Web Identifiers
Recommendation 1: review Cabinet Office guidance[1] on the creation of URIs for the UK public sector and W3C guidelines on ‘Cool URIs[2].’ Draft conformant recommendations for the community. [Link]
Recommendation 2: engage the community in identifying a core set of widely used identifiers (probably including existing JACS codes, institutional identifiers, etc) and facilitate or encourage creation of new HTTP URIs in line with the guidance in Recommendation 1. Where necessary, clarify licensing ambiguities to ensure that core identifiers are freely available for exploitation by academic institutions and those building applications on their behalf. [Link]
Recommendation 3: assess existing infrastructure that members of the community may use in hosting personal profiles, linked to institutional, professional and social network identities as appropriate. Quantify community requirements and identify gaps in provision in order to target additional effort if required. [Link]
Data Publishing
Recommendation 4: evaluate the effectiveness of the Office of Public Sector Information (OPSI) Unlocking Service[3], and consider whether a similar approach might be used in helping the community identify data sets to prioritise. [Link]
Recommendation 5: evaluate the effectiveness of existing community efforts such as Data Incubator[4], and establish a register of individuals and organisations able to convert data or provide the necessary training. Allocate funding to a number of initial data conversions, prioritising proposals that demonstrate a meeting of data, conversion skills, and an identifiable user community with clearly expressed requirements. [Link]
Recommendation 6: undertake work to validate existing data licenses such as those from the Open Data Commons. Actively engage with Government work on data licensing[5]. Disseminate findings via relevant JISC channels e.g. Innovation Support Centres and Advisory Services, and evaluate the feasibility of high level endorsement for an Open Data approach. [Link]
Recommendation 7: demonstrate the utility of embedding RDFa on institutional web pages by providing funding to add RDFa to course and module descriptions, mandating use of common identifiers such as those offered by JACS. Award funding to demonstrations of added value, such as a UK course finder or a plug-in for a professional body’s web site that advertises courses relevant to the profession. Assess the role of XCRI[6] in supporting exposure of course data to the web. [Link]
Supporting Measures
Recommendation 8: Identify ways in which the community can consume and contribute to existing data services. [Link]
Recommendation 9: identify a focus for Linked Data activities, perhaps within an existing JISC Innovation Support Centre or Advisory Service. Encourage and assist institutions in exploring Linked Data approaches for themselves. [Link]
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[1] http://www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/media/308995/public_sector_uri.pdf
[2] http://www.w3.org/TR/cooluris/
[3] http://www.opsi.gov.uk/unlocking-service/OPSIpage.aspx?page=UnlockIndex
[4] http://dataincubator.org/
[5] http://perspectives.opsi.gov.uk/2010/01/licensing-and-datagovuk-launch.html
[6] http://www.xcri.org/