On 1/27/09 1:24 PM, Samuel Rose wrote:
Things that cannot be done without LD:
I don't think there is technically anything that explicitly cannot be
done without Linking Open Data.
Samuel,
I profoundly believe that there are things that cannot be achieved
without "Linked Data".
Now before I progress, let be clear about "Linked Data". We have:
1. "Linked Data" the meme from TimBL re. adding datum level linkage
between resources on the Web (hyperdata) which is (imho) short for:
Linked Data Web or Web of Linked Data
2. "Linked Data" in a much broader sense covering the application /
incorporation of HTTP into the time-tested "Data Access By Reference"
pattern (pointers) commonly used at the OS and DBMS levels to access and
manipulate data.
Irrespective of 1&2 specifics, there is one common theme: integration of
disparate data sources without application, operating system, or network
level impediments. Basically, untethered "data access by reference"
courtesy of an HTTP based pointer system.
Note: The ubiquity of HTTP, combined with its inherent ability to
negotiate referent (what you point to with a URI) description
representation, is the source of its potency.
For eons (computer industry time) in the distributed computing realm,
the ability to reference and de-reference an object (datum) via a
pointer that's functional across application, operating system, and
network boundaries has been the "holy grail" ; many technologies have
tried an failed re. this pursuit, and the stories are engraved in the
technology tombstones of efforts such as: corba, cairo, copeland,
opendoc, ole, and others.
I hope I've clarified what Linked Data's USP really is.
btw - Linking Open Data (LOD) is about a community that adheres to a set
of "best practices" for publishing data on the Web in a manner that
facilitate datum level linkage (hyperdata links) in addition to existing
document level linkage (hypertext links).
--
Regards,
Kingsley Idehen Weblog: http://www.openlinksw.com/blog/~kidehen
President& CEO
OpenLink Software Web: http://www.openlinksw.com
