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n. Joining the Semantic Web: a Practical Guide. Pasqualino “Titto” Assini Nesstar Ltd - UK. n. NESSTAR : The “Data Web”. nesstar.
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n Joining the Semantic Web: a Practical Guide. Pasqualino “Titto” Assini Nesstar Ltd - UK
n NESSTAR : The “Data Web” nesstar • The Data Web is the application of Semantic Web techniques and principles to the problem of statistical data and metadata (surveys, opinions polls) dissemination and processing. Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources
n Joining the Semantic Web in A Few Easy(?) Steps nesstar • Know What You Want To Say Modelling • Then Say It -> Map the Model to a Semantic Web Language • Think of the Future Managing Change • Let Everybody Know Publishing on the Semantic Web • Make Your Entities Behave Specifying Operations/Services Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources
n Additional Considerations nesstar • Keep it Simple Or Else Why Being Too Clever Doesn’t Work on the Internet. • XML – Friend or Foe of the Semantic Web? Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources
n Know What You Want To Say nesstar • The Semantic Web is no silver bullet. It won’t help you in modelling your data. • Use your existing modelling language (and models). • You can also use RDF/RDF Schema but: • Not many (graphical tools) tools • Not much expressive power (example: no relationships) • Tip: Use standard UML design tools (in most cases a UML Class Diagram is all you need) Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources
n Now Say It nesstar • Once you have you model you need to translate it to a Semantic Web Language: • Choose the target language: RDF, WOL • Define the mapping rules (might be already defined, UML RDF) • What about using a specialised XML syntax? • Advantage: More compact/simpler syntax • Disadvantage: Difficult to design properly, need to define an additional mapping to RDF. • Tip: Stick to standard RDF syntax. Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources
n Managing Change nesstar • Fact of Life: things change, models do as well. • Specific Application/Clients will need to extend your core model. • Good News: RDF was custom made to be extensible (class/property inheritance, additional properties, reification) • Tip: Make sure that your applications can handle model extensions. Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources
n Publishing on the Semantic Web nesstar • Wrong assumption: You need something special, a Registry maybe (e.g, UDDI) • This can be real easy, just do it the WWW way. • Self-description principle: objects and types self-describe themselves by making accessible, via HTTP, their RDF description at their URL. Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources
n Specifying Behaviour nesstar • Example: Bank Account operations to pay in or draw money. • The Semantic Web is silent on this point. • Major oversight Web Services come to the rescue. • Problem: Web Services and the Semantic Web are not well integrated (but we might soon have an RDF model of WSDL). • Can’t wait? Use what is available: DAML-S, NEOOM (simple RDF model of methods plus method invocation via HTML FORMs). Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources
n Keep It Simple or Else nesstar • Fact: The value of an information dissemination system depends on the quantity of information it contains and the number of eyeballs looking at it. • Therefore: initially the system is worthless (the Web was, the Semantic Web still is). • But, if it starts growing it can grow real fast. • So: how do you get the snowball going? KISS to lure early adopters. Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources
n XML - Friend of Foe ? nesstar • (RDF/)XML is very hard to write by hand and not particularly pleasant to read. • It would be very useful if people (early adopters) could jot down semantic web descriptions without tools (think of HTML). • TBL has lately engaged in an unofficial and very politically incorrect activity: defining a non-XML syntax for RDF: N3. • What about an official W3C initiative to create a semantic web language that is not only machine understandable but also easy for an human to read and write? Nesstar - Networked Social Science Tools and Resources