 

The 12-digit Code. To illustrate this procedure, let us look at the example used above in Fig. 2 the structure is input, and the operation of the Beilstein System on the connection table is then carried out- The structure is recognised as being composed of three fragments (substructures), namely ... 

The key problems in structure registration have already been mentioned - the treatment of charge mesomerism, tautomerism and stereochemistry and the creation of a unique registry record for each compound. Software solutions to all of these problems have already been found, reported and put into practice in a variety of systems over the last two decades. Given the time constraints under which the Beilstein database creation software had to be completed and put into operation, it was not appropriate to embark on extensive research work to find new solutions to these basic problems instead existing solutions were implemented in a combination which best suited Beilstein s needs. In this sense, the remainder of this paper does not report an5fthing dramatically new, but rather serves to consohdate proven solutions, albeit in a new environment. 

Four chapters on other operational substructure search systems follow. Jean Marcah and co-workers describe the Du Pont global technical information system Steve Welford and Clemens Jochum report on chemical structure registration for Beilstein Online Peter Rusch also covers Beilstein Onhne in a paper about substructure searching on Dialog and the DARC Toolkit which was described by Pascal Huguet is summarised in a chapter written by Bill Town with some suggestions from myself and Pierre Buffet of Questel. 

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