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Using FOAF To Support
Community-Building
Brian Kelly
UKOLN
University of Bath
Bath
Email
[email protected]
URL
http://www.ukoln.ac.uk/
Leigh Dodds
ingenta
Bath
Email
[email protected]
UKOLN is supported by:
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
Aims Of This Paper
This paper aims to:
• Promote the ideas behind the Semantic Web
• Provide an easy-to-comprehend and easy-to-use
demonstration of a Semantic Web application
• Demonstrate simple authoring tools for FOAF
• Encourage use of the tools by all IADIS
participants
• Encourage the developer community to build on
existing work
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
About The Semantic Web (1)
The Semantic Web:
• Why is it needed?
The Semantic Web is needed is order to
provide a more structured Web in which
resources can be brought together for a
variety of purposes
• What is it?
The Semantic Web can be regarded as a
global distributed database, which can be
developed without central coordination
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
About The Semantic Web (2)
The Semantic Web:
• How is it done?
The Semantic Web is an XML application
which contains a simple mathematical
model which defines relationships which
are defined using a URI
• What are the challenges?
The Semantic Web is perceived as difficult
to understand. These apparent difficulties
provide a barrier to its deployment
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
Is It Difficult?
The mathematical model behind the Semantic
Web is based on simple tuples, as illustrated
Brian
knows
Leigh
The relationship ('knows' in this case) is defined at a URI
UKOLN
Brian
DC.Created by
FOAF
paper
Leigh
01225 xxx
Is this really conceptually difficult?www.ukoln.ac.uk
A centre of expertise in digital information management
FOAF – A Simple SW Application
FOAF:
•
•
•
•
Stands for "Friend Of A Friend"
Provides structured links
Information distributed & extensible
Avoids data protection concerns
Leigh's
friend 1
My
friend 1
Me,
email,
work place,
friends
…
Leigh,
email, …
location,
interests
friends
My
friend nA centre of expertise in digital information management
Leigh's
friend n
www.ukoln.ac.uk
FOAF Example (1)
AFurther
view of my
Leigh's FOAF
FOAF
file,
information
file,
showing
showing
links
in my
FOAF
his
additional
to
filemy friends
information
FOAF
Explorer
<http://xml.mfd-consult.dk/foaf/explorer/>
A centre of
expertise in -digital
information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
FOAF Example (2)
FOAFNaut - <http://www.foafnaut.org/>
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
Creating FOAF
Several types of FOAF authoring tools are available:
• Do it by hand
• Web-based tools
• Dedicated tools
• Using a Wiki
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
What Does This Provide?
We have shown :
• An interface to a structured Web, known as the
Semantic Web
• Examples of different clients for viewing this
Semantic Web
• Examples of how the data is extensible
• Examples of simple authoring tools
What we need now is:
• Motivating factors to encourage uptake
• Richer tools for data-mining
This is similar to the Web in 1992, before authoring
tools were popular, before search engines were
invented and only technical content was available
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
FOAF And Events
We are using events (conferences, seminars,
etc.) as a means to promote SW take-up:
• Delegates often want to establish links with
people they meet (cf. use of business cards)
• Encouraging delegates to create their own data
gets them motivated
• This also avoids data protection concerns and
places maintenance of individual
Use at technical conferences also provides:
• Feedback
• Opportunity to get developers engaged in further
work
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
What Next?
What can happen next:
• Further promotion of this concept at other events
• Encouragement for additional development:
• Dedicated viewing tools
• Search facilities
• …
Brian
Leigh
IADIS
WBC 2004
A centre of expertise in digital information management
XML 2004
Beyond Browsing
Find we people
who attended WBC
2004 and XML
2004 who have an
interest in xxx
www.ukoln.ac.uk
FOAFNaut
FOAFNaut application is being extended to include
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
visualisation
of events data
What Next – For You
Delegates
• Say hello to Brian – I can then add you to my
FOAF file
• Create a FOAF file and link to me
• Use foaf-a-matic 2.0 / conference Wiki tool / …
and include information on attendance at this
participations
• Promote FOAF and the SW in your institution
Conference Organisers
• Promote use of this approach
Developers
• Work with the FOAF community in developing
further tools
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
Conclusions
To conclude:
• We have (briefly) explained the rationale
for the Semantic Web
• We have demonstrated FOAF
• We have shown that using this Semantic
Web application is not difficult
• We hope we have encouraged you to:
• Create your own FOAF file
• Work with the FOAF development community
in further developing FOAF applications
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk
Further Information / Questions
About FOAF:
<http://www.foaf-project.org/>
FOAF-a-matic v2:
<http://www.ldodds.com/wordtin/Wiki.jsp?page=
FOAFaMaticMark2>
FOAF Wiki:
<http://rdfweb.org/topic/FoafProject>
A centre of expertise in digital information management
www.ukoln.ac.uk