The Semantic Web for Everyone
The Ideas of the Semantic Web have been developed since 1999 and have matured into international Standards of the World-Wide-Web Consortium.
Tim Berners-Lee, the Inventor of the World Wide Web was quite dissatisfied with the missing Meaning and is promoting the "Semantic Web" since the mid-90's.
Semantics is the Theory of Meaning and that is exactly what is missing e.g. in Search Results from Google or bing. They and many Scientists are working hard on it, approaching it from different Angles.
The Problem:
The Problem is that Computers do not "understand" Web Pages or Email.
The closest they come to understand are Applications written by Programmers in strange Languages like 'Java' or 'C'.
But even that is far from our human Concept of 'Understanding', which also includes being able to reason about something.
The closest goal now is to bring Computers at least to the Level described above, so it can support us better. As James
Hendler says:
A little Semantics goes a long Way
What is the current State?
The Semantic Web has been hyped in certain Communities and as usually, by now has cooled off.
Despite this its Core Components are commonly used by Wikipedia, Google and Web Developers since their Inception, if for nothing else but to increase Search Engine Accuracy.
Spoc-Web also uses these international W3C Standards and thus can tap into the vast Pool of Knowledge not only of Wikipedia, but any Web-Page without requiring a Human (You) to read or skim through them.
Ingredients: Things, Properties and Relations
In this Section we will look at the Topics described in the Introduction at a little more technical Level. If You want to know how Spoc-Web interoperates with Wikipedia or other Spoc-Web Databases it helps to dig deeper.
Thing = Name = URI
The only necessary Feature of a Thing is its unique Identity and that is given by a so-called URI. URIs are close Cousins to the well-known Browser URLs. The only Difference is that there is not necessarily something to download when You enter a URI into a Browser.
URIs are guaranteed to be unique world-wide, therefore You can use them to denote distict real-world Things.
Since these URIs are quite long, even in abbreviated Namespace Notation, Spoc-Web uses the localized Name You enter.
Predicate = Text, Number or Date/Time
Things want to be filled with Meaning and to do this, You add Properties describing them.
Predicates are Sets of Properties with a common Meaning like "Height", "Weight", "Color", "given Name" etc.
In Spoc-Web, Properties come in three Types:
- Numbers: this can be anything: the Weight, Length, Height or geographic Location of the Thing
- Date and Time: e.g. the Date of the Thing Creation and possibly Destruction
- Text: the Thing Name is mandatory, Descriptions are optional
Text is localized, so that the Things can be re-used across Spoc-Web Databases worldwide.
Spoc-Web comes with a common Set of about 500 Core Predicates, but You can create new Predicates as You like and use them weherever You want.
Relation = Types of Relationships
Things slowly form in Your Mind and initially don't even have a Name. The only Thing to such a Thing is its Identity and that must be given by Name and a so-called URI. The well-known Browser URLs are also URIs. The only Difference is that there is not necessarily something to download when You enter a URI into a Browser. Spoc-Web automatically generates URIs, but You rarely need to know them, because You have the brief and readable Name thay You chose.
URIs are guaranteed to be unique world-wide, therefore You can use them to denote distict real-world Objects.
Since these URIs are quite long, even in abbreviated Namespace Notation, Spoc-Web usually uses the localized Name.