On Mon, 16 Apr 2001 13:01:02 David W Forslund wrote:
...
> > A question that I have is how it fits into to world of SOAP, XML-RPC etc? Are we
>suppose to send RDF documents from one system to another via SOAP? If that is the
>case, then is RDF an alternative to ebXML?
>
>RDF documents can be sent around just like any other XML documents.
Right. But since there are several competing formats for representing metadata, I
thought it would be important to compare them. I found some discussion of RDF vs.
ebXML in the ebXML-architecture list through Google, links to some of the relevant
messages are listed below:
http://lists.ebxml.org/archives/ebxml-architecture/200005/msg00043.html
http://lists.ebxml.org/archives/ebxml-architecture/200005/msg00045.html
http://lists.ebxml.org/archives/ebxml-architecture/200005/msg00048.html
http://lists.ebxml.org/archives/ebxml-architecture/200005/msg00049.html
Since the goal of the OIO Library is NOT just to exchange "project directories" :-), I
thought it may warrant some attention from the participants of openhealth list.
For example, the OIO Library also supports exchange of OIO forms. Perhaps in the
future, it will support exchange of GEHR archetypes, FreePM templates, and DTD from
OpenEMed system? Maybe even translating between them?
So, I hope we can collectively consider what a reasonable metadata exchange mechanism
will be. The "projects database" data exchange will be the pilot application, if you
will.
Hopefully when it is done, Minoru and LinuxMedNews will be willing to participate in
testing it. :-)
> > Finally, as a first step in implemening RDF, is it a good idea to install a
>"button" on each folder and entry in the OIO Library so that the content of that
>folder or entry will be downloaded as a RDF document when the "button" is pressed?
>
>I don't know that that means.
Sorry. Let me explain.
The OIO Library is a metadata / data repository. Once a particular piece of metadata
or data has been discovered by the user, it should be downloadable in a convenient
format. Currently, all entries in the OIO Library can be "viewed"/rendered for the
web-browser client. This is fine for previewing an OIO-form and reading the
description and linking to a project's home page. However, for portability to another
OIO Library or a non-OIO Library content server, we need an XML or RDF data
export/import mechanism.
Currently, I am using OIO's forms XML format for the import/export of OIO forms
metadata. That works fine for exchanging OIO's plug-and-play web-forms. However, the
big question is what format we should use for other types of metadata / data? Should
we use RDF?
Regardless, a "button" will be placed on the webpage that describes the selected
"object". Once that button is clicked, the RDF or OIO-form will be downloaded! That is
what I was referring to.
>RDF should be used as a way of
>documenting the metadata used in a "form" or some other xml document.
Are you saying that the user should download both a RDF and another XML document? Kind
of like DTD + XML document?
>This can be used to validate the data, if needed. It provides more than
>a DTD does in that it allows one to describe the semantics of the
>information.
This makes sense but all the RDF examples that I have seen seem to embed content
information right in the RDF.
---------------------------
For example from (http://www.dlib.org/dlib/may98/miller/05miller.html):
<?xml:namespace ns = "http://www.w3.org/RDF/RDF/" prefix = "RDF" ?>
<?xml:namespace ns = "http://purl.oclc.org/DC/" prefix = "DC" ?>
<?xml:namespace ns = "http://person.org/BusinessCard/" prefix = "CARD" ?>
<RDF:RDF>
<RDF:Description RDF:HREF = "http://uri-of-Document-1">
<DC:Creator RDF:HREF = "#Creator_001"/>
</RDF:Description>
<RDF:Description ID="Creator_001">
<CARD:Name>John Smith</CARD:Name>
<CARD:Email>[EMAIL PROTECTED]</CARD:Email>
<CARD:Affiliation>Home, Inc.</CARD:Affiliation>
</RDF:Description>
</RDF:RDF>
---------------------------
So, although it can serve as metadata for another document, an RDF document seems to
be just another representation of the same information in the other document. In the
case of the OIO Library, all the information are in the relational database anyways.
So, it boils down to generating an RDF document or a HTML document from the same data
source? If the OIO Library generates a RDF document describing OpenEMed, for example,
why should it also generate another XML document describing OpenEMed?
Am I missing something?
Thanks in advance,
Andrew
---
Andrew P. Ho, M.D.
OIO: Open Infrastructure for Outcomes
www.TxOutcome.Org
Assistant Clinical Professor
Department of Psychiatry, Harbor-UCLA Medical Center
University of California, Los Angeles
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