RDF API, JSON Serialization and Standardization – webr3.org: "RDF API, JSON Serialization and Standardization
Since there's been a lot of discussion about JSON serializations of RDF, and the need for an RDF API, I thought I'd offer my own personal thoughts on what we need from a JSON serialization and an RDF API."
30 December 2010
BigQuery - Google Code
BigQuery - Google Code: "Interactively analyze large datasets
BigQuery is a web service that enables you to do interactive analysis of massively large datasets. Scalable and easy to use, BigQuery lets developers and businesses tap into powerful data analytics on demand.
Features
Speed - Analyze billions of rows in seconds
Scale - Terabytes of data, trillions of records
Simplicity - SQL-like query language, hosted on Google infrastructure
Sharing - Powerful group- and user-based permissions using Google accounts
Security - Secure SSL access
Flexibility - REST APIs, JSON RPC, Google Apps Script"
BigQuery is a web service that enables you to do interactive analysis of massively large datasets. Scalable and easy to use, BigQuery lets developers and businesses tap into powerful data analytics on demand.
Features
Speed - Analyze billions of rows in seconds
Scale - Terabytes of data, trillions of records
Simplicity - SQL-like query language, hosted on Google infrastructure
Sharing - Powerful group- and user-based permissions using Google accounts
Security - Secure SSL access
Flexibility - REST APIs, JSON RPC, Google Apps Script"
The Semantic Puzzle | EU-Report on the requirements for a paneuropean Open Government Data Portal
The Semantic Puzzle | EU-Report on the requirements for a paneuropean Open Government Data Portal: "EU-Report on the requirements for a paneuropean Open Government Data Portal
December 15, 2010 By: Thomas Thurner Category: Linked Data & Open Data, Open Government Data, Tools & Software
The recently published report on a hearing of an experts in Luxembourg this November, provides a snap-shoot on the discussion if a central open data infrastructure may make sense. The experts group list several positive effects like union-wide comparability of some government data set, as well as the role of being motor for national and regional initiatives. It is stressed several times, that a swift progress, in coming those plans reality, is crucial for success.
Read more at: Report – Technical workshop on the goals and requirements for a pan-European data portal"
December 15, 2010 By: Thomas Thurner Category: Linked Data & Open Data, Open Government Data, Tools & Software
The recently published report on a hearing of an experts in Luxembourg this November, provides a snap-shoot on the discussion if a central open data infrastructure may make sense. The experts group list several positive effects like union-wide comparability of some government data set, as well as the role of being motor for national and regional initiatives. It is stressed several times, that a swift progress, in coming those plans reality, is crucial for success.
Read more at: Report – Technical workshop on the goals and requirements for a pan-European data portal"
Happy New Year: What’s Ahead for the Semantic Web (Part 1) - semanticweb.com
Happy New Year: What’s Ahead for the Semantic Web (Part 1) - semanticweb.com: "The New Year’s almost here, and of course that brings with it a time to reflect on what’s been and muse on what’s ahead. To that end, the Semantic Web Blog asked some industry names to share their perspectives – and concerns about some of the direction, as well. Start reading about them today, and join us again tomorrow for their insights, Part 2."
Reaching the pinnacle: truly open web services and clouds - O'Reilly Radar
Reaching the pinnacle: truly open web services and clouds - O'Reilly Radar: "Free software in the cloud isn't just a nice-sounding ideal or even an efficient way to push innovation forward. Opening the cloud also opens the path to a bountiful environment of computing for all. Here are the steps to a better computing future."
Cloud 2011: The Year of the Network - O'Reilly Broadcast
Cloud 2011: The Year of the Network - O'Reilly Broadcast: "The pace of innovation in the cloud in the last few years has been astounding. It's difficult to recognize today's cloud computing landscape as having any relationship to where it was a year ago. In spite of all the innovation that's been going on, one area remains in the dark ages—the network. My 2011 prediction is simple: 2011 will be the year of the network in the cloud."
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog » Blog Archive » OpenCorporates: the Open Database of the Corporate World
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog » Blog Archive » OpenCorporates: the Open Database of the Corporate World: "OpenCorporates: the Open Database of the Corporate World
December 20th, 2010
This is a guest post by Chris Taggart, a member of OKFN’s open government working group and creator of OpenlyLocal, who today launched a new website OpenCorporates in collaboration with Rob McKinnon (a project they first demoed at the Open Government Data Camp in November)."
December 20th, 2010
This is a guest post by Chris Taggart, a member of OKFN’s open government working group and creator of OpenlyLocal, who today launched a new website OpenCorporates in collaboration with Rob McKinnon (a project they first demoed at the Open Government Data Camp in November)."
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog » Blog Archive » Exploring European Energy Data
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog » Blog Archive » Exploring European Energy Data: "Exploring European Energy Data
December 16th, 2010
The following post is from Jonathan Gray, Community Coordinator at the Open Knowledge Foundation.
Today was the Eurostat Hackday, where coders and designers in several European cities gathered to dig into the Eurostat data, the biggest source of statistical information about Europe and European member states. We met at the Centre for Creative Collaboration in London, who very kindly agreed to host us for the day."
December 16th, 2010
The following post is from Jonathan Gray, Community Coordinator at the Open Knowledge Foundation.
Today was the Eurostat Hackday, where coders and designers in several European cities gathered to dig into the Eurostat data, the biggest source of statistical information about Europe and European member states. We met at the Centre for Creative Collaboration in London, who very kindly agreed to host us for the day."
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog » Blog Archive » Cultural Heritage rights in the age of digital copyright
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog » Blog Archive » Cultural Heritage rights in the age of digital copyright: "On December, 10th the COMMUNIA WG3 gathered in Istanbul for the final workshop, with the aim of producing a set of recommendations about cultural heritage and the public domain."
Name matching strategy using bibliographic data | Open Biblio (graphic) Projects
Name matching strategy using bibliographic data | Open Biblio (graphic) Projects: "One of the aims of an RDF representation of bibliographic data should be to have authors represented by unique, reference-able points within the data (as URIs), rather than as free-text fields. What steps can we do to match up the text value representing an author’s name to another example of their name in the data?
It’s not realistic to expect a match between say, Mark Twain to Samuel Clemens, without using some extra information typically not present in bibliographic datasets. What can be achieved however, is the ‘fuzzy’ matching of alternate forms of names – due to typos, mistakes and omitted initials and the like. It is important that these matches are understood to be fuzzy and not precise, based more on statistics than a definite assertion."
It’s not realistic to expect a match between say, Mark Twain to Samuel Clemens, without using some extra information typically not present in bibliographic datasets. What can be achieved however, is the ‘fuzzy’ matching of alternate forms of names – due to typos, mistakes and omitted initials and the like. It is important that these matches are understood to be fuzzy and not precise, based more on statistics than a definite assertion."
JISC OpenBibliography: Development ideas | Open Biblio (graphic) Projects
JISC OpenBibliography: Development ideas | Open Biblio (graphic) Projects: "Now that we have a queryable British National Bibliography dataset, we are investigating useful functionality to take advantage of the data.
The team have listed a few development ideas based both on our own interests and on discussion with others in the community:
flagging – attaching notes to bibliographic records highlighting possible updates
wikipedia – link to wikipedia by author / title / ISBN for further information
book crossing – search an ISBN, find where a copy of it is available
public libraries – search by ISBN and find out which local public library it is in
exporting records – for example to bibtex
google scholar lookup"
The team have listed a few development ideas based both on our own interests and on discussion with others in the community:
flagging – attaching notes to bibliographic records highlighting possible updates
wikipedia – link to wikipedia by author / title / ISBN for further information
book crossing – search an ISBN, find where a copy of it is available
public libraries – search by ISBN and find out which local public library it is in
exporting records – for example to bibtex
google scholar lookup"
URL Design — Warpspire
URL Design — Warpspire: "URL Design
You should take time to design your URL structure. If there’s one thing I hope you remember after reading this article it’s to take time to design your URL structure. Don’t leave it up to your framework. Don’t leave it up to chance. Think about it and craft an experience.
URL Design is a complex subject. I can’t say there are any “right” solutions — it’s much like the rest of design. There’s good URL design, there’s bad URL design, and there’s everything in between — it’s subjective.
But that doesn’t mean there aren’t best practices for creating great URLs. I hope to impress upon you some best practices in URL design I’ve learned over the years and explain why I think new HTML5 javascript history APIs are so exciting to work with."
You should take time to design your URL structure. If there’s one thing I hope you remember after reading this article it’s to take time to design your URL structure. Don’t leave it up to your framework. Don’t leave it up to chance. Think about it and craft an experience.
URL Design is a complex subject. I can’t say there are any “right” solutions — it’s much like the rest of design. There’s good URL design, there’s bad URL design, and there’s everything in between — it’s subjective.
But that doesn’t mean there aren’t best practices for creating great URLs. I hope to impress upon you some best practices in URL design I’ve learned over the years and explain why I think new HTML5 javascript history APIs are so exciting to work with."
Mining of Massive Datasets
Mining of Massive Datasets: "This book is placed on the Web for free use of all who wish it. We do, however, retain copyright on the work, and we expect that you will acknowledge our authorship if you republish parts or all of it. We are sorry to have to mention this point, but we have evidence that other items we have published on the Web have been appropriated and republished under other names. It is easy to detect such misuse, by the way, as you will learn in Chapter 3."
IT History Society - Resource Sites
IT History Society - Resource Sites:
[About Archive-It and the collection]
This catalog of resource sites concerning IT history is the only one of its kind. If you know of any additions we should make to the database, please submit them here.
Learn more about the ITHS Archive Database Project"
[About Archive-It and the collection]
This catalog of resource sites concerning IT history is the only one of its kind. If you know of any additions we should make to the database, please submit them here.
Learn more about the ITHS Archive Database Project"
27 December 2010
CLIR Report
CLIR Report: "While the purview of digital forensics was once specialized to fields of law enforcement, computer security, and national defense, the increasing ubiquity of computers and electronic devices means that digital forensics is now used in a wide variety of cases and circumstances. Most records today are born digital, and libraries and other collecting institutions increasingly receive computer storage media as part of their acquisition of 'papers' from writers, scholars, scientists, musicians, and public figures. This poses new challenges to librarians, archivists, and curators—challenges related to accessing and preserving legacy formats, recovering data, ensuring authenticity, and maintaining trust. The methods and tools developed by forensics experts represent a novel approach to these demands. For example, the same forensics software that indexes a criminal suspect's hard drive allows the archivist to prepare a comprehensive manifest of the electronic files a donor has turned over for accession.
This report introduces the field of digital forensics in the cultural heritage sector and explores some points of convergence between the interests of those charged with collecting and maintaining born-digital cultural heritage materials and those charged with collecting and maintaining legal evidence."
This report introduces the field of digital forensics in the cultural heritage sector and explores some points of convergence between the interests of those charged with collecting and maintaining born-digital cultural heritage materials and those charged with collecting and maintaining legal evidence."
inkdroid › dcat:distribution considered helpful
inkdroid › dcat:distribution considered helpful: "dcat:distribution considered helpful
The other day I happened to notice that the folks at data.gov.uk have started using the Data Catalog Vocabulary in the RDFa they have embedded in their dataset webpages. As an example here is the RDF you can pull out of the HTML for the Anonymised MOT tests and results dataset. Of particular interest to me is that the dataset description now includes an explicit link to the actual data being described using the dcat:distribution property."
The other day I happened to notice that the folks at data.gov.uk have started using the Data Catalog Vocabulary in the RDFa they have embedded in their dataset webpages. As an example here is the RDF you can pull out of the HTML for the Anonymised MOT tests and results dataset. Of particular interest to me is that the dataset description now includes an explicit link to the actual data being described using the dcat:distribution property."
26 December 2010
hangingtogether.org » Blog Archive » OCLC Research 2010 - Cloud Library
hangingtogether.org » Blog Archive » OCLC Research 2010 - Cloud Library
What’s the idea? In the same way that cloud computing offers resources and applications on demand without the user having to operate and own the underlying assets, the cloud library project posited that it is now possible for academic libraries to rely on access to needed book and journal assets rather than manage them as locally-resident and managed physical items.
What’s the idea? In the same way that cloud computing offers resources and applications on demand without the user having to operate and own the underlying assets, the cloud library project posited that it is now possible for academic libraries to rely on access to needed book and journal assets rather than manage them as locally-resident and managed physical items.
Coyle's InFormation: Response to JPW
Coyle's InFormation: Response to JPW
Note: John Price Wilkin of Michigan wrote a post on the Open Knowledge Foundation blog that is very critical of the library linked data movement and the creation of numerous disjoint files of bib data in linked data formats. I admit that it isn't clear to me what he thinks should happen, but it seems to be something like this photo, which I took at the Online 2010 exhibit hall. This is OCLC's booth.
A separate cloud for libraries. Totally the wrong idea.
I must say that I see things quite differently from JPW. Although I agree that a bunch of static bibliographic files do not open library linked data make, my view is:
1) Each file represents a person or group who got interested in transforming library data and went through the learning process of actually doing it. Therefore each file is a contribution to our collective knowledge about linked data. When we add these files to heterogeneous stores like Open Library or Freebase, we exercise that knowledge.
2) These files are the fodder for further experimentation with mixing library data and non-library data, which to me is one of the main points of linked library data. We are in the "training wheels" stage of this change, and like training wheels these early files may end up being discarded when we finally learn to ride. I see no harm in that.
3) This experimentation is taking place primarily outside of the US in places where the OCLC record use policy does not apply. The British Library, the National Library of Sweden, soon the Bibliotheque Nationale, and a handful of German libraries are at the forefront of this. If you cannot release your bibliographic data openly, you cannot participate in the linked data movement.
4) I do think that we will have library systems that make use of a different data format to the one we have today, but those are not the same as linked data, and are definitely not the linked open data that is the main focus of the linked data activity. How we manage our data for ourselves may well be different from how we share it with the world. We do need a well-ordered library data universe where we do our bibliographic work. That should exist in parallel with open sharing that reaches beyond the library cataloging community.
Note: John Price Wilkin of Michigan wrote a post on the Open Knowledge Foundation blog that is very critical of the library linked data movement and the creation of numerous disjoint files of bib data in linked data formats. I admit that it isn't clear to me what he thinks should happen, but it seems to be something like this photo, which I took at the Online 2010 exhibit hall. This is OCLC's booth.
A separate cloud for libraries. Totally the wrong idea.
I must say that I see things quite differently from JPW. Although I agree that a bunch of static bibliographic files do not open library linked data make, my view is:
1) Each file represents a person or group who got interested in transforming library data and went through the learning process of actually doing it. Therefore each file is a contribution to our collective knowledge about linked data. When we add these files to heterogeneous stores like Open Library or Freebase, we exercise that knowledge.
2) These files are the fodder for further experimentation with mixing library data and non-library data, which to me is one of the main points of linked library data. We are in the "training wheels" stage of this change, and like training wheels these early files may end up being discarded when we finally learn to ride. I see no harm in that.
3) This experimentation is taking place primarily outside of the US in places where the OCLC record use policy does not apply. The British Library, the National Library of Sweden, soon the Bibliotheque Nationale, and a handful of German libraries are at the forefront of this. If you cannot release your bibliographic data openly, you cannot participate in the linked data movement.
4) I do think that we will have library systems that make use of a different data format to the one we have today, but those are not the same as linked data, and are definitely not the linked open data that is the main focus of the linked data activity. How we manage our data for ourselves may well be different from how we share it with the world. We do need a well-ordered library data universe where we do our bibliographic work. That should exist in parallel with open sharing that reaches beyond the library cataloging community.
07 December 2010
Virtual Travelog | Judging the likely Success of an Ontology
Virtual Travelog | Judging the likely Success of an Ontology: "Judging the likely Success of an Ontology
( System Design )
The debate about the promised value of the Semantic Web seems to me to be missing a dispassionate examination of the success, or otherwise, of existing ontology based solutions. Clay Shirky is obviously right when he states that a single monolithic ontology will never work. His critics are equally right when they claim the Semantic web will only work if it is a melange of multiple interoperable Ontologies. What is missing from the debate is a more detailed explanation of what ontologies are good at, how they interoperate, and why systems based on ontologies succeed or fail. From my perspective as a systems designer this last point is the most significant. Debates about theory are nice, but examples of real solutions are more instructive. This essay will begin to examine this question by attempting to define the anatomy of an ontology. I will use this structure in later essays to examine the reasons for success and failure of individual ontologies."
( System Design )
The debate about the promised value of the Semantic Web seems to me to be missing a dispassionate examination of the success, or otherwise, of existing ontology based solutions. Clay Shirky is obviously right when he states that a single monolithic ontology will never work. His critics are equally right when they claim the Semantic web will only work if it is a melange of multiple interoperable Ontologies. What is missing from the debate is a more detailed explanation of what ontologies are good at, how they interoperate, and why systems based on ontologies succeed or fail. From my perspective as a systems designer this last point is the most significant. Debates about theory are nice, but examples of real solutions are more instructive. This essay will begin to examine this question by attempting to define the anatomy of an ontology. I will use this structure in later essays to examine the reasons for success and failure of individual ontologies."
23 November 2010
Lonclass and RDF
Lonclass and RDF: "Lonclass and RDF
By DANBRI | Published: 2010-11-18
Lonclass is one of the BBC’s in-house classification systems – the “London classification”. I’ve had the privilege of investigating lonclass within the NoTube project. It’s not currently public, but much of what I say here is also applicable to the Universal Decimal Classification (UDC) system upon which it was based. UDC is also not fully public yet; I’ve made a case elsewhere that it should be, and I hope we’ll see that within my lifetime. UDC and Lonclass have a fascinating history and are rich cultural heritage artifacts in their own right, but I’m concerned here only with their role as the keys to many of our digital and real-world archives.
Why would we want to map Lonclass or UDC subject classification codes into RDF?"
By DANBRI | Published: 2010-11-18
Lonclass is one of the BBC’s in-house classification systems – the “London classification”. I’ve had the privilege of investigating lonclass within the NoTube project. It’s not currently public, but much of what I say here is also applicable to the Universal Decimal Classification (UDC) system upon which it was based. UDC is also not fully public yet; I’ve made a case elsewhere that it should be, and I hope we’ll see that within my lifetime. UDC and Lonclass have a fascinating history and are rich cultural heritage artifacts in their own right, but I’m concerned here only with their role as the keys to many of our digital and real-world archives.
Why would we want to map Lonclass or UDC subject classification codes into RDF?"
culturegraph
culturegraph: "culturegraph.org is a Linked Open Data service that aims to establish shared identifiers (Uniform Resource Identifiers) for cultural works (books and other text, paintings, sculptures, piece of music etc.) to ensure these resources can be reliably and persistently referenced. The service is currently being developed cooperatively by the German National Library (DNB) and the North Rhine-Westphalian Library Service Center with support from the German-speaking Working Group of Library Networks."
The Nature of Connectedness on the Web » AI3:::Adaptive Information
The Nature of Connectedness on the Web » AI3:::Adaptive Information: "What does it mean to interoperate information on the Web? With linked data and other structured data now in abundance, why don’t we see more information effectively combined? Why express your information as linked data if no one is going to use it?
Interoperability comes down to the nature of things and how we describe those things or quite similar things from different sources. This was the major thrust of my recent keynote presentation to the Dublin Core annual conference. In that talk I described two aspects of the semantic “gap”:
One aspect is the need for vetted reference sources that provide the entities and concepts for aligning disparate content sources on the Web, and
A second aspect is the need for accurate mapping predicates that can represent the often approximate matches and overlaps of this heterogeneous content.
I’ll discuss the first “gap” in a later post. What we’ll discuss here is the fact that most relationships between putatively same things on the Web are rarely exact, and are most often approximate in nature."
Interoperability comes down to the nature of things and how we describe those things or quite similar things from different sources. This was the major thrust of my recent keynote presentation to the Dublin Core annual conference. In that talk I described two aspects of the semantic “gap”:
One aspect is the need for vetted reference sources that provide the entities and concepts for aligning disparate content sources on the Web, and
A second aspect is the need for accurate mapping predicates that can represent the often approximate matches and overlaps of this heterogeneous content.
I’ll discuss the first “gap” in a later post. What we’ll discuss here is the fact that most relationships between putatively same things on the Web are rarely exact, and are most often approximate in nature."
LISTSERV 15.5 - NGC4LIB Archives
LISTSERV 15.5 - NGC4LIB Archives: "The Variations/FRBR Project at Indiana University (http://vfrbr.info) has released version 1.1 of a set of XML Schemas designed for the representation of FRBR (http://www.ifla.org/en/publications/functional-requirements-for-bibliographic-records) data in XML. The 1.1 Schema release represents some significant improvements over our earlier 1.0 release, particularly in the handling of FRBR relationships. As before, the Variations/FRBR XML Schemas are defined at three 'levels': frbr, which embodies faithfully only those features defined by the FRBR and FRAD reports; efrbr, which adds additional features we hope will make the data format more 'useful'; and vfrbr, which both contracts and extends the FRBR and FRAD models to create a data representation optimized for the description of musical materials and we hope provides a model for other domain-specific applications of FRBR."
Querying the British National Bibliography
Querying the British National Bibliography
Following up on the earlier announcement that the British Library has made the British National Bibliography available under a public domain dedication, the JISC Open Bibliography project has worked to make this data more useable.
The data has been loaded into a Virtuoso store that is queriable through the SPARQL Endpoint and the URIs that we have assigned each record use the ORDF software to make them dereferencable, supporting perform content auto-negotiation as well as embedding RDFa in the HTML representation.
The data contains some 3 million individual records and some 173 million triples. Indexing the data was a very CPU intensive process taking approximately three days. Transforming and loading the source data took about five hours.
To get an idea of the shape of the data, let us consider a sample resource, http://bnb.bibliographica.org/entry/GB8102507 . Apart from linkage between the various representations, the description of the entity itself is as follows
JISC Beginner’s Guide to Digital Preservation
JISC Beginner’s Guide to Digital Preservation: "JISC Beginner’s Guide to Digital Preservation
Welcome to the JISC Beginner’s Guide to Digital Preservation
The Guide has been written for those working on JISC projects who would like help with preserving their outputs.
It is aimed at those who are new to digital preservation but can also serve as a resource for those who have specific requirements or wish to find further resources in certain areas."
Welcome to the JISC Beginner’s Guide to Digital Preservation
The Guide has been written for those working on JISC projects who would like help with preserving their outputs.
It is aimed at those who are new to digital preservation but can also serve as a resource for those who have specific requirements or wish to find further resources in certain areas."
18 November 2010
16 November 2010
Open Bibliographic Data Guide
Open Bibliographic Data Guide: "The advice is both general and specific. The guide seeks to clarify in general terms and also in the context of 17 specific Use Cases:
How to license the data
Legal issues to be considered
Potential costs and savings
Practical implications in terms of processes, effort and skills
Data formats and other technical options
These Use Cases cover things you might already do or plan to do as you develop your library service. The Guide provides the rationale and the potential ripple effects of doing those things based on Open Data."
How to license the data
Legal issues to be considered
Potential costs and savings
Practical implications in terms of processes, effort and skills
Data formats and other technical options
These Use Cases cover things you might already do or plan to do as you develop your library service. The Guide provides the rationale and the potential ripple effects of doing those things based on Open Data."
inkdroid › iogdc ramblings
inkdroid › iogdc ramblings: "There was a question about how to make Linked Data relevant to folks whose focus is Enterprise data. In my opinion Linked Data advocates over emphasize the importance of using RDF and SPARQL (standards), and converting all the data over without completely understanding how invasive these solutions are. Not enough is done to show enterprise data folks, who typically think in terms of relational databases, what they can do to put their lovingly crafted and hugged data on the web. Consider a primary key in a database: what does it identify, what relations does that thing have with other things? Why not use that key in constructing a URL for that thing, and link things together using the URLs? Then other people could use your URLs as well in their own data. I think the drumbeat to use SPARQL and triple stores often misses explaining this fundamental baby step that data owners could take. As Derek Willis said (on the 2nd day, when I’m writing this), people want to use your data, but not your database…people want to browse your data using their web browser. Assigning URLs to the important stuff in your databases is the first important step to make with Linked Data."
PDF/A: A Viable Addition to the Preservation Toolkit
PDF/A: A Viable Addition to the Preservation Toolkit: "PDF/A, the archival version of the PDF file format, is an International Standards Organization (ISO) vetted, open source tool that can be added to the librarian's and archivist's preservation toolkit. This article describes the format itself, the lessons learned as the authors investigated the tools readily available for creating PDF/A files and the design of the pilot to test implementation of the use of the format in The Ohio State University's repository, the Knowledge Bank. Further, we identify issues in conversion of diverse original formats; strategies for time-saving batch conversion; and considerations in deciding whether to attempt full or partial compliance with the standard."
Trends in Large-Scale Subject Repositories
Trends in Large-Scale Subject Repositories: "Conclusion
This study illustrates that there are a number of trends among the ten largest subject repositories:
the most populated subject repositories were established before 2000, with the exception of PMC
most of the top ten repositories are inter- and multidisciplinary
the sciences and social sciences are predominant
the use of local software was more common for subject repositories until the launch of open source repository software in 1997
'articles,' or pre- or post-prints, is the only common content type
deposits are moderated
repositories discourage withdrawal of materials
submitters are responsible for copyright policies
most repositories are hosted by university libraries or departments"
This study illustrates that there are a number of trends among the ten largest subject repositories:
the most populated subject repositories were established before 2000, with the exception of PMC
most of the top ten repositories are inter- and multidisciplinary
the sciences and social sciences are predominant
the use of local software was more common for subject repositories until the launch of open source repository software in 1997
'articles,' or pre- or post-prints, is the only common content type
deposits are moderated
repositories discourage withdrawal of materials
submitters are responsible for copyright policies
most repositories are hosted by university libraries or departments"
The Strongest Link: Libraries and Linked Data
The Strongest Link: Libraries and Linked Data: "Abstract
Since 1999 the W3C has been working on a set of Semantic Web standards that have the potential to revolutionize web search. Also known as Linked Data, the Machine-Readable Web, the Web of Data, or Web 3.0, the Semantic Web relies on highly structured metadata that allow computers to understand the relationships between objects. Semantic web standards are complex, and difficult to conceptualize, but they offer solutions to many of the issues that plague libraries, including precise web search, authority control, classification, data portability, and disambiguation. This article will outline some of the benefits that linked data could have for libraries, will discuss some of the non-technical obstacles that we face in moving forward, and will finally offer suggestions for practical ways in which libraries can participate in the development of the semantic web."
Since 1999 the W3C has been working on a set of Semantic Web standards that have the potential to revolutionize web search. Also known as Linked Data, the Machine-Readable Web, the Web of Data, or Web 3.0, the Semantic Web relies on highly structured metadata that allow computers to understand the relationships between objects. Semantic web standards are complex, and difficult to conceptualize, but they offer solutions to many of the issues that plague libraries, including precise web search, authority control, classification, data portability, and disambiguation. This article will outline some of the benefits that linked data could have for libraries, will discuss some of the non-technical obstacles that we face in moving forward, and will finally offer suggestions for practical ways in which libraries can participate in the development of the semantic web."
15 November 2010
Presentation of interest focusing on Research and Next-Gen Catalogues « The Cataloguing Librarian
Presentation of interest focusing on Research and Next-Gen Catalogues « The Cataloguing Librarian: "Amy Eklund gave a very good presentation on the shortage of research we have examining next generation catalogues, and areas that need to be explored.
Key points?
We should examine next generation catalogues because:
1. So far, a build it and they will come approach has been taken with these catalogues;
2. Discovery tool overlays, such as Encore and AquaBrowser, are not integrated with the catalogue, but sit on top, like an interface;
3. Next generation catalogue features are not based on large scale of evidence; and
4. Rich content contained in our bibliographic records is still not being used to its greatest potential."
Key points?
We should examine next generation catalogues because:
1. So far, a build it and they will come approach has been taken with these catalogues;
2. Discovery tool overlays, such as Encore and AquaBrowser, are not integrated with the catalogue, but sit on top, like an interface;
3. Next generation catalogue features are not based on large scale of evidence; and
4. Rich content contained in our bibliographic records is still not being used to its greatest potential."
Goddard
Goddard
Linked Data tools: Semantic Web for the masses / Lisa Goddard and Gillian Byrne
Semantic Web technologies have immense potential to transform the Internet into a distributed reasoning machine that will not only execute extremely precise searches, but will also have the ability to analyze the data it finds to create new knowledge. This paper examines the state of Semantic Web (also known as Linked Data) tools and infrastructure to determine whether semantic technologies are sufficiently mature for non–expert use, and to identify some of the obstacles to global Linked Data implementation.
Semantic Web technologies have immense potential to transform the Internet into a distributed reasoning machine that will not only execute extremely precise searches, but will also have the ability to analyze the data it finds to create new knowledge. This paper examines the state of Semantic Web (also known as Linked Data) tools and infrastructure to determine whether semantic technologies are sufficiently mature for non–expert use, and to identify some of the obstacles to global Linked Data implementation.
Sindice - The semantic web index
Sindice - The semantic web index: "Sindice - Data Web Services
Billion pieces of reusable information can already be found across hundreds of millions web pages which embed RDF and Microformats. Start consuming this data today with Sindice Data Web services."
Billion pieces of reusable information can already be found across hundreds of millions web pages which embed RDF and Microformats. Start consuming this data today with Sindice Data Web services."
Sindice - The semantic web index
Sindice - The semantic web index: "Sindice - Data Web Services
Billion pieces of reusable information can already be found across hundreds of millions web pages which embed RDF and Microformats. Start consuming this data today with Sindice Data Web services."
Billion pieces of reusable information can already be found across hundreds of millions web pages which embed RDF and Microformats. Start consuming this data today with Sindice Data Web services."
Cloud Computing Needs Standards - Utility Computing
Cloud Computing Needs Standards - Utility Computing: "Cloud computing will not reach its full potential until management and contextual standards are fully developed and stable -- so buyers of cloud services need to choose carefully."
A Simple HTML5 RDFa Example « 3kbo
A Simple HTML5 RDFa Example « 3kbo: "A Simple HTML5 RDFa Example
As part of learning HTML5 and RDFa I put together a Simple HTML5 RDFa Example, using a photo Irene took of Minoan Figurines during a trip to Crete for the main content."
As part of learning HTML5 and RDFa I put together a Simple HTML5 RDFa Example, using a photo Irene took of Minoan Figurines during a trip to Crete for the main content."
Resource Discovery Taskforce
Resource Discovery Taskforce: "The resource discovery taskforce (RDTF) vision poses a number of challenging technical questions such as:
What is an aggregation?
How do institutions contribute open metadata?
What metadata and standards do we use?
How do you build interfaces that developers will be keen to use?
What needs to be done to existing services and aggregations?"
What is an aggregation?
How do institutions contribute open metadata?
What metadata and standards do we use?
How do you build interfaces that developers will be keen to use?
What needs to be done to existing services and aggregations?"
Open Bibliographic Data Guide
Open Bibliographic Data Guide: "It’s all about the business case
Andy McGregor, the JISC Programme Manager explains:
Why are libraries around the world devoting time and resources to releasing their bibliographic data under an open licence? What’s in it for them and what are the costs and practical issues involved? JISC’s purpose for this guide is to try and provide some answers to these questions and to help academic librarians think about the potential implications for their own library.
One of the possibilities that open bibliographic data offers is the chance for libraries and indeed anyone to reuse the data to build innovative services for researchers, teachers, students and librarians. JISC will be exploring these possibilities through the work of the Resource Discovery Task Force."
Andy McGregor, the JISC Programme Manager explains:
Why are libraries around the world devoting time and resources to releasing their bibliographic data under an open licence? What’s in it for them and what are the costs and practical issues involved? JISC’s purpose for this guide is to try and provide some answers to these questions and to help academic librarians think about the potential implications for their own library.
One of the possibilities that open bibliographic data offers is the chance for libraries and indeed anyone to reuse the data to build innovative services for researchers, teachers, students and librarians. JISC will be exploring these possibilities through the work of the Resource Discovery Task Force."
Digital Libraries Initiative - Member States Expert Group (MSEG) | Europa - Information Society
Digital Libraries Initiative - Member States Expert Group (MSEG) | Europa - Information Society: "NEW Public hearing of the Comité des Sages on Bringing Europe's Cultural Heritage Online
On 28 October 2010 the Comité held a public hearing to gather the stakeholders' views to feed its reflection and the production of its final report.
Agenda
Video of the hearing Part 1 Part 2 (original language EN; with FR, DE interpretations)
The following position papers have been submitted to the Comité:"
On 28 October 2010 the Comité held a public hearing to gather the stakeholders' views to feed its reflection and the production of its final report.
Agenda
Video of the hearing Part 1 Part 2 (original language EN; with FR, DE interpretations)
The following position papers have been submitted to the Comité:"
Institutional Repository Bibliography
Institutional Repository Bibliography: "The Institutional Repository Bibliography (IRB) presents selected English-language articles, books, technical reports, and other scholarly textual sources that are useful in understanding institutional repositories. (See the scope note for further details.)
Most sources have been published between 2000 and the present; however, a limited number of key sources published prior to 2000 are also included. Where possible, links are provided to e-prints in disciplinary archives and institutional repositories for published articles. Note that e-prints and published articles may not be identical."
Most sources have been published between 2000 and the present; however, a limited number of key sources published prior to 2000 are also included. Where possible, links are provided to e-prints in disciplinary archives and institutional repositories for published articles. Note that e-prints and published articles may not be identical."
13 November 2010
Linked Open Data star scheme by example « Web of Data
Linked Open Data star scheme by example « Web of Data: "Linked Open Data star scheme by example
I like TimBL’s 5-star deployment scheme for Linked Open Data. However, every time I use it to explain the migration path from ‘no-data-on-the-Web’ to the ‘Full Monty’, no matter if to students, in training sessions or to industry partners, there comes a point where it would be very handy to refer to a concrete example that demonstrates the entire scheme.
Well, there we go. At
http://lab.linkeddata.deri.ie/2010/star-scheme-by-example/"
I like TimBL’s 5-star deployment scheme for Linked Open Data. However, every time I use it to explain the migration path from ‘no-data-on-the-Web’ to the ‘Full Monty’, no matter if to students, in training sessions or to industry partners, there comes a point where it would be very handy to refer to a concrete example that demonstrates the entire scheme.
Well, there we go. At
http://lab.linkeddata.deri.ie/2010/star-scheme-by-example/"
Rough draft poem: Document, what art thou?
Rough draft poem: Document, what art thou?: "Rough draft poem: Document, what art thou?
I am the Data Container, Disseminator, and Canvas.
I came to be when the cognitive skills of mankind deemed oral history inadequate.
I am transcendent, I take many forms, but my core purpose is constant - Container, Disseminator, and Canvas.
I am dexterous, so I can be blank, partitioned horizontally, horizontally and vertically, and if you get moi excited and I'll show you fractals.
I am accessible in a number of ways, across a plethora of media.
I am loose, so you can access my content too.
I am loose in a cool way, so you can refer to moi independent of my content.
I am cool in a loose way, so you can refer to my content independent of moi.
I am even cool and loose enough to let you figure out stuff from my content including how its totally distinct from moi.
But...
I am possessive about my coolness, so all Containment, Dissemination, and Canvas requirements must first call upon moi, wherever I might be.
So...
If you postulate about my demise or irrelevance, across any medium, I will punish you with confusion!
Remember...
I just told you who I am.
Lesson to be learned..
When something tells you what it is, and it is as powerful as I, best you believe it.
BTW -- I am Okay with HTTP response code 200 OK :-)"
I am the Data Container, Disseminator, and Canvas.
I came to be when the cognitive skills of mankind deemed oral history inadequate.
I am transcendent, I take many forms, but my core purpose is constant - Container, Disseminator, and Canvas.
I am dexterous, so I can be blank, partitioned horizontally, horizontally and vertically, and if you get moi excited and I'll show you fractals.
I am accessible in a number of ways, across a plethora of media.
I am loose, so you can access my content too.
I am loose in a cool way, so you can refer to moi independent of my content.
I am cool in a loose way, so you can refer to my content independent of moi.
I am even cool and loose enough to let you figure out stuff from my content including how its totally distinct from moi.
But...
I am possessive about my coolness, so all Containment, Dissemination, and Canvas requirements must first call upon moi, wherever I might be.
So...
If you postulate about my demise or irrelevance, across any medium, I will punish you with confusion!
Remember...
I just told you who I am.
Lesson to be learned..
When something tells you what it is, and it is as powerful as I, best you believe it.
BTW -- I am Okay with HTTP response code 200 OK :-)"
inkdroid › routers, webcams and thermometers
inkdroid › routers, webcams and thermometers: "At the end of the day, it would be useful if the W3C could de-emphasize httpRange-14, simplify the Architecture of the World Wide Web (by removing the notion of Information Resources), and pave the cowpaths we already are seeing for Real World Objects on the Web. It would be great to have a W3C document that guided people on how to put URIs for things on the web, that fit with how people are already doing it, and made intuitive sense. We’re already used to things like our routers, cameras and thermometers being on the web, and my guess is we’re going to see much, much more of it in the coming years. I don’t think a move like this would invalidate documents like Cool URIs for the Semantic Web, or make the existing Linked Data that is out there somehow wrong. It would simply lower the bar for people who want to publish Linked Data, who don’t necessarily want to go through the process of using URIs to distinguish non-Information Resources from Information Resources.
If the W3C doesn’t have the stomach for it, I imagine we will see the IETF lead the way, or for innovation to happen elsewhere as with HTML5."
If the W3C doesn’t have the stomach for it, I imagine we will see the IETF lead the way, or for innovation to happen elsewhere as with HTML5."
Annotator | Open Knowledge Foundation
Annotator | Open Knowledge Foundation: "Annotator
Open-Source Annotation Toolkit for Inline, Online Web Annotation
Simple javascript (+backend) library for web-annotation. Main goals were and are:
Annotation of arbitrary text ranges
Annotate any web (html) document
Easy to use — 2 lines of javascript to insert this in your web page/app etc
Well-factored and library-structured — easy to integrate and easy to extend"
Open-Source Annotation Toolkit for Inline, Online Web Annotation
Simple javascript (+backend) library for web-annotation. Main goals were and are:
Annotation of arbitrary text ranges
Annotate any web (html) document
Easy to use — 2 lines of javascript to insert this in your web page/app etc
Well-factored and library-structured — easy to integrate and easy to extend"
Catalogablog: VRA Core Schemas now Hosted by Library of Congress
Catalogablog: VRA Core Schemas now Hosted by Library of Congress: "The VRA Core is a data standard for the description of works of visual culture as well as the images that document them. The standard is now being hosted by the Network Development and MARC Standards Officeof the Library of Congress (LC) in partnership with the Visual Resources Association . VRA Core’s schemas and documentation are now accessible at http://www.loc.gov/standards/vracore/ while user support materials, such as VRA Core examples, FAQs and presentations, will continue to be accessible at http://www.vraweb.org/projects/vracore4/
In addition, a new listserv has been created called The Core List (vracore@loc.gov). The Core List is an unmoderated computer forum that allows users of the VRA Core community to engage in a mutually supportive environment where questions, ideas, and tools can be shared. The Core List is operated by the Library of Congress Network Development and MARC Standards Office. Users may subscribe to this list by filling out the subscription form at the VRACORE Listserv site"
In addition, a new listserv has been created called The Core List (vracore@loc.gov). The Core List is an unmoderated computer forum that allows users of the VRA Core community to engage in a mutually supportive environment where questions, ideas, and tools can be shared. The Core List is operated by the Library of Congress Network Development and MARC Standards Office. Users may subscribe to this list by filling out the subscription form at the VRACORE Listserv site"
JISC Digital Media - Cross media: Open Source and Free Software Directory
JISC Digital Media - Cross media: Open Source and Free Software Directory: "The following tables comprise a selective guide to various free and open source software tools for a variety of digital media applications.This is an attempt to provide a first port of call for those looking for free and/or open source applications on the Internet. There is a bewildering array of such software and, as a result, we cannot hope to make this directory comprehensive. In addition, the almost daily changes in existing applications and the constant arrival of new ones means that the accuracy of information in these tables can’t be guaranteed.What this directory can provide is an easy way into the maze of applications on the Internet and a useful list of some of the most popular tools available. A quick glance at the tasks in the left hand column will immediately lead to one or more appropriate applications along with information about what machines it or they will work on. We hope to provide evaluations of some of these applications in the near future as well as keeping the directory as up-to-date as we can."
ICON: International Coalition on Newspapers
ICON: International Coalition on Newspapers: "The International Coalition on Newspapers is a coordinated multi-institutional effort to increase the availability of international newspaper collections by improving both bibliographic and physical access to global newspaper collections."
Research support services: What services do researchers need and use? | Research Information Network
Research support services: What services do researchers need and use? | Research Information Network: "The project’s goal was to discover researchers’ needs and desires in a small sample of UK and US universities and to identify the significant patterns, intersections, gaps and issues from researchers’ points of view, whatever the source of such services."
09 November 2010
W3C eGovernment Wiki
W3C eGovernment Wiki: "eGovernment Interest Group
The mission of the eGovernment Interest Group (eGov IG) is to explore how to improve access to government through better use of the Web and achieve better government transparency using open Web standards at any government level (local, state, national and multi-national). The eGov IG is designed as a forum to support researchers, developers, solution providers, and users of government services that use the Web as the delivery channel, and enable broader collaboration across eGov practitioners.
Find more in the executive summary. Learn more about eGovernment at W3C."
The mission of the eGovernment Interest Group (eGov IG) is to explore how to improve access to government through better use of the Web and achieve better government transparency using open Web standards at any government level (local, state, national and multi-national). The eGov IG is designed as a forum to support researchers, developers, solution providers, and users of government services that use the Web as the delivery channel, and enable broader collaboration across eGov practitioners.
Find more in the executive summary. Learn more about eGovernment at W3C."
dl.org - DL.org Mission & Vision
dl.org - DL.org Mission & Vision: "DL.org is mobilising Digital Library (DL) designers, developers, end-users and researchers from diverse domains in the drive towards interoperability, best practices and modelling foundatons for the enhanced development of next-generation DL systems. Specific outputs include an enhanced, community-driven DL Reference Model and a Technology & Methodology Cookbook with a portfolio of best practices and solutions on common issues for the development of large-scale interoperable DL systems. The Request for Comments version of the Cookbook is now available. Upcoming events: Education & Research� on Digital Libraries, 9 Nov, Parma. [Read More]"
Nodalities � Blog Archive � LOD Around-the-Clock (LATC)
Nodalities � Blog Archive � LOD Around-the-Clock (LATC): "The challenge that all of these accidental technologists face is how to surface data and bring data together in meaningful ways. As Google’s chief economist Hal Varian has said, the scarce factor is no longer the data, which is essentially free and ubiquitous, but now the “scarce factor is the ability to understand that data and extract value from it.”
The emerging Web of Linked Data is the largest source of this data—multi-domain, real-world and real-time data—that currently exists. As data integration and information quality assessment increasingly depends on the availability of large amounts of real-world data, these new technologists are going to need to find ways to connect to the Linked Open Data (LOD) cloud."
The emerging Web of Linked Data is the largest source of this data—multi-domain, real-world and real-time data—that currently exists. As data integration and information quality assessment increasingly depends on the availability of large amounts of real-world data, these new technologists are going to need to find ways to connect to the Linked Open Data (LOD) cloud."
Nodalities � Blog Archive � “Linked Data” at the Guardian
Nodalities � Blog Archive � “Linked Data” at the Guardian: "During October at Guardian News & Media we announced a change in our Open Platform Content API. For the first time, developers and users could query our database of over 1 million content items by using the common external identifiers of a MusicBrainz ID or an ISBN number. It is our first step into the world of ‘Linked Data’.
The Open Platform Content API was launched as a beta in 2009, and earlier this year was launched as a commercial product, allowing partners to re-use Guardian & Observer content in a variety of different ways. There is, for example, a Wordpress plugin that easily allows you to include Guardian content in your blog, and developers have built applications like a bespoke recipe search on top of the data. It is a unique proposition amongst news organisations on the web, and as well as the Content API itself, the Open Platform also includes publishing the source data behind Guardian journalism on the Data Store, and providing a search engine for Government datasets from around the world."
The Open Platform Content API was launched as a beta in 2009, and earlier this year was launched as a commercial product, allowing partners to re-use Guardian & Observer content in a variety of different ways. There is, for example, a Wordpress plugin that easily allows you to include Guardian content in your blog, and developers have built applications like a bespoke recipe search on top of the data. It is a unique proposition amongst news organisations on the web, and as well as the Content API itself, the Open Platform also includes publishing the source data behind Guardian journalism on the Data Store, and providing a search engine for Government datasets from around the world."
Home | CivicApps.org
Home | CivicApps.org: "Welcome to CivicApps!
Making public data easy to find and easy to use.
The first annual CivicApps Challenge is now open! This unique innovation event recognizes and rewards the best ideas and apps from the community. Join this growing community of innovative thinkers! Help us identify and recognize the best ideas and apps in the region. Share your own ideas. Submit an app to make life easier for everyone. So get your thinking caps on, share your ideas, and show us what you've got.
BE HEARD. Tell us the ideas you would like to see realized. Comment and vote for ways to make public information more accessible and useful.
GET INVOLVED. Show us how to use, combine and represent the information government holds in more useful and interesting ways. Your ideas provide data and input for developers to better understand the local communities' needs and create apps that matter.
TURN IDEAS INTO REALITY. Apps are what make it happen. Your participation is what turns the vision for public data into reality. Submit ideas that unlock the potential of local data and you could win cool stuff."
Making public data easy to find and easy to use.
The first annual CivicApps Challenge is now open! This unique innovation event recognizes and rewards the best ideas and apps from the community. Join this growing community of innovative thinkers! Help us identify and recognize the best ideas and apps in the region. Share your own ideas. Submit an app to make life easier for everyone. So get your thinking caps on, share your ideas, and show us what you've got.
BE HEARD. Tell us the ideas you would like to see realized. Comment and vote for ways to make public information more accessible and useful.
GET INVOLVED. Show us how to use, combine and represent the information government holds in more useful and interesting ways. Your ideas provide data and input for developers to better understand the local communities' needs and create apps that matter.
TURN IDEAS INTO REALITY. Apps are what make it happen. Your participation is what turns the vision for public data into reality. Submit ideas that unlock the potential of local data and you could win cool stuff."
DCMI Metadata Terms
DCMI Metadata Terms: "DCMI Metadata Terms
Title: DCMI Metadata Terms
Creator: DCMI Usage Board
Identifier: http://dublincore.org/documents/2010/10/11/dcmi-terms/
Date Issued: 2010-10-11
Latest Version: http://dublincore.org/documents/dcmi-terms/
Replaces: http://dublincore.org/documents/2008/01/14/dcmi-terms/
Translations: http://dublincore.org/resources/translations/
Document Status: This is a DCMI Recommendation.
Description: This document is an up-to-date specification of all metadata terms maintained by the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative, including properties, vocabulary encoding schemes, syntax encoding schemes, and classes."
Title: DCMI Metadata Terms
Creator: DCMI Usage Board
Identifier: http://dublincore.org/documents/2010/10/11/dcmi-terms/
Date Issued: 2010-10-11
Latest Version: http://dublincore.org/documents/dcmi-terms/
Replaces: http://dublincore.org/documents/2008/01/14/dcmi-terms/
Translations: http://dublincore.org/resources/translations/
Document Status: This is a DCMI Recommendation.
Description: This document is an up-to-date specification of all metadata terms maintained by the Dublin Core Metadata Initiative, including properties, vocabulary encoding schemes, syntax encoding schemes, and classes."
06 November 2010
04 November 2010
29 October 2010
26 October 2010
10 October 2010
jangle.org
jangle.org
Introduction and Background to Jangle
Jangle is a specification for applying the Atom Publishing Protocol (AtomPub) to library resources and for exposing these resources simply and RESTfully.
There are three basic principles that define Jangle:
- The library information model is broken up into four discrete concepts or entities: Actors, Resources, Items and Collections.
- The Jangle architecture is divided into two components, the Jangle core: the public facing AtomPub interface; and one or many connectors: applications that contain the business logic for translating specific systems into Jangle.
- The Jangle core and connectors communicate via an HTTP REST API using a defined JSON syntax.
Mental Models in bibliographic universe
Jan Pisanski and Maja Žumer have written a pair of articles about user testing the FRBR model. They appear inJournal of Documentation (66: 5) but preprints are available online:
- Mental Models of the Bibliographic Universe, Part 1: Mental Models of Descriptions (PDF, preprint) (DOI: 10.1108/00220411011066781)
- Mental Models of the Bibliographic Universe, Part 2: Comparison Task and Conclusions (PDF, preprint) (DOI: 10.1108/00220411011066772)
Abstract:
Purpose – The paper aims to present the results of the first two tasks of a user study looking into mental models of the bibliographic universe and especially their comparison to the Functional Requirements for Bibliographic Records (FRBR) conceptual model, which has not yet been user tested.
Design/methodology/approach – The paper employes a combination of techniques for eliciting mental models and consisted of three tasks, two of which, card sorting and concept mapping, are presented herein. Its participants were 30 individuals residing in the general area of Ljubljana, Slovenia.
Findings – Cumulative results of concept mapping show a strong resemblance to FRBR. Card sorts did not produce conclusive results. In both tasks, participants paid special attention to the original expression, indicating that a special place for it should be considered.
Research limitations/implications – The study was performed using a relatively small sample of participants living in a geographically limited space using relatively straight-forward examples.
Practical implications – Some solid evidence is provided for adoption of FRBR as the conceptual basis for cataloguing.
Originality/value – This is the first widely published user study of FRBR, applying novel methodological approaches in the field of Library and Information Science.
30 September 2010
XTF
XTF: "What is XTF?
The eXtensible Text Framework (XTF) is a powerful open source platform for providing access to digital content. Developed and maintained by the California Digital Library (CDL), XTF functions as the primary access technology for the CDL's digital collections and other digital projects worldwide."
The eXtensible Text Framework (XTF) is a powerful open source platform for providing access to digital content. Developed and maintained by the California Digital Library (CDL), XTF functions as the primary access technology for the CDL's digital collections and other digital projects worldwide."
28 September 2010
Kent State University School of Library and Information Science IMLS-funded FRBR Project
Kent State University School of Library and Information Science IMLS-funded FRBR Project: "FRBR-Based Systems to Effectively Support User Tasks and Facilitate Information Seeking"
European RDA Interest Group (EURIG)
European RDA Interest Group (EURIG): "8 Aug 2010: RDA in Europe: making it happen! EURIG-JSC seminar on RDA"
10 September 2010
Open Government Data
Open Government Data: "Beyond Access: Open Government Data and the 'Right to Reuse''"
09 September 2010
06 September 2010
31 August 2010
02 August 2010
29 July 2010
21 July 2010
16 July 2010
Working Group Connection
Working Group Connection
July 2010
Working Group Connection is a quarterly supplement to the monthly NISO Newsline e-newsletter. Working Group Connection provides the latest news from NISO's working groups and committees. Working Group Connection will keep you up-to-date on the progress of all of the standards and recommended practices in development and maintenance, letting you know both what is new and what is forthcoming.
July 2010
Working Group Connection is a quarterly supplement to the monthly NISO Newsline e-newsletter. Working Group Connection provides the latest news from NISO's working groups and committees. Working Group Connection will keep you up-to-date on the progress of all of the standards and recommended practices in development and maintenance, letting you know both what is new and what is forthcoming.
15 July 2010
Official Google Research Blog: Our commitment to the digital humanities
Official Google Research Blog: Our commitment to the digital humanities: "Our commitment to the digital humanities
Wednesday, July 14, 2010 at 7/14/2010 03:45:00 AM
Posted by Jon Orwant, Engineering Manager for Google Books, Magazines and Patents
(Cross-posted from the Official Google Blog)
It can’t have been very long after people started writing that they started to organize and comment on what was written. Look at the 10th century Venetus A manuscript, which contains scholia written fifteen centuries earlier about texts written five centuries before that. Almost since computers were invented, people have envisioned using them to expose the interconnections of the world’s knowledge. That vision is finally becoming real with the flowering of the web, but in a notably limited way: very little of the world’s culture predating the web is accessible online. Much of that information is available only in printed books."
Wednesday, July 14, 2010 at 7/14/2010 03:45:00 AM
Posted by Jon Orwant, Engineering Manager for Google Books, Magazines and Patents
(Cross-posted from the Official Google Blog)
It can’t have been very long after people started writing that they started to organize and comment on what was written. Look at the 10th century Venetus A manuscript, which contains scholia written fifteen centuries earlier about texts written five centuries before that. Almost since computers were invented, people have envisioned using them to expose the interconnections of the world’s knowledge. That vision is finally becoming real with the flowering of the web, but in a notably limited way: very little of the world’s culture predating the web is accessible online. Much of that information is available only in printed books."
Go To Hellman: What IS an eBook, Anyway?
Go To Hellman: What IS an eBook, Anyway?: "What IS an eBook, Anyway?
One of my secret pleasures at American Library Association meetings is going to Standards sessions. Now before you think I have a completely hopeless case of nerdiness, let me explain myself.
There's never just one Standards session at ALA, there are at least two and often three or more. I'm not sure why, but I think it's because librarians feel that standards are Important, and because there are so many Standards in the library world that people forget which ones were the subject of a Standards session at the last meeting. Its not that librarians are interested in Standards, it's just that they have lots of data problems that might magically go away, if only there were a Standard. Or not."
One of my secret pleasures at American Library Association meetings is going to Standards sessions. Now before you think I have a completely hopeless case of nerdiness, let me explain myself.
There's never just one Standards session at ALA, there are at least two and often three or more. I'm not sure why, but I think it's because librarians feel that standards are Important, and because there are so many Standards in the library world that people forget which ones were the subject of a Standards session at the last meeting. Its not that librarians are interested in Standards, it's just that they have lots of data problems that might magically go away, if only there were a Standard. Or not."
International � Blog Archive � Europeana-UK 2010 Builds on Last Year’s Success
International � Blog Archive � Europeana-UK 2010 Builds on Last Year’s Success: "Europeana-UK 2010 Builds on Last Year’s Success
On Monday last week Collections Trust hosted the second Europeana-UK Conference at the�Kingsway Hall Hotel�in London.
Over�75 attended the conference this year, an increase of 25% on 2009. Organisations included the full range from nationals to small local museums, and all parts of the UK were represented.
As with last year the conference was part the work of the ATHENA Project, one of the Europeana Group projects providing content to Europeana. ATHENA is funded under the eContentplus programme, a multiannual European Community programme to make digital content in Europe more accessible, usable and exploitable."
On Monday last week Collections Trust hosted the second Europeana-UK Conference at the�Kingsway Hall Hotel�in London.
Over�75 attended the conference this year, an increase of 25% on 2009. Organisations included the full range from nationals to small local museums, and all parts of the UK were represented.
As with last year the conference was part the work of the ATHENA Project, one of the Europeana Group projects providing content to Europeana. ATHENA is funded under the eContentplus programme, a multiannual European Community programme to make digital content in Europe more accessible, usable and exploitable."
eFoundations: Going LOCAH: a Linked Data project for JISC
eFoundations: Going LOCAH: a Linked Data project for JISC: "Going LOCAH: a Linked Data project for JISC
Posted by PeteJ at 12:24 08 July 2010 in Linked Data , Metadata , Research , Semantic Web | Permalink
Recently I worked with Adrian Stevenson of UKOLN and Jane Stevenson and Joy Palmer of MIMAS, University of Manchester on a bid for a project under the JISC O2/10 call, Deposit of research outputs and Exposing digital content for education and research, and I'm very pleased to be able to say that the proposal has been accepted and the project has been funded."
Posted by PeteJ at 12:24 08 July 2010 in Linked Data , Metadata , Research , Semantic Web | Permalink
Recently I worked with Adrian Stevenson of UKOLN and Jane Stevenson and Joy Palmer of MIMAS, University of Manchester on a bid for a project under the JISC O2/10 call, Deposit of research outputs and Exposing digital content for education and research, and I'm very pleased to be able to say that the proposal has been accepted and the project has been funded."
DigitalKoans � Blog Archive � Digital Preservation: PARSE.Insight Presentations and Report
DigitalKoans � Blog Archive � Digital Preservation: PARSE.Insight Presentations and Report: "Digital Preservation: PARSE.Insight Presentations and Report
PARSE.Insight (Permanent Access to the Records of Science in Europe) has released several presentations and reports.
Audit and Certification: Towards an Ecology of Repositories
Insight into Digital Preservation of Research Output in Europe
Science Data Infrastructure Roadmap
What We Learnt from PARSE.Insight"
PARSE.Insight (Permanent Access to the Records of Science in Europe) has released several presentations and reports.
Audit and Certification: Towards an Ecology of Repositories
Insight into Digital Preservation of Research Output in Europe
Science Data Infrastructure Roadmap
What We Learnt from PARSE.Insight"
I2 Midterm Report (June 2010) - National Information Standards Organization
I2 Midterm Report (June 2010) - National Information Standards Organization: "NISO Request for Comments on Institutional Identifier Midterm Work to Date
Feedback Requested by August 2, 2010
Download the Midterm Release for Comment
Provide Feedback on the Release Here"
Feedback Requested by August 2, 2010
Download the Midterm Release for Comment
Provide Feedback on the Release Here"
Confessions of a Graph Addict
Confessions of a Graph Addict: "Libraries and Linked Data
Confessions of a Graph Addict
Ed Summers
June 24, 2010"
Confessions of a Graph Addict
Ed Summers
June 24, 2010"
08 July 2010
07 July 2010
06 July 2010
Netherlands Coalition for Digital Preservation A Future for our Digital Memory (2): Strategic Agenda 2010‐2013 for Long‐Term Access to Digital Resourc
Netherlands Coalition for Digital Preservation
A Future for our Digital Memory (2):
Strategic Agenda 2010‐2013
for Long‐Term Access to Digital Resources
The problem
http://www.ncdd.nl/en/documents/10-13strategicagendaNCDD_EN.pdf
A Future for our Digital Memory (2):
Strategic Agenda 2010‐2013
for Long‐Term Access to Digital Resources
The problem
http://www.ncdd.nl/en/documents/10-13strategicagendaNCDD_EN.pdf
PLANETS SUITE
PLANETS SUITE
PLANETS (Preservation and Long-term Access through Distributed NETworkS)
Planets is a four-year project co-funded by the European Commission to address core digital preservation challenges. The project has developed a suite of software tools and services to support preservation and long-term access to digital content.
Planets: http://planets-project.eu
PLANETS (Preservation and Long-term Access through Distributed NETworkS)
Planets is a four-year project co-funded by the European Commission to address core digital preservation challenges. The project has developed a suite of software tools and services to support preservation and long-term access to digital content.
Planets: http://planets-project.eu
Report on government practices in communication and preservation
http://www.planets-project.eu/docs/reports/Planets_DT7_D5_GovernmentPractices.pdf
PLANETS: Publications
PLANETS: Publications
2 Case Studies found:
The National Archives of the Netherlands and Emulation
Posted on 6th July 2010
The National Archives of the Netherlands is the largest public archives in the Netherlands and the custodian of the national record of Dutch Government. Increasingly, these records are digital, and are being housed in the National Archive's custom-built e-Depot. Since 2002, the National Archives has carried out research into the feasibility of strategies to preserve different types of digital objects. This case study considers the appropriateness of emulation to preserve dynamic records such as spreadsheets and databases where migration is not a suitable option. [PDF, 525KB]
Digital Folklore Preserved for the Future
Posted on 6th July 2010
The Royal Library in Copenhagen is the National Library of Denmark. In 2008, it merged with the Danish Folklore Archives. As a result, the Royal Library has need to ingest a rapidly growing collection of materials from published works, manuscripts, documents and maps to pictures, photographs and music representing Danish folklore and that of other parts of the world. This case study examines how the two institutions have used Planets characterisation and planning tools to profile digital objects before transferring them to the Royal Library's digital preservation store. [PDF, 1513KB]
23 June 2010
22 June 2010
Outstanding ICT initiative award winner announced : JISC
Outstanding ICT initiative award winner announced : JISC: "In the end, the Open University (OU) entry was chosen for its virtual learning environment called OpenLearn which has widened access to education and transformed learning in developing countries."
Seeing Standards
Seeing Standards: "The sheer number of metadata standards in the cultural heritage sector is overwhelming, and their inter-relationships further complicate the situation. This visual map of the metadata landscape is intended to assist planners with the selection and implementation of metadata standards.
Each of the 105 standards listed here is evaluated on its strength of application to defined categories in each of four axes: community, domain, function, and purpose. The strength of a standard in a given category is determined by a mixture of its adoption in that category, its design intent, and its overall appropriateness for use in that category.
The standards represented here are among those most heavily used or publicized in the cultural heritage community, though certainly not all standards that might be relevant are included. A small set of the metadata standards plotted on the main visualization also appear as highlights above the graphic. These represent the most commonly known or discussed standards for cultural heritage metadata.
Content: Jenn Riley
Design: Devin Becker
Work funded by the Indiana University Libraries White Professional Development Award"
Each of the 105 standards listed here is evaluated on its strength of application to defined categories in each of four axes: community, domain, function, and purpose. The strength of a standard in a given category is determined by a mixture of its adoption in that category, its design intent, and its overall appropriateness for use in that category.
The standards represented here are among those most heavily used or publicized in the cultural heritage community, though certainly not all standards that might be relevant are included. A small set of the metadata standards plotted on the main visualization also appear as highlights above the graphic. These represent the most commonly known or discussed standards for cultural heritage metadata.
Content: Jenn Riley
Design: Devin Becker
Work funded by the Indiana University Libraries White Professional Development Award"
20 June 2010
Library Catalogues: From Dominance to Decline? The Future of Bibliographic Discovery, Access and Delivery � ResourceShelf
Library Catalogues: From Dominance to Decline? The Future of Bibliographic Discovery, Access and Delivery � ResourceShelf: "Library catalogues have been moving from a position of dominance to one of decline in bibliographic discovery, access and delivery in recent years. Their contents are largely invisible to search engines. The process of cataloguing is complex and difficult to master and users struggle to understand catalogues and therefore take full advantage of their added value elements. There is an extraordinary amount of duplication of effort in catalogue creation across the sector and considerable doubt about whether the current model of localised catalogues is sustainable."
18 June 2010
DCMI/NKOS Task Group
DCMI/NKOS Task Group: "The DCMI Metadata Provenance Task Group aims to define an application profile that allows for making assertions about description statements or description sets. The AP should create a shared model of the data elements required to satisfactorily describe an aggregation of metadata statements in order to collectively import, access, use and publish facts about the quality, rights, timeliness, data source type, trust situation, etc. of the described statements."
1 [OCLC]
1 [OCLC]: "The catalog is out of the box
By Andy Havens and Tom Storey
For hundreds of years, metadata was kept in a box. Literally. A wooden box, filled with paper cards. Libraries cataloged for one reason: to be able to find resources on a shelf. Today, though, we’re seeing a growing importance placed on metadata management activities. In an increasingly information-driven world, good metadata is the key to more than finding the right item.
Data-about-data is now used to track materials, assess needs, compare collections, inform research, manage workflows, plan budgets and even make friends. Catalogers have been joined by publishers, retail outlets, shipping companies, researchers, faculty, Web programmers, search engine optimizers and end users in the flow of metadata creation and modification. This puts libraries, and catalogers, right in the middle of a revolution in how we think about representing and describing information. And the more partners we can involve in these processes, the more chances libraries have to add value up and down a variety of data supply chains."
By Andy Havens and Tom Storey
For hundreds of years, metadata was kept in a box. Literally. A wooden box, filled with paper cards. Libraries cataloged for one reason: to be able to find resources on a shelf. Today, though, we’re seeing a growing importance placed on metadata management activities. In an increasingly information-driven world, good metadata is the key to more than finding the right item.
Data-about-data is now used to track materials, assess needs, compare collections, inform research, manage workflows, plan budgets and even make friends. Catalogers have been joined by publishers, retail outlets, shipping companies, researchers, faculty, Web programmers, search engine optimizers and end users in the flow of metadata creation and modification. This puts libraries, and catalogers, right in the middle of a revolution in how we think about representing and describing information. And the more partners we can involve in these processes, the more chances libraries have to add value up and down a variety of data supply chains."
Slice of Research Life report [OCLC]
Slice of Research Life report [OCLC]: "New Report: 'A Slice of Research Life: Information Support for Research in the United States'
DUBLIN, Ohio, USA, 16 June 2010—Relationships between researchers and traditional library and university support for research have shifted radically; many of the services most valued by researchers are found not in the library but on the network.
The majority of researchers interviewed for this study use online tools - and commercial services - related to their discipline rather than tools provided by their university. This report summarizes interviews held with researchers, research assistants, graduate students, grant and other research administration specialists, and university administrators at four elite U.S. research universities. It complements a similar study undertaken in four English universities, to be published shortly. This joint research results from a partnership between OCLC Research and the UK's Research Information Network. Participants reported on how they use information in the course of their research, what tools and services are most critical and beneficial to them, where they continue to experience unmet needs, and how they prioritize use of their limited time."
DUBLIN, Ohio, USA, 16 June 2010—Relationships between researchers and traditional library and university support for research have shifted radically; many of the services most valued by researchers are found not in the library but on the network.
The majority of researchers interviewed for this study use online tools - and commercial services - related to their discipline rather than tools provided by their university. This report summarizes interviews held with researchers, research assistants, graduate students, grant and other research administration specialists, and university administrators at four elite U.S. research universities. It complements a similar study undertaken in four English universities, to be published shortly. This joint research results from a partnership between OCLC Research and the UK's Research Information Network. Participants reported on how they use information in the course of their research, what tools and services are most critical and beneficial to them, where they continue to experience unmet needs, and how they prioritize use of their limited time."
13 June 2010
Utilizan las matem�ticas para “leer” textos antiguos e indescifrables
Utilizan las matem�ticas para “leer” textos antiguos e indescifrables: "Utilizan las matem�ticas para “leer” textos antiguos e indescifrables
La entrop�a revela que series de s�mbolos pictos aparentemente aleatorios constitu�an un lenguaje
Un equipo de investigadores de la Universidad de Exeter, en Escocia, ha aplicado la entrop�a o “medida del desorden” al an�lisis de una serie de s�mbolos pictos, hasta ahora indescifrables. Gracias a este m�todo, han conseguido establecer que dichos s�mbolos no eran aleatorios o meramente repetitivo, sino que constitu�an un lenguaje. Los cient�ficos afirman que el sistema podr�a aplicarse a muchos otros restos arqueol�gicos para interpretar escrituras enigm�ticas pero, tambi�n, a la comunicaci�n animal para descubrir, por ejemplo, qu�cantidad de informaci�n se transmiten los delfines a trav�s de los sonidos que emiten. Por Yaiza Mart�nez."
La entrop�a revela que series de s�mbolos pictos aparentemente aleatorios constitu�an un lenguaje
Un equipo de investigadores de la Universidad de Exeter, en Escocia, ha aplicado la entrop�a o “medida del desorden” al an�lisis de una serie de s�mbolos pictos, hasta ahora indescifrables. Gracias a este m�todo, han conseguido establecer que dichos s�mbolos no eran aleatorios o meramente repetitivo, sino que constitu�an un lenguaje. Los cient�ficos afirman que el sistema podr�a aplicarse a muchos otros restos arqueol�gicos para interpretar escrituras enigm�ticas pero, tambi�n, a la comunicaci�n animal para descubrir, por ejemplo, qu�cantidad de informaci�n se transmiten los delfines a trav�s de los sonidos que emiten. Por Yaiza Mart�nez."
12 June 2010
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog � Blog Archive � Dig the new breed, Part III - wrapping it all up
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog � Blog Archive � Dig the new breed, Part III - wrapping it all up: "Dig the new breed, Part III - wrapping it all up
June 11th, 2010
This is the third in the amazing series of guest blogs from Ant Beck on the impact of linked open data for archaeology.
Part 1: New approaches to archaeological data analysis, as seen in the DART and STAR projects Part 2: Considering the ethics of sharing archaeological knowledge
OK, to recap we have:
A scientific movement that advocates open approaches to data, theory and practice
Emerging foundational interoperability using semantic web technology
The potential to remove a barrier and facilitate the submission of primary data"
June 11th, 2010
This is the third in the amazing series of guest blogs from Ant Beck on the impact of linked open data for archaeology.
Part 1: New approaches to archaeological data analysis, as seen in the DART and STAR projects Part 2: Considering the ethics of sharing archaeological knowledge
OK, to recap we have:
A scientific movement that advocates open approaches to data, theory and practice
Emerging foundational interoperability using semantic web technology
The potential to remove a barrier and facilitate the submission of primary data"
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog � Blog Archive � Dig the new breed, Part II - open archaeology and ethics
Open Knowledge Foundation Blog � Blog Archive � Dig the new breed, Part II - open archaeology and ethics: "Dig the new breed, Part II - open archaeology and ethics
June 11th, 2010
The second in this great series of three guest blogs by Ant Beck. See Part 1 for applications of linked data and remote sensing in archaeology. Part 3 will wrap things up and talk about the disruptive implications of linked open data for impact of archaeology."
June 11th, 2010
The second in this great series of three guest blogs by Ant Beck. See Part 1 for applications of linked data and remote sensing in archaeology. Part 3 will wrap things up and talk about the disruptive implications of linked open data for impact of archaeology."
Google Reader (728)
Google Reader (728): "Dig the new breed, Part II - open archaeology and ethics
by jwalsh
1 person liked this
The second in this great series of three guest blogs by Ant Beck. See Part 1 for applications of linked data and remote sensing in archaeology. Part 3 will wrap things up and talk about the disruptive implications of linked open data for impact of archaeology.
Open Science provides the framework for producing transparent and reproducible science by providing open access to raw data, algorithms and interpretations. Efforts such as STAR and STELLAR provide the foundation from which fine granularity excavation data can be made available as part of the semantic web and feed into Open Science analysis. This provides answers to the questions of how and why we should have open access to archaeological data. However, it does not provide answers to what data should be opened or if archaeological data should be opened at all. We move into the sphere of ethics and open archaeology."
by jwalsh
1 person liked this
The second in this great series of three guest blogs by Ant Beck. See Part 1 for applications of linked data and remote sensing in archaeology. Part 3 will wrap things up and talk about the disruptive implications of linked open data for impact of archaeology.
Open Science provides the framework for producing transparent and reproducible science by providing open access to raw data, algorithms and interpretations. Efforts such as STAR and STELLAR provide the foundation from which fine granularity excavation data can be made available as part of the semantic web and feed into Open Science analysis. This provides answers to the questions of how and why we should have open access to archaeological data. However, it does not provide answers to what data should be opened or if archaeological data should be opened at all. We move into the sphere of ethics and open archaeology."
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